How to make a good Goat Feed mix???

Question

I would like to put together a good goat feed mix that I can buy in bulk from my local grain elevator. I have heard good things about feeding goats corn and oats, and those are very redily available in my area of the country, so I would like to use those, but I don't know what the ratio should be of corn to oats. Would 50:50 be ok? Also, would it be helpful to add molasses to the mix? What are the pros and cons of using it? Again, how much should I put in the mix. This is for boer does that are pregnant, and then lactating, of course. They will also be getting minerals. I am new to the goat world, so any advice would be most helpful.

Answer 1

I've been raising boer, and boer cross meat goats, since 1999.

Are you showing the goats?  If you are showing the goats, then you need to feed them grain, make them fat, unhealthy, and appealing to the American eyes of the judges.

If you are not showing, and only have production does, producing kids you are selling for meat, then DO NOT feed grain!  

I'm sure you think I'm being a giant "B", but I'm not.  My business is all "farmgate."  My customers all come to my farm.  They are different ethnic people from all over the world, via the local University.

You know that perfect 80 -100 pound market wether everyone is telling you to breed for?  Well that wether is hogwash, unless you are selling your goats at auction.  Then other white people are buying up those goats and transporting them to market.

Your ethnic customers actually want a kid 3-4 months old, who's still nursing on momma.  That will be nearly 100% of your sales, if you are selling to Muslims.  They also want it to be an intact buck kid, not a wether.

If you are selling to Mexicans, they want a 1-3 year old goat.  They will also eat does.  They are about the only culture/ethnic group who will eat the does.

If you are selling to people from Jamaica, they want a LARGE buck, and age, just LARGE.  They will want to offer you $5 for your prime breeding buck.

Most of the other ethnic groups want a goat 1-2 years old, and a male goat.  Most of them want the goat to have been wethered.

Give your does protien/mineral tubs.  I get the Crystalyx brand.  Molasses IS A GOOD IDEA for end stage pregnant goats.  Also newly delivered, and nursing does.  The molasses will prevent ketosis.  

I use the CRYSTALYX® GOAT-LYX™ tub.  I buy them in 250 pound tubs.  They come smaller.  Note they are fairly easy to move where you want them, just turn them on their side, and roll them.  I have over 100 goats.

Here's a link:

http://www.crystalyx.com/sheepgoats/inde...

Scroll down, and open the PDF file on the Goat-Lyx product.  That will allow you to read the lable and ingrediants of the product.  This particular product is getting it's protien from hydrolyzed feather meal (gross, huh?).  You MUST read the lables.  You may not be able to get crystalyx brand in your area.

You may have to go with a different mineral/protien tub.  If you do, then READ THE LABLE.  Some of them get their protien with PIG FAT!  If you sell to Muslim customers, and they find out, you will not believe the anger you will cause.  Even if a religion is not yours, I do not believe it is cool to disrespect another religion.  Feeding pig fat to your goats would be disrespectful in the extreme!

I generally drop the tubs in the corrals a month before babies are supose to be born, and leave them for a month after babies are born.

The protien/mineral tubs will provide the copper, cobalt, and selenium goats need to produce healthy, vigorous kids.  DO NOT buy a tub that is marked for both goats and sheep!  Sheep are extremely sensitive to copper....just a little bit kills them.  So the tubs would not contain copper.  Goats have very high copper requirements and need it.

That is also why you cannot use lamb milk replacer to raise goat kids.  Goat kids weaken and die if you raise them on lamb milk replacer.  You MUST use kid milk replacer....they need that copper!

Goats need roughage, and a lot of it.  Mine are all high production meat does.  Most of my does now kid twice a year, every year.  I feed high quality alfalfa hay.  Does who are constantly becoming pregnant and producing kids can eat the high quality, dairy test alfalfa hay.  You do not have to spend the money for diary hay.  Just get a good quality, green, leafy, sweet smelling, alfalfa hay.  Goats do the very best on that.

Hopefully you have plenty of land for the goats to go out and browse.  Goats will graze if you only have pasture, but they prefer to browse (blackberries are a favorite).  

I also provide 50 pound salt & mineral blocks.  One is iodized salt and cobalt.  A brilliant blue block, cost about $8.  

Trace Mineralized Salt with added Selenium, a tannish block, about $6.  The third is Iodized salt, a pinkish bock, about $6.

All three are given free choice, on my farm, at all times.  Different goats want different suppliments.  This way they are able to choose for themselves which block to l**k on.

Since you said corn is readily avaliable in your area, you probably live in an area where lack of iodine is a problem.  Give your goats iodize suppliments, or you will have goats with huge goiters on their necks.  Ugly, but harmless for people to eat such goats.  However customers shun away from them, believing them to have some horrible cancer.

I move my goat herd from Washington state, to Idaho.  I had a spat of my first goats kids born here getting small goiters.  I corrected the problem simply by offering the correct mineral and salt suppliments.

The mineral/protien tubs are baked in molasses.  Feeding them along with quality hay, free choice of other salt and mineral blocks, and fresh water is all you need (except for your pasture).

You've probably never seen a goat slaughtered before, but I've seen hundreds of them.  Goats develop fat internally.  It kind of hangs on the INSIDE of their ribs, spine, and forms along certain parts of the intestines.  That's why goat meat is so very heatlhy.  When you butcher, nearly every bit of the fat is removed.

If you feed grain, the goats become obese by goat standards, and develop a layer of fat over their body, mostly the rib area.  Your ethnic customers (even if you sell your goats at auction and never actually meet on of your customers) will feel they have been cheated, and sold an unhealthy goat.

Feeding grain also messes with the PH of the goats rumen.  It makes their rumen extremely acidic, and becomes a THRIVING breeding ground for the E.coli bacteria.  You can shut down ALL of the bacterial activity in a goats rumen if you feed too much grain.  Then a goat will begin to bloat.  You have only about 10 minutes then, to save the goats life.  You MUST stab them (yes stab them) with a knife high up on the left flank.  You will be stabbing into the rumen, which will allow the life threatening gasses to escape.  If you do not do this, the goat will die in HORRIBLE agony!  

If you absolutely must have some sort of feed formula to take to your grain elevator, 1/3 alfalfa pellets, 1/3 shreaded beet pulp, 1/3 wet COB (Wet COB is Corn Oats & Barley, with molasses on it...that's the "wet" part).

Black oil sunflower seeds are an excelent idea too, but really expensive in my neck of the woods.

If you want a link of an excelent yahoo goat group to join, then email me.  The group is on  commercial meat goats (NOT show goats).

~Garnet

Homesteading/Farming over 20 years

Raising meat goats since 1999

Answer 2

Below are two great links to add to your information. The trick will be to make an amendment to their browsing that will keep them healthy and keep you from going broke. Consider growing some of your own grains and supplements while the weather cooperates. Also look into hydroponic feeding units, especially if you want milk and especially if you live in the snow belt where feed prices and hay will really set you back a few good dollars. Whatever you decide to do make ALL diet changes very gradual especially with pregnant goats, those still feeding young, and those young. Milking goats can  dry or reduce sharply if stressed. If you want info on hydroponic feeding units, a great way to save huge money especially in the winter, and especially if you want a higher fat content, send me an email. I consider that proprietary info and though I share for free, I am a control freak when it comes to my intellectual work.

Answer 3

You need to feed about half hay. Alfalfa is good. You might consider putting a few black oil sunflower seeds in the mix.

Skip the molasses and crimp the grain if you can.

Goats need copper and other minerals.

"loose salt (iodized), baking soda and loose trace mineral mix"

Male goats, especially wheters need 1 tsp. Ammonium Chloride per 150 pounds of feed to keep them from getting Urinary calculi. Lots of fresh water and salt will help.

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