[Penninehillbilly]

Hi
I'm trying to get some weight on 2 whethers and a billy, goat mix is obviously too expensive for the amount the're eating and doesn't seem to be building them up much.
They are Toggs.
Billy is a chunky chap, whethers look more like 'girls'!
 
Do others 'fatten' males?
can I feed beef nuts or how do others feed the males?
what weight can I reasonably send them in at? (I think billy just starting to get a bit wiffy    )
looking forward to advice, (apart from the one who says don't keep them, I already think it's a case of never again    )
 

[Anke]

Killing-out weight is roughly half the liveweight, so you can make a rough guess of how much you would get back in the carcass.
 
I don't feed my (castrated) males any different from the females, as they all have to share a pen. I feed goatmix and oats, may change to barley as its cheaper. I don't see why you couldn't feed cattle nuts if they are ok costwise. Mine will go onto diary nuts/oats/shreds when I stop the bottle.
 
Re pongy boy - I would bring him in sooner than the others if that is possible, in the abattoir I used for my goats they really didn't like to kill entire males... I also would think that the meat will get tainted the longer you leave him.
 
I handled some males at a show at the weekend, and the smell was already noticeable...

[tizaala]

I handled some males at a show at the weekend, and the smell was already noticeable...
[/quote
 
It's always the quiet ones 

[sokel]

We feed calf coarse mix, whole oats and adding a bit of brewers grain in now.
Billies shouldnt be given anything with sugar beet in it as it can cause stones
Our Nannys get 18% coarse mix, 18% dairy nuts , whole oats and a bit of sugar beet shreds
all have at lib hay

[wytsend]

In all the 35+ years of rearing/breeding goats.....I have never had any problems with 'stones'  and all my males are fed up to 1kg of soaked sugar beet daily.    The main problem with SB is if it is fed dry.
To fatten castrated/entire males....feed cattle beef store nuts... this is the purpose of this type of nut.  It contains a high proportion of barley, brewers grains etc.

[Anke]

Putting a slurp of apple cider vinegar into their drinking water should guard against stones. I have fed shreds to sheep, including wethers for a while, and most sheep feeds do contain sugar beet.
 
It is a good high energy feed, and still fairly cheap

[Anke]

I handled some males at a show at the weekend, and the smell was already noticeable...
[/quote
 
It's always the quiet ones 

I am not quiet!    (as people who know me would confirm!)

[Penninehillbilly]

I handled some males at a show at the weekend, and the smell was already noticeable...
[/quote
 
It's always the quiet ones 

Took me a while to twig this tch tch 

[Penninehillbilly]

Thanks all
They are seperate from girls, so I think I will start feeding beef nuts, (I would think much cheaper) and maybe a few well soaked suger beet nuts, maybe some apple cider vinegar, hopefully they would be away before any stoney problems anyway, whole oats,
I have some whole wheat, would that be OK to feed (seeing as poultry was drasticaly reduced by the sly red ***)
 

[chickenfeed]

we can get our male kids to slaughter weight between 6 & 8 months at that age they kill out between 38 & 50lb depending on breed( they are all dairy goats)
we feed on a mix of rolled barley & multi stock nuts both come in much cheaper than goat mix and ad lib hay.
try to get them ready for slaughter before rutting season as it can/will taint the meat on entire boys. castrates always look more female than male.

[Penninehillbilly]

Thanks, if I can (vaguely) smell billy, will the meat already be tainted?
Sounds like I have to get to 70lbs+ to get a reasonable carcase?
I think he's got a bit big to lift and stand on the bathroom scales     
 
 

[Lesley Silvester]

I had my male ringed at three days old so he wouldn't smell but he also didn't get as big as I had hoped.  Be interesting to see what weight he makes.

[Skirza]

We had our bt and saanen kids ringed last year and they weighed in at around 20kg butchered weight each. Didn't feed them anything special, calf rearing nuts, oats and sugar beet. They went to slaughter at around 7 months old.

[Penninehillbilly]

Is there a limit to how long and how much milk I can give the boys (from a bowl)? I know Wystend said not to give them too much milk, presumably she just meant from a bottle? 
Born in March. They are probably getting about a pint each.
The boys are picking up now they are out all the time, plenty of grass, hay untouched, beef nuts in a trough with goat mix as a little extra once a day (milk in morning, mix in evening).
Getting far too much milk for us and no more room in freezer.

[ScotsGirl]

There is a book I have just bought (Storeys guide to goat keeping for meat) and it has a table in it. If you measure the goat's girth just behind from legs there is a conversion to weight.  Saves struggling to balance on bathroom scales!!