3. It is essential that
the newborn kids drink their mother's colostrum the first 24
hours. It is sometimes necessary to help a mother at
birth by drying amniotic fluid off a new born with a towel,
and then placing the kid under her teat. Hold the kid there
and make sure that it nurses. If for some reason, it doesn't
nurse within an hour after birth or if the mother rejects the
kid, then the colostrum needs to be milked out, and the baby
needs to be bottle-fed the colostrum. At this age, they will
only drink about an ounce at a time. They need to be fed at
least three times a day for the first 2 weeks. The red Pritchard
nipples that are available at Caprine Supply or Hoegger Supply
Company are a good size for Nigerian Dwarfs. If the kid is too
weak to nurse, then it will need to be tube fed. A veterinarian
or experienced breeder can help with this.
4. If you bottle feed a goat kid, and you have trouble
getting the kid to take the bottle there are a few helpful tricks
that can be used to help the kid nurse. Make sure the
milk is warm. Milk temperature is especially important to very
young kids. A goat's normal temperature is around 102 degrees,
a few degrees warmer than human temperature, so it should feel
slightly warmer than your skin to the touch. Be sure to shake
the bottle to get out any hot spots. Try forcing the kid's mouth
open, pushing the bottle in and cradling your hand around the
goat's mouth to hold the bottle in place. Rub the top of the
goat's head with your chin. This simulates the dark warmness
of the belly of the mother to a baby goat. If the kid has trouble
getting any milk after 12 hours, try adding a teaspoon of molasses
to the mild. Expect them to eat around 6-8 oz. 3 times a day
until they are 8-12 weeks old. They can be weaned using warm
water bottles with a teaspoon of molasses.
5. Always pasteurize goat milk that you
use to bottle feed to prevent the transmision of CAE (Caprine
Arthritis Encephalitis) unless the dam is tested negative and
your herd has tested negative for CAE. To pasteurize
the milk, using a candy thermometer or dairy thermometer (available
in goat catalogues) and a double boiler, heat the milk to 165
degrees and hold for 10 seconds. Then set the double boiler
pan in the sink or in a mixing bowl full of water. Colostrum
is treated differently than milk. It is heat treated rather
than pasteurized. The sensitive immune proteins in colostrum
can be destroyed but to kill pathogens, heat to 135 degrees
in a double boiler, and hold at that temperature for one hour,
carefully monitoring it the entire time that it is heated. Don't
let it go above 135 degrees.
6. The types of tests for disease that are available
that can be taken by veterinarians are: CAE (Caprine Arthritis
Encephalitis), CL (Caseous Lymphadenitis- abscesses), Johnes
"wasting disease", TB (Tuberculosis), and Brucellosis.
7. Vaccinations need to be given on a regular schedule.
If the dam had a CD/T (clostridium perfringens C and D type/tetanus)
one month before giving birth, the kids will gain immunity through
her colostrum to tetanus and to enterotoxaemia (a fatal disease
that the clostridium perfringerns vaccine prevents). The immunity
will last for the first 8 weeks of the kids' lives. If the dam
didn't have a vaccination, then it is necessary to give the
kids a tetanus shot before disbudding or wethering. Vaccinate
the kids at 8 weeks, and 12 weeks if the dam was vaccinated.
If she wasn't vaccinated, then give those kids a third vaccination
at 16 weeks. Vaccinate on an annual basis after the initial
shots.
8. The best way to be accurate with deworming is to
periodically take a stool sample of each goat to a veterinarian
or vet school. This is done by collecting the sample
in a paper cup, then storing it in a plastic bag marked with
the goats' name in the refrigerator until it can be delivered
to a vet. Deworm according to veterinarian prescription. Blanket
instructions cannot be given for deworming because every area
has its own types of parasites, each goat has its own parasite
load, and some areas have parasites that are resistant to worming
medications. Wormers are not approved for goats, so a veterinarian
needs to prescribe the proper amount of medication. If records
of the samples examined are kept, the breeder can take into
consideration using the goats that are resistant to parasites
in their breeding program. If a vet is not available, consult
Dr Patton, head of the parasitology lab at the University of
Tennessee for advice at spatton@utk.edu
9. Goats need hay, browse, and small amounts of grain
daily. Fresh grass can be used a source of roughage.
Fescue grass can cause does to dry up and should not be planted
in pastures. Alfalfa, mixed grass hay is good for lactating
does. Never use moldy hay with goats. Keep the hay up off the
ground if possible to prevent goats from walking on it and soiling
it. Take caution however, because hay racks can be a potential
danger for broken necks if a goat gets butted from the side,
gets hung in the hay rack, or gets caught in baling wire that
hasn't been off of a bale. Feed goat chow as a supplement to
add necessary vitamins to the diet. Horse feed is too high in
copper, and sheep feed has no copper. Adult goats need 1-2 cups
of feed a day, depending on size, maturity of the goat and whether
or not they are being milked. Kids need less feed. Throw out
feed that isn't eaten. Overeating, such as gorging on an open
bag of feed is very dangerous, and can cause death by enterotoxaemia.
Keep feed away from goats in a covered plastic container to
prevent mold growth. Goats are browsers, not grazers like sheep
prefer scrub on the forest floor to grass. They will browse
on plants such as ivy, blackberries, honey suckle, and they
love fallen, dry leaves. Tame goats follow you on walks in the
woods, and will stay close by as you walk without a leash. Each
herd of goats has a Queen goat that the herd has chosen after
head butting challenges. In the wild, the Queen decides when
to move to new grazing area, and the herd follows. Walking the
Queen goat on a leash in the beginning will help insure that
the goats stay close by until they feel safe in the new territory.
Cherry, rhododendron, and most landscaping plants are poisonous
to goats. When planting grass pastures for grazing, contact
the extension office in your area for suggestions of grass types.
Rotation of pasture is the best method for insuring a healthy
pasture and low parasite loads in goats.
10. Loose minerals, and white salt are a necessary
part of a goat's diet. White salt can be bought at
feed stores. Loose goat minerals need to be ordered. A source
for minerals is Nutritional Supply. This company also supplies
other excellent supplements such as kelp, and powdered yeast,
which are very high in vitamins and minerals. Sunflower seeds
can be added to the feed. Cattle, sheep and horse salt blocks
don't work for goats. A goat can't get the proper type and amount
of minerals from a salt block. Use only loose minerals. Diatomaceous
earth can be added to the feed as a mineral to help control
parasites or rubbed on the goat to control lice. Baking soda
(just like the kind found at the grocery stores) can be set
out to help neutralize the excess acidity that develops in a
goat's rumen caused by eating grain.
11. Bucks and wethers need ammonium chloride added to
their diet to prevent urinary blockage by calculi- a painful
type of condition that can only be corrected by surgery. Some
feeds such as Nutrena products add this to the feed. Ammonium
Chloride can be ordered as a supplement from Hoegger Supply
if you are unable to find a feed that has ammonium chloride
in it. Adding vinegar to the water occasionally is said to help
prevent urinary blockage. Overfeeding grain causes crystals
to form in the urinary tract. It is believed that waiting to
wether a buck until he is 4 months old when his urinary track
is mature helps prevent blockage. Bucks need to be separated
from does at 7-12 weeks to prevent accidental breeding. A buck
should have a companion buck or wether with it and not be alone.
12. Goats run for shelter with the first drop of rain.
Goats don't like to get wet! They need a clean, dry, draft free,
well-ventilated shelter from the elements and if there is a
danger of predators, they can be locked up at night. Use a gravel
or cement based floor with an inert mineral agricultural lime
spread over it. Parasitic fly control can be ordered from Peaceful
Pastures and released in the barn to control flies. In the winter,
cover with straw or shavings (hardwood or pine, not cedar.)
Clean frequently with a pitchfork to prevent a heavy muck build-up.
Goats like to sleep off the ground. Sleeping benches can be
constructed in the barn for the goats to sleep on. Goats handle
the cold and heat well.
13. Predators can be a threat to goats. Stray
dogs, neighborhood dogs, family dogs, coyotes, even hawks could
all be a potential danger to a helpless goat. If there is a
danger of predators, then the goats can be locked up at night
in a shelter. Livestock guardian dogs can be used such as the
Great Pyrenees for protection but be aware that they do require
training when they are puppies.
14. Tethering a goat can be dangerous. If it
is necessary for some reason to tether a goat, it is best to
supervise the goat while it is being tethered. A goat that is
tethered is helpless against predator attack, and could be strangled
by the tether. The best solution for containing a goat is to
build a small temporary pen.
15. Disbudding can be done at 10 days to 2 weeks of
age. Anesthesia can be deadly to a goat, however isoflurine
(available only at a veterinarian office) is safe to use with
goats. It is a gas that is administered with a mask that is
placed in the goat's face. It can be used to sedate the goat,
and prevent pain while disbudding. Many goat owners learn how
to disbud a goat on their farm with a disbudding iron. If the
goat is not disbudded at an early age, and the horn bud comes
through, it is more difficult to disbud. Scurs (small growths
of horn grow out of the horn area after disbudding) can occur
if the root of the horn is not completely burned out by the
disbudding iron. Surgery by a veterinarian is done if the goat
already has horns. The surgery is not recommended, it is traumatic
and requires a long recuperation with a head wrap. Disbudding
them also helps prevent the goats injuring each other in close
spaces. Goats are not likely to ever butt a human, but it is
advisable not to play with the goat's head when interacting
with the goat so as not to form bad behavioral habits with the
goat. It is difficult to keep horned goats with disbudded goats.
16. Goats need to have their hooves trimmed every 1-2
months. They can develop lameness and foot rot if their
hooves aren't trimmed regularly. The best trimmers available
for the Nigerian Dwarf are the orange handled trimmers available
in Hoegger Supply and Caprine Supply. Hoegger Supply offers
a box called, "Nanny Manicures" that illustrates hoof
trimming. Have someone demonstrate correct hoof trimming to
you. Having rocks for the goats to climb and gravel paths helps
to wear the hoof down, so that hoof trimming doesn't need to
be done quite as often. Nigerian Dwarves' coats are clipped
for showing. Also, goats can be clipped in the summer to deep
them cool and bug free. NDGA sells a video that demonstrates
how to clip a goat.
17. Goats prefer clean water, and will refuse soiled
water. Lactating goats need lots of fresh water. Keep
the water and feed dishes clean by washing with vinegar frequently.
Apple cider vinegar can be added to the water. In the winter,
and after giving birth, goats like warm water with a little
molasses added to it.
18. The Nigerian Dwarf is considered to be a miniature
dairy breed. It is important to understand the breed
standards that are ideal for the breed for conformation. It
is important to strive for these standards when breeding, so
that the breed is improved over time and faults are eliminated.
A dairy goat needs to be able to withstand the years of breeding,
pregnancy, milking or nursing. The ideal bone structure will
give her a longer, healthier life. To understand the conformation
that is ideal for the breed, it helps to read the Judges' Training
Manual. This is available through NDGA (Nigerian Dwarf Goat
Association).
19. Goats are sensitive, intelligent animals. They
love attention, especially from young children. Goats are born
wild, not tame. To tame a goat, it helps to be present at the
birth, so that the goats can imprint on humans. If the kids
are not bottle-raised, and tame goats are preferred, then they
need to be handled frequently each day until they are tame.
Taming a goat makes a life-long friend.
RESOURCES AVAILABLE:
1. Caprine Supply catalogue, 1-800-646-7736 or order on line
at www.caprinesupply.com
2. Hoegger Supply Company catalogue, 1-800-221-4628 also on
line ordering available
3. AGS registry address: American Goat Society, Inc. www.americangoatsociety.com
4. Nutritional Research Associates, 1-219-723-4931, (goat minerals
and supplements available)
5. Peaceful Valley Farm Supply, 1-888-784-1722 (to order pasture
grass seed and other supplies)
6. NDGA website: www.ndga.org has registration forms, Breeder's
Directory, information, virtual goat shows, and other info
7. Jeffer's Animal Supply Catalogue, 1-800-533-3377
8. ADGA (American Dairy Goat Association), P.O. Box 865, 209
West Main St., Spindale, NC 28160, www.adga.org
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