Using goats to deter overhead predators (hawks). Does it REALLY work?

[Frozen Feathers]

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I have Nigerian dwarfs, which are slightly larger then Pygmies, but nearly the same. I've had Alpines and Nubians in the past and these are by far my favorite.

1.For Pygmies or Nigerian dwarfs, that is plenty of room. Some great toys for goats are those giant wooden cable spools, used by the electric co. etc and A-frames. They love to climb.

2. It's pretty hard to keep them out of chicken food. We use a feeder with holes small enough on the top that the goats can't get their lips in there. Goats love cracked corn btw...

3. IMO the best way to go, if you are not planning on breeding is 2 whethers (neutered males). Unfixed male goats stink to high heaven and can be aggressive. If you get two males, grain isn't needed, and can actually be dangerous, can cause serious UTI. Depending on your area you may want to supplement copper and other minerals.

4. Goats, like horses need to be on worming program. You can use horse wormer or you could try a natural wormer.
Don't pet them on the head, they take it as a challenge and will start butting you, cute when they are little, not when they weigh 75+#'s. They are too smart for their own good. Good...no excellent fencing is required! The first time we had goats, we tried chicken wire and post fencing, they wrecked it. Now we have welded wire on square post with a 2x6" on top and bottom. Very sturdy. Chain link works as well.
A great site for info is http://fiascofarm.com/goats/index.htm They also sell natural/herbal wormer and other natural remedies for pets and humans alike.

 

[Cheri]

Pebbles would try to perch on my shoulder while I was sitting on the porch and boy could she hold her own with the big dogs!

 

[4H kids and mom]

1) My outside run area is about 435 square feet. Is that large enough to keep them happy? I can put 'toys' in there for them to play on/in.

2) How do you feed them and keep them out of the chicken food?

3) Would I want a boy and a girl? Two girls or two boys?

4) Anything else I need to know about pygmy goats before going further?

1) If you got two smaller goats, I think they would have plenty of room.

You can give them toys or things to climb on. They LOVE to climb and will climb all over anything they can!

2) Mine get free choice hay and free range the yard all day for grasses and leaves and clover. I feed them a pelleted goat food (DuMor's Goat Formula) mixed with a little 16% Sweet Feed (I use a 3-to-1 ratio. Only a little of the sweet feed or it messes with their tummies.). They are fed a measured amount in the morning before I let them out, and again in the evening when I put them back in the pen. They LOVE chicken food, and the only way to keep them out of it is to keep it away from them. We had to make the chicken door to the coop up about 3 feet off the ground because they had figured out how to get through the other one! If they DO get some, it wont kill them or even really hurt them, but too much will make their poop runny and could lead to Scoures.

3) Unless you plan to breed them and dont mind urine sprayed everywhere imaginable (including on YOU!) try to stay away from getting a pair (male and female). Wethers (banded/altered males) make very friendly pets, as does a pair of does (thats what we have). Does may eventually get to a point where they will want to be bred. If they do you can breed them with someone elses buck and once they kid you can continue milking them. Some does are content not to be bred. Our does are still young, but we adore them.

4) Goats are incredible fun! They are silly clowns that do everything they can to make you laugh! One of my young kids has figured out the old slide and loves to run up it and then slide down! They love to run with you and play games, similar to puppies. They are SUPER smart, and will figure out how to push open gates that aren't secure. Some little goats are great climbers and even a 6 foot tall chain link fence may not contain them. They will rub themselves along the fence to scratch, and it will bow out a weak fence in time. Chicken wire will NOT contain a goat! They will eat all bushes, trees, plants, and crops in their reach and even a foot or two above their reach because they are smart enough to figure out how to pull branches down and eat them bare! One of my does will STAND on the other to reach the branches! They seem to keep our hawks and other nasties at bay and we have yet to loose a chicken or chick to a predator since we obtained them. We paid a local farmer $20 for each of our girls because they were deemed far too small for slaughter (he breeds and raises goats for meat). Neither are purebred or anything "special", but we wouldn't have it any other way. We just love them to pieces! They have been WELL worth the $40 investment!

They can be demanding and needy and even annoying at times (just like a puppy!) but the fun they give you will out weigh any negatives.

You should never get just one, because they are so social. Plus, would YOU want to sleep in a dark pen all alone at night?​

 

[LaMamaGallina]

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