How to rear goats.What do they eat?

Question

diseases/sicknesses of goats & precautions and treatments.

Answer 1

Goats do not like to eat grass that much, they prefer hay and leaves.

(They are browsers)

Answer 2

I have sheep, not goats, but a lot of the principles are the same.

They eat grass, weeds, tree leaves, hay, grain.  My sheep have graze area when it's green out and this area includes some forest because they like browsing tree leaves.  Goats will do the same.  Depending on the breed and their size, about 4/acre is good.  When graze is limited, they get hay and some grain.  You can buy grains from blue seal like Coarse-16.  I also feed my sheep straight oats.  In the winter my sheep get grain both in the morning and evening.  In the summer, they rarely get it because there's lots to eat elsewhere.

Besides feeding, you need to think about shelter.  It depends on where you live how much shelter you need.  But, if you're going to breed them, you'll definitely need a place for the nannies to give birth and keep the kids out of the cold.

You also need to be aware of diseases.  Use a wormer and vaccinate against clostridium.  And, if you're going to have a billy goat, you'll need to understand the breeding cycle so you don't get kids when you aren't ready for them.

I recommend the Storey books for intros to raising animals.  They have two for goats, one for dairy: http://www.amazon.com/Storeys-Guide-Rais... and one for meat: http://www.amazon.com/Storeys-Guide-Rais...

I've had sheep for a while and when I started I knew nothing about them.  The Storey guide was great and I still use it as a reference about diseases, lambing, feed, etc.

I'd also recommend posting your question in the Agriculture section because someone there may have some specific experiences with goats that would be useful for you.