[Kymw90]

Hi I've had my Nubian goats a year now and there's a good story to both on how I got them but I will get that told another time.

The doe is fine nothing ever wrong with her except she has horns and can be a madam. The wether Hector or Hex is my problem. When he came to me he was skinny, bold and suffering with a terrible skin problem. I immediately wormed him using Panacur and liced him with some z-itch which I use on the donkeys and within a week he had shown signs of better health.

He gradually grew back a coat but it has always been thin and curly, kinda like under coat. Never a good covering to stay warm so I got him a proper goat coat. He gained some weight and no longer looked like a walking skeleton but has always been up and down with his weight.

I began looking into feeding goats and it is apparent Hex has had a life of nutrient deficiency. I feel this could be main culprit for him to be in such poor condition and such a poor doer. I started by getting him some human A-Z multivits from a shop and they really helped and he's been on them every day without ill affects.

I want to get some proper goat minerals though as they will have the correct amounts in each scoop of what he needs. So where can I get goat minerals from? I recently found Caprivite mineral and Caprivite angora feed supplement. Can anyone tell me if either will be any good for him and Eva? Is this something I add by scoop to their daily bucket feed? or leave loose?

Also how much should each goat eat a day of hay (in KG) as I have discovered how wasteful goats are, but I wonder am I feeding too much hay so wasting even more or could I even not be giving enough?  I'm a animal DIYer and keen to also see all your non-waste hay goat feeders that you've all come up with.

[Anke]

Re minerals/vitamins for goats.: You can use the normal caprivite, but it's main use is for milking goats and their needs of calcium etc. Do you milk the female?

Also any goats mix (or dairy cattle mix) has got proper vitamins/minerals in it for goats - if you only feed two you may be able to justify the higher cost of the goat mix - Allan & Page All round goats mix is good for non-milking animals, if a bit pricey. If you have difficulty in getting them to eat powder additives (some of mine go ballistic if I add Caprivite...), it helps if you feed something like sugar beet shreds soaked in (warm) water, then the powder adheres to the wet (but not sloppy) shreds. Most goats like them.

My goats have (waste ) hay ad lib and if I ever find a design that minimises hay wastage I will be a lot richer...

It all depends on your stable lay-out, how many goats to one feeder etc etc.

[ballingall]

Have you got any Rockies? The red rockie salt lick (designed for horses) has copper in it, it's not too pricey, and can be put in their hay rack for them to have a lick whenever they want. Personally, though I find our Nubians don't usually go looking for extra minerals. They seem to need them less than the Swiss breeds of goats.


Human multi vits won't do him any harm, we have even used them occasion.


Beth

[Roxy]

We are 1000ft above sea level here (Derbyshire Peaks) and the grazing I do think is probably deficient.  I buy the big giant Rockies, which come in two;s because we have so many goats - the yellow ones.....but you can buy the small yellow or red from feed merchants.
 
My vet told me to give the goats the sheep mineral bucket - not the high mag one, just the standard one.  I have in the past had a vitamin jab from the vets for a Nubian lacking in minerals and vitamins, and it worked wonders.
 
I feed goat mix, soaked sugar beet in winter added to it, and also horse chaff  (they like Readigrass).  The in kid and milkers have a higher ration.  As to hay, well, mine eat a lot especially in winter.  I feed hay all year round, and they always eat it.
 
I do have some of the Nubians who never put on weight,and always seem a bit on the lanky side!!

[Kymw90]

I need to get the donkeys a mineral lick so I will get so e Rockies. Which colour is best for goats?

[Sbom]

Red I believe

[Penninehillbilly]

Hi Kym
I'm presuming you're feeding a proper goat mix?
I get the red Rockie (copper) for mine, I wedge it in the hayrack so they can only lick it, one tries to chew it!
I also feed Caprivite, all mine just get some sprinkled in their feed, none refuse it. I get mine from a local equine shop, who order it for me from 'Battles' wholesalers, look them up on the web and you'll find your local supplier there, saves postage.
 
I wonder if beef cattle nuts would be any good? I fed 2 wethers up to slaughter weight last year, they did well on them - maybe others can come back on that ?
 
Haywaste is a heartbreaker (as well as the wallet), look up 'keyhole hayfeeder' (or some variation of that) on the web, we've made one but it needs a bit of tweaking, the step up is too high and she still lifts her head out with a mouthfull of hay, turns her head to look round and I see all the hay scatter from her mouth  . ha well, back to the drawing board.

[wytsend]

The only problem with many goat mixes.....they contain very little copper so its safe to feed around sheep.    As I have said before on this forum,  goats require the same anount of copper, zinc & selenium as a cow !!!!!    So feeding cattle food makes sense.

Contact Brinicombes on   01363.778792 for their Premium Goat Balancer. 

It is not cheap but you use very little daily so the cost over a year works out at the same rate as many other supplements.   Most of UK is copper deficient, so all your grass & hay will be as well.   Zinc is needed in big quantities for all skin & coat conditions...........scurfy coats are caused by zinc deficiency.   

[Lesley Silvester]

I swear by Caprivite. It's the best I've tried for my goats. I also feed Allen and Page goat mix. I use Dairy goat as mine are milkers but there is one for dry goats.

[Kymw90]

Thanks everyone. Lots to think about here. I will give the to lie a try first and see how well they manage to get into it. Someone mentioned they should have cattle feed? Can anyone give me a name or brand an does cattle feed come by the bag like goat mix or am I looki at a pallet of the stuff ?

[Lesley Silvester]

I use Prestige and it comes in sacks like goat feed.

[Roxy]

If you get the cattle nuts - don't say they are for goats!!  Some feed merchants refuse to let you have them.  I have been asked on a couple of occasions, and say they are for my Jersey house cow.  Maybe they are worried the nuts will do the goats some damage or something.

[Penninehillbilly]

asked OH to get some from a large feed merchants because he was near there, the assistant kept insisting there was copper in beef and Dairy nuts and goats shouldn't have copper! I was telling OH via mobile to tell the assistant GOATS ARE NOT SHEEP! very frustrating.
He was eventually allowed to buy some  .
Also local dairy farmer asked his feed advisor if his cattle feed could be fed to goats and the advisor said no - its got copper in it. I printed off some of the discussions on here and showed the farmer.
Luckily my local agri-mercants supplies their own mix to a goat farm near Skipton, discussed ratios and minerals with a specialist so they know what they are talking about.
But it's still annoying its the same price for 20kg goat mix as a 25kg ewe mix!

[jaykay]

My feed merchants are enlightened then, they get me a bag of diary nuts regularly, knowing it's for my goats.

My goats also get flakey sheep mix, Caprivite and red Rockies mineral lick. They will eat Caprivite neat!
Plus hay, obviously and they really like  'JustGrass' or 'ReadiGrass' as a treat over the winter.

I give them a cobalt/selenium drench a couple of times a year.

[wytsend]

Just go and buy Dairy nuts for your ' house cow'................so much easier.

Coarse calf mix is another good one.