I have two nubian does and I x buckling that I got in a really bad state, they were not hard fed at all no hay or pellets let alone minerals and I could put my hand around one of the girls back hunches. Their feet were jelly (full of footrot) and the coats were aweful. I've had them about 2 1/2 months now and am feeding them by Pat Colebys recipie with a mineral salts supplement so they are picking up - but they are the most untidy goats Ive ever had! they have three padocks which I rotate and a shelter which I usually line with hay or straw but they manure all through the shelter and I am going through soo much bedding trying to keep them clean is this normal? I've had a saanen and a feral in the past and they were very clean.. If it isn't normal, any suggestions of what I could do to prevent it?

-- Jenny Butler (heavenleigh2938@hotmail.com), August 29, 2001

Answers

Do you mean they have diarrhea? Goat barns are usually quite easy to clean as you just fluff the top hay, straw or shavings, making the small berries go to the bottom, cleaning perhaps monthly. I don't usually bed the barns this time of the year, but with it being so dry (well it was, we have had 3 inches of rain last week and it is still drizzling) but just keep it raked out with a leaf rake. Winters we bed with shavings, adding some more to the top as it packs down, also cleaning out dirty spots and adding fresh shavings. Shavings are relatively cheap here in the piney woods, would love to use straw, but there is none, course some of the hay some folks feed looks like straw :) How about sharing Pat Coleby's feeding program? vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), August 29, 2001.

they were problaby used to going anywhere, cause, none cleaned their paddock. Give them some time,, they may figure it's better NOT to sleep in their own manure

-- stan (sopal@net-port.com), August 29, 2001.

Are they fed in their shelter now or were they fed in their shelter in the past? If so, they may still be in a starvation frame of mind, thinking they need to wait there just in case food shows up. Maybe you should shut them out of the shelter (only when you're around and the weather cooperates, of course) to try to break this habit. Also, they may simply have poor hygiene because they've never focused on anything except food. Another possibility, since their feet were so bad, is that they were confined inside in an uncleaned barn for quite awhile (which would cause feet to rot out badly) and are not comfortable being outside. I think I'd feed them outside also (weather allowing). I'd definately water them outside (regardless of weather). Good luck!

-- Sheryl in Me (radams@sacoriver.net), August 29, 2001.

LOL - I forgot to mention I am from New Zealand and our seasons are different its just coming out of winter into spring!

They aren't scouring they have little berries! Their shelter has no floor (we tried to have slats but they got too hard to keep clean so removed them) it has three sides and a roof and is about 3metres by 3metres square. They urinate and deficate inside leaving the shelter smelling horid I work full time and don't have time to muck out every day (we also have pigs, cows, sheep, chooks, ducks, cats and hubby) so evyone goes on the roster for time they usually get "tidied up" twce a week and fully mucked out every week. I have tried moving the shelter - I find it weird as my pigs don't mess their beds they go down the other end of their pen?

Previously they were left outside with little shelter - which was dominated by another herd of goats with horns, but one of the does is friendly and will now even stand to have her feet done - the others two I can bearly touch.

Pat Coleby wrote a book called "Natural Goat Care" I really reccommend it for anyone with goats. I feed 1 part lucerne chaff, 1 part bran, 1 part oaten chaff, 1/2part boiled barley, 1/2part boiled maize and 1dsp boiled linseed. Mix with 1 cup cider vinegar (pat uses minerals such as colbolt, copper etc) I use 20g per goat of solminex which is mineral salts formulated for milking goats. Their gums and eye lids are deep pink (almost white when I got them) now. Ad lib good hay.

I also feed a tonic of garlic, molases, cider vinegar, aloe, lemon juice every now and then to all the animals as a general conditioner

-- Jenny Butler (heavenleigh2938@hotmail.com), August 29, 2001.

Jenny that sounds like a wonderful mix! If it is that smelly after only a day with just the 3 goats, I am wondering if you could perhaps add more sand, since the berries have no smell, it is only the urine, and the buck :) When our numbers were up in the 80's yes we did keep the barn shut during nice weather!!

The rest of you, are you telling me that your goats go to the bathroom outside? I mean like, "Oh! I have to go to the bathroom so I am going to go outside the barn to.........?" Because though my girls can go out to browse anytime they want, they certainly aren't potty trained in the barn! :) We are lucky that the barn is up on an iron ore hill (a hill in our part of Texas is anything higher than 3 feet:) so our problem in the barn is the opposite of yours Jenny, mine got so dry and dusty that I threw down a bale of hay for them to tear apart for bedding. Good luck with this. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), August 29, 2001.

My goats aren't potty trained either. I've never yet owned a goat yet that was, and have had many.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), August 30, 2001.

I dont have anything other than a dog and cat that is potty trained. The horses, cow,goats and pig all come to the barn to poop. I spent my intire day yeasterday cleaning up poop and then cleaning more poop as they came in to poop. If it wasnt for they flies they sometimes need to get away from I would shut the barn. Makes you want to cuss!

-- the pooles (mpoole@link2000.net), September 03, 2001.

Sometimes, I think my does wait until the barn is clean, then have a "poopfest" as my youngest child calls it. Honestly...you would think they would want it clean, but nooooooooo! They can come and go in the barn as they please. It seems to me, they just go where ever the needs strikes them, with no apparent care where it is...except one goat. I think she plans out sometimes where she pees. She will back up to where the other goats are munching happily on the ground, and go to the bathroom right where they were eating. Then she trots off away from the offended goat. I have seen her do this every day since we got her. I put her on a leash yesterday for a bit so the other goats could eat without having her go to the bathroom on it.

-- Cindy in Ok (cynthiacluck@yahoo.com), September 03, 2001.