Shoaf Plantation ---- Nigerian Dwarf Goats---
CARING FOR YOUR NEW GOAT KID
Caring for your kid properly is simple, but there are a few things you will need to be mindful of. The information that we give you here is intended to help you build a good relationship with your kid and to help you keep it healthy and happy. There are a lot of goat sites and information on the internet that you can read up on. We are just giving you the basics.
Crying.
Your new kid WILL cry. It is in a new place, it misses mom, and it doesn’t know you well yet. Some kids will cry themselves hoarse. Attention and cuddling/rubbing will help alleviate the crying. Kids will cry less if they have a companion kid with them. Sometimes, for a single kid, some sort of small stuffed animal or a rolled up towel in it's quarters will calm them. For bottle babies, the ticking of a wind up clock might mimic the mom's heartbeat and calm your kid. The crying usually subsides by the third day.
Bonding.
Kids need attention! Especially during the first 2 weeks that you have it. Whether your kid is bottle feeding or raised by it’s mom, it now needs your attention. It is best to keep your kid in a small enclosure for the first week or so until it bonds with you. A 10ft x10ft chain link fence works well. This will minimize the need to chase the kid to interact with it. Working with it in close quarters will minimize stress and speed the bonding process. Talk to it so it can learn your voice. Goats can learn their names. The more you talk to it, the calmer it will be. Rub you kid on the body, face,and neck. Don’t rub your kid between the ears and eyes, or in the horn area. This will cause the goat to develop pushing issues which can lead to butting. STAY CALM! Don’t rush towards your kid or move suddenly as this will cause it to run and be nervous. Playing rough with your goat will cause aggressiveness. Stress will cause a goat lots of sickness and vet bills.
Bottle Feeding.
If you have chosen to bottle feed you kid, you are in for a treat as well as a chore. Powdered goats milk replacer and bottles/nipples can be found at Tractor Supply, Southern States, and other feed/farm/supply stores. You can also use regular whole cows milk from the grocery store, instead of powdered milk replacer. We recommend using whole milk.
You can also use real goat milk if you can find a supplier. Sometimes it is offered for sale on Craigslist. Just be sure that the lactating goat has been tested clear of Johnes disease.
If using powder, we recommend that for the first week of feeding that you double the amount of water listed on the bag instructions, so the formula is not too rich that it loosens the kid's bowels.
Whether you use powdered replacer or whole milk, for the first week, you need to also add a teaspoon of Karo syrup to each 16 oz of milk. This will help keep the kids sugar level up during the transition.
A human baby bottle and nipple will work, but We like using the red "Prichard" nipple that screws on top of a soda bottle. It is shaped more like a mother goat's nipple and the kids accept it easier. It can be found at Tractor Supply, Southern States, and other feed/farm/supply stores.
Your kid will need to be fed a minimum of three times per day. Although it is best if you can feed 4-5 times a day. The more you feed, the faster and better it will grow. It will be reluctant to take the nipple the first day. While you cradle the kid in your arms, you will have to forcibly open its mouth and hold the nipple in. Squeeze a little milk into its mouth, even if it is messy. The kid will usually take very little milk the first day because the bottle and feel of the nipple is foreign to it. By the second day, your kid will be hungry. It might still be reluctant to take the nipple, but once it tastes the milk it usually will readily suck. Usually by the third day the kid will readily take the nipple and suck. And within the week it will be coming to you looking for the bottle. For the rest of it’s life this goat will practically be in your pocket!
When your kid is less that a week old it will only drink 2-8 ounces of milk per feeding. By the time it is a month old it might take 12-16 ounces per feeding. Of course this will depend on how often you feed. The kid will not over nurse. It will stop sucking when it gets full. Adjust the amount that you feed as to how much it desires. You will need to bottle feed for a minimum of 8 weeks, then start weaning by gradually cutting the amount and the frequency of feedings. It should be fully weaned from the bottle by 3 months old.
It's a good idea to rub on the kid's anus with your moistened finger or a warm moist rag while it is sucking the bottle. This will mimic the way the mother would lick it and will stimulate the kid to defecate and urinate.
Your kid will normally start experimenting with grass/weeds by the third week. You can put a little grain/pellets in a bowl for it to start sampling about this time. Sometimes it helps the transition to solid food if you put a little grass or pellets in their mouth for a few days. Some folks find it helpful to “lightly dust” the pellets with the powdered milk. Don’t be alarmed if your kid progresses a little slower or faster than this. Every kid is different. Just work with it and keep it healthy.
We recommend that you give your kid a preventative coccidia treatment when it is 3-5 weeks old.
Health Care.
Find yourself a veterinarian that has worked with goats. You will need a vet sooner or later. (IF YOU CAN'T AFFORD A VET BILL, THEN YOU SHOULD NOT BUY A GOAT). We use “Lexington Large Animal Medicine” on E.L Myers Road, in the Reeds community (336-787-4934). You might choose to take your goat to the vet semi-annually for maintenance or you might choose to do the routine health care yourself. If you do it yourself, you’ll need to do a worming treatment in the spring and fall (April-ish and September-ish). Ivermectin (injectable for cattle and swine) 2cc per 50lbs, squirted into the mouth works great. All goats will have some internal parasites. Nothing will immune the goat. The treatment is to keep the parasites at a manageable level so they don’t impair the goats health.
While you are doing their worming treatment, this is also a good time to check and trim their hooves. You can find good examples of how to do this on YouTube.
There are various vaccines, shots and tests that are available for goats. Your vet might recommend some of these. We hold to the “minimal medicine” approach. We feel that some of the vaccines and shots are unnecessary. We only medicate when we see a need for it. You decide what is best for your kid/goat.
Get a small bottle of antibiotic (LA-200 works well) and some small (20 gauge) needles. If your goat gets a cold or fever it’s good to have on hand until you can get to the vet.
Most of the medical supplies that you "might" need and the feed and tools can be found at Tractor Supply, Southern States, or online at www.valleyvet.com or www.jefferspet.com.
**Neutered males have a higher tendency to develop kidney stones IF they are neutered too young, and/or they don't have the proper diet.
*Male goats, especially neuters, need a diet that has a proper (2/1) calcium to phosphorus ratio. The best diet consists of minimal grain/pellets and maximum roughage (hay, weeds, grass). The roughage is needed to keep saliva levels up, which causes phosphorus to be defecated rather than urinated. The green roughage will provide vitamin A, which is necessary also.
*We think Purina Grower Goat pellets or DuMOR Goat Pellets are good feeds for most goats because they contains a small amount of coccidiostat, and Ammonium Chloride.
*All goats need access to good, dry, unmolded hay 24/7. Fescue, Bermuda, Timothy or Orchard Grass are all good hays.
*Rain water is best for goats. Well water tends to be hard (high in minerals). It can be beneficial to add Ammonium Chloride to their water to reduce kidney stone formation.
*All goats need loose minerals to partake of at will. We think Purina Goat Minerals is the best, but Sweetlix is a good brand also.
**See the following URL for more information:
www.betterhensandgardens.com/wethering-neutering-nigerian-dwarf-goats-via-banding/
Toxicity.
There are several plants that can be poison or toxic to goats when eaten. These include but are not limited to, molded hay, wild cherry, Japanese maple, boxwood, rhododendron, laurel, holly, tomato plants, potato plants, daffodils and azaleas. Remove these from the area your goats will be, or restrict them from the area where these plants are. If they do ingest these, and exhibit strange behavior, force feed them a mixture of ground up charcoal (without added lighter fluid) and vegetable oil, and get them to your vet. Sometimes a goat can eat a small amount of these plants and not be bothered.
Housing and Protection.
Goats are natural outside animals. They handle the cold and heat without assistance. However they HATE getting wet. So at a minimum they need a shelter to get out of the rain. It is best to have a 3 sided shelter so they can also have a wind block. Do not completely close in the shelter as this will cause dust congestion. It is best if they have access to some shade.
Some folks do raise goats inside of their home. They can be litter box trained or trained to do their business outside. We even know of one goat that was trained to use the toilet, but goats normally live outside.
Keep in mind that the pasture/yard fencing that you choose has a dual purpose. Not only does it need to keep the goat in, it also needs to keep the predators, such as dogs and coyotes, out. A 4ft high chain link or woven field wire is best. Gates should open inward to prevent goats from pushing the gate open. Electric fencing is great (and recommended) as an addition, but insufficient by itself.
Don’t leave goats and unproven dogs together unattended. Even the sweetest lap dog, given the right circumstances, will attack and kill a goat, especially a kid. Remember, by nature, dogs are predators and goats are prey.
Just contact us if you have other questions in caring for your kid. We are happy to answer your questions. We want your goat experience to be a great one.
L.W. & Cassandra Shoaf.