Need advice for goat housing and fence

[FarmGirl01]

I can't get Photobucket to work.

 

[FarmGirl01]

Here are my Pygmy-X babies. I finally figured it out.

 

[Frozen Feathers]

Adorable Farmgirl!

We have used a lot of different types of fencing for goats and the best has been the 2"x4" welded wire. It has worked great. Well, except for my little whether who kept jumping out .
You want something strong, because they will ruin it by standing on it and I had one goat use his horns to tear up a weaker fence. Haha, one year we tried chicken wire. Big waste of time and money. They tore that up in no time.
Electric wire doe not work for me. My BFF has her goats in 2 strand electric wire and they actually stay in. I will have to learn their secret to success! But I have a 5 strand electric fence and all of my goats I've ever had walk right through it. It's sort of mean, but we've even held goats up against the fence so we could be sure they felt the shock and that didn't effect their behavior.

That is probably the best photo I have of my fence. A little pricey, yes, but well worth it.

Found a close-up of the fence, just ignore the Turken..lol

This is how we did the gate. Again just ignore the chicken.

 

[mlheran]

I had to check this thread out as I'm getting my Nigerian Dwarf wethers in a little over two weeks -nearly two weeks earlier than I expected- and of course their house and yard aren't even close to finished.

Anyway, I've been reading and rereading all my goat info and 99% of the time a dirt floor is recommended and perfered. It drains the urine, can be raked with lime, and is warmer than concrete or tile. I looked at the TuffSheds when I was thinking about using them, but the floor material is awful. They use compressed fiberboard, which is really just wood in sponge form! You might be able to get away with on the walls (as long as they're painted), but it will never hold up as a floor -never mind that they don't have substantial joists. For my two cents, I say go with dirt and built a "sleeping bench" for them. Check out the benches and play equipment at this place!

 

[Moonwalker]

The fact that goats love to stand on the fence wire is why I like the hog panels. The wire is so thick it doesn't bend easily!

 

[1shelby1]

wow-those are some lucky goats-at Durango,great ideas for goat benches-and now I'll put them in two levels in the new goat hut . Waiting to remodel a found chicken coop for the summer house and plan on putting the goats(two pygmy wethers)next door in their new hut. thanks for that link!

 

[stilwellchick]

Thank you all for the great ideas, pics and links. This is a good topic.

 

[Run-A-Muck Ranch]

Our goats seem to get out of there pen...
Take it we have only had them about a week. And had them all set up in 2 lambing jugs (opened door so would be a little bigger). Anyway..They did fine in there for the first 2 days. Then one figured out how to jump over the doors. You would swear they were mountain goats they way they balanced on the doors.
Anyway so all 3 were out, and running with the sheep. Which right now when outside are only held in by 1 strand of electric fence. As long as the goats can see the sheep outside they are right by there side eatting and moving around with them.
When the sheep come in for whatever reason the goats decided it is time to go back into there own pen. Back over the doors they go. One at a time back into there lambing jugs (just a temp. holding pen).
I keep there food and water in the jugs, so maybe that is why they keep going back in there own area.
I am sure as spring goes on and summer nears as the sheep spend more time outside, I will have to figure something out for the goats, but like I said right now it is working for us..
Shawna

 

[stilwellchick]

Sorry for your aggrevation but that is too funny...little mountain goats! Do they go thru the single hot wire or just stay with the sheep?

 

[legacyln]

I love this thread-- I am planning to get two small goats in several months when our housing is finised and I've been debating on the fencing. We're doing a 20 x 20 metal shed with dirt floors that will be split with a central food storage area, one side for goats and one for chickens, combined run on the outside --so the chickens need to have a small enough entry door that nosey goats can't enter to eat their food! Thanks for the ideas and links. Adorable goat, kid and chick pics, too.