I need some sort of posts to support the cattle panels I use for my goat pen. However, I would prefer something that can be moved and reconfigured around my property as needed. Instead of driving posts permanently into the ground, could I set the posts in buckets full of cement to just make them really heavy? Or would the goats still be able to knock them over by leaning against them? I have 2 Nigerian dwarf wethers and 1 mini Nubian wether, if that makes a difference.

Hello! I'm looking for any recommendations on a good comprehensive goat care guide (specifically in book format) for my niece. She's getting two Nigerian dwarves. The adults are familiar with goat care so this is mostly a book for the kid so she can "independently" take care of her goats. Thanks!

26F here living with the family I nanny for in a new house on 3 acres. The mom and I are friends and both have had dreams of starting homesteads for a long time, and the dad isn't super interested so we're trying to team up and make plans for gardens, goats, and chickens! They also have 3 dogs and 3 little boys. We're trying to establish what order to do things in, so this might include a bit of permaculture/plant knowledge. The land is a big flat field with no trees and lots of invasive weeds, some safe for goats, some not, that seem to strip soil. The family is hoping to plant a ton of trees and have fairly dense woods in a decent chunk of the land.

My questions: Would it be smart to do some portable fencing to rotate goats through patches of the land to eat weeds and fertilize the soil? If we were to do the same with chickens would it make sense to do them together or one before the other? Should we pull weeds that Google says are poisonous for goats or trust that they'll avoid them if they have other things to graze on?

Thank you in advance!

I did treat with medicated pellets.

So we are picking up a 3 week old baby bottle fed goat. We have to pick her up today because the owner lives very far and she's in town only today. The other goat we were getting passed away this morning. So we want to get her a friend asap.

I'm in contact with another breeder who has goats ranging from 4-7 weeks old. How do 7 week old goats get along with a 3 week old goat? We may have younger options too but wanted your opinion on how 7 week Olds get along with 3 week olds?

Thoughts on feed mix? I've recently started mixing my own personal feed mix for my lactating does and dry does that still have some growing to do. I still feed my kids under 8 months and bucks a commercial medicated feed to prevent coccidia and its already 2:1 balanced. Wethers get no extra feed, womp womp. Anyhow, I'd like some input from more seasoned dairy goat raisers to see what their thoughts are on this feed mix. I dont want to give them anything unnecessary or unhelpful. I'm always learning and adapting! My milkers and growing girls get a mix of 50%: MFM 17% lactating goat pellet, 25%: alfalfa pellets and 25%: equal parts of BOSS, shredded beet pulp, whole oats and steam rolled corn. I did have some sweet feed in there before but I didn't like the molasses in their diet so I cut that out.

I have tried googling this but the only reason I found for giving loose minerals over the blocks is that goats have softer tongues than cows do. But I get blocks specifically for goats and they definitely take some good chunks out of it. If they seem to be doing well with the block is there any reason to switch them over to loose minerals? I've also seen people offering a "mineral buffet" but I'm a bit concerned that could get pricey quite quickly. Thoughts?

I can't think of a reason why this wouldn't be ok as long as everything is measured out correctly, but does this pose any issue I'm not thinking about?

I live in NE Ohio. We have some wooded area that has a lot of trees and brush. I don't know what half of it is though. I am hoping to clear some of it out and plant some goat safe options. Have any suggestions on easily maintainable options?

Hello all, I am new here. Someone with great advice from the homesteading group suggested I join here as well since I am getting into raising goats. My LaMancha has just had her baby and unfortunately she has a teat defect (forked teat) that has her backing away anytime baby goes to nurse. (I have gotten great advice about the forked teat and know not to breed her, she was an inherited goat with my new property)
We did get baby to nurse right after birth from the non-forked teat, but only by holding Mom still. Obviously we can't be doing that all the time until weaning. I have been milking Mom by hand as much as she'll let me for the colostrum and have backup formula ready to go. I read the linked tutorial on how to get a baby to accept a bottle (patience, more patience and a little bit of trickery) but I am wondering if I should put Mom away while I am trying to get baby to accept the bottle for the first few times. I don't want to separate the two entirely, as other than not being happy about nursing she's being a great Mom. But I also don't want to get attacked while trying to feed the little one. Thoughts and advice appreciated.

Noticed my first buckling of the season wasn’t as energetic as usual and didn’t come up for food Tuesday evening. Yesterday morning he had this thousand yard stare and a wobbly head, looked like he was drunk.

Straight to the vet and got the dreaded news… Goat polio.

He’s separated in a slapped together pen close to the house and now the the battery of B and penicillins shots begins. Poor guy sounds miserable. He also has coccidia pretty bad. I had to use the drencher to get water and kid formula down him last night because I noticed he would stand by his food and water but doesn’t seem to be able to use his mouth properly at this stage.

Wish us luck. 😞