Throughout human history, goats have maintained their status as one of the most popular domestic animals. They are renowned for their nutritious milk. This is one of the many reasons why people want to breed these animals. However, not everyone knows the rules for keeping goats at home for beginners. In principle, this task is within anyone's capabilities, but it requires certain knowledge.
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How to choose goats correctly
When purchasing a purebred animal, it's recommended to contact a specialized farm that maintains proper goat care. If you're choosing an animal for milk production, it's best to purchase an adult goat.
It's best to check the sow's milk yield per milking before purchasing her. Looking at her udder size isn't a good indicator of milk yield.
If you are interested in the local yamanukha, it is also advisable to spend some time observe an animalTo understand how much milk she can produce, consider that the maximum milk yield, 5-6 liters per day, is produced by goats that have lambed 2-3 times.
If you are offered an animal for breeding that has already lambed 6 times, keep in mind that its milk yield will decrease with each lambing. When purchasing a dairy goat, find out the mother's productivityTry to find out how long she was breastfed.
If you want to get a lot of milk from your goat, you should buy one that has been fed goat's milk for at least four months. This should also be taken into account when breeding the young.
It's important to purchase down-bearing goats before they're carded or sheared. Otherwise, you won't be able to accurately determine the quality of the down. Before purchasing, check each goat. it is necessary to carefully examine.
Characteristic signs of good health include a broad chest, a straight back, and shiny, unblemished fur. If the goat's legs are close together, you've got a narrow-chested animal, and you should avoid buying such a goat.
A suitable goat's jaws should close; otherwise, it will be very difficult for the goat to grasp food, which will prevent it from eating properly. You can determine the animal's age by looking at its teeth. An older goat's teeth are usually worn down, and there are always gaps between them.
Keeping goats at home
You can set up a goat shelter in any corner of the barn where you keep cows and calves, and a woodshed is also suitable for this. Make sure the space is warm, dry and lightIt would also be a good idea to provide a pen that will allow the goats to roam.
When designing a walking area, keep in mind that each animal should have 2-4 square meters of space. If you decide to take up goat farming in earnest, ensure that the goat house is thoroughly insulated.
To do this, you need to examine it carefully and seal all the cracksChoose a location for the window at least 1.5 meters above the floor. If you make it any lower, the goats might break it with their horns. If you've chosen a small shed for keeping goats, it's best to make the window in the door.
To ensure that the animals are comfortable in the goat house, it is necessary to adhere to the following scheme:
- one goat should have an area of 1.5 square meters;
- for a goat with kids - 2.5 sq. m.;
- per goat - about 2 sq. m.
The floor in the goat barn is made of planks. Each animal should have its own pen with a feeder. To prevent disease, it is recommended to regularly disinfect the goat's rueTo do this, the walls need to be whitewashed with lime.
In winter it is necessary to keep the room maintain a comfortable temperature, which should always be kept above 10 degrees Celsius. In summer, goats can only be left in the barn at night. It should be regularly ventilated to prevent stuffiness.
Those who choose to keep goats in a place where other animals live will need to install shelves/beds 60 cm from the floor to the wall. Goats are accustomed to sleeping on elevated surfaces, and the sleeping area should be as clean and dry as possible. Keeping goats requires arrange a separate placeThen the milk will not give off its smell.
Peculiarities of goat reproduction
A female goat is first mated with a male at one and a half years of age. However, the desire to breed may arise even earlier, when she is only six or seven months old.
To obtain offspring in the spring, it is recommended to mate in the fall—for example, in October-November. The animal should be bred a month before mating. it is necessary to prepare: for this, they begin to feed him intensively and regularly take him out to pasture.
There are characteristic signs by which you can recognize that it is hunting time:
- Frequent bleating.
- Decreased appetite.
- Enlargement of the genitals.
- Formation of mucous secretions.
It takes about 5 months from mating until the litter is born. Moreover, the owner needs be sure to celebrate the dayWhen mating occurs, so you can prepare for the litter within the estimated time. It's fairly easy to tell if a goat is pregnant. There are several simple methods you can use.
After mating with a buck, the female must be observed for 19 days. Typically, the female will show more signs of there is no desire to huntIf this is the case, we can conclude that she's in heat. You can confirm this by bringing the sow near the buck. If the animal is in heat, she will kick.
Three months after mating, the pregnant uterus begins to produce half as much milk. At the same time, it is noted increase in abdominal size on the right side.
You can determine the presence of a fetus by palpating the lower abdomen under the ribs on the right side. However, if you still have doubts after all this, you can get more definitive evidence by taking a urine sample to a veterinary clinic.
Goat lambing
It is very easy to determine the time of lambing: at this moment the goat becomes restless, constantly stands, refuses food, and begins to rake manure away from itself.
Labor is usually uncomplicated, but it wouldn't hurt to have some extra supervision. After the baby is born, you'll have to cut the umbilical cord, so prepare scissors and iodine in advance.
The kid emerges from the womb head first, lying on its front legs extended. In some cases, it may emerge feet first, with the legs pressed against the body. Don't be surprised if the kid emerges hind legs first.
It happens that the kid is large enough that the mother has difficulty completing the birth. In this case your help will be needed: Gently begin pulling it toward the udder. To avoid infection and make the necessary steps easier, wash your hands first and lubricate them with Vaseline.
If you see that there are any complications, it is advisable not to delay and call a veterinarian immediatelyAll mothers who have just given birth to kids experience extreme thirst. They should be given sweetened water. The first milking can take place an hour to an hour and a half after birth. Delaying this can cause the udder to harden, which can lead to mastitis.
In the first few days after birth, milking should be carried out according to the following scheme: six times a day, and subsequently their number is reduced to three - in the morning, at lunch and in the evening.
A goat usually gives birth to two kids, but there are cases when there are one or three. When the baby is born, it needs to be clear out mucus, which will cover the nose and mouth. The umbilical cord will need to be cut to 7-8 cm, after which it will be lubricated with iodine.
There are cases when the mother bites off the umbilical cord herself. After birth the kids are placed next to their mother, giving her the opportunity to lick them. An hour after the birth of the last kid, the placenta is expelled from the uterus. It must be removed immediately.
Sometimes a newborn baby shows signs of labored breathing. In this case, it's important to thoroughly clear mucus from their face and then begin breathing air into their mouth. Another way to improve breathing is to place the baby on their back and then begin bending and straightening their legs.
Caring for kids
If the kids are from a down breed, they need to be left to nurse. If they are dairy breed kids, the owner faces a difficult task: they'll have to nurse them themselves. feed them with a pacifier Goat's milk. Colostrum should be given to babies for about 10 days. After that, they can begin to drink from a bowl.
After one month of age, they are fed milk four times a day, and subsequently, the number of meals is reduced to three. As the kids grow older, they are introduced to other foods: liquid semolina or oatmeal porridge, mashed potatoes diluted with warm goat's milk.
Over time, the kids can be given hay. Twenty-day-old kids can be transfer to compound feedIf the mother has given birth to female goats, they need to be given goat's milk for three to four months to produce milk.
During the first few days after the birth of the cubs it is necessary leave in a warm roomThey can be kept either indoors or in a heated temporary shelter. If the barn maintains a comfortable temperature, the babies can be left with their mother.
How and what to feed goats
During the winter, it is recommended to feed goats pine needles. It is also permissible to feed the animals with kitchen scraps and mash. To prepare these, use vegetable peelings, which must be thoroughly washed and boiled, then thoroughly salted and mixed with compound feed.
To improve the taste, you can put in them steamed oats or oatmeal, peelings of root vegetables, such as beets, and pieces of black bread. Never feed goats fresh bread, as it will upset their stomachs.
It's recommended to include mash in goats' diets because it helps increase milk yield. Root vegetables are also effective and should be fed according to the following schedule:
- In the morning - 0.2 kg of grain, 0.5 kg of various root vegetables.
- During the day - up to 2 kg of hay.
- In the evening - 0.15 kg of grain, 0.1 kg of cake.
In the evening for the goats can you give hayWhen raising goats, it is necessary to ensure that they always have water at room temperature.
Many farmers are attracted by the opportunity to raise goats on their own property. Goat farming is in high demand because these animals are easy to care for and can be ensure high milk yieldsIf desired, you can raise animals for feathers or milk.
But in both cases, it's important to know how to properly care for these animals. The requirements for keeping them at home are simple; the main thing is to create the right environment for them. comfortable conditions in the goat house, provide varied and nutritious food, and also create an opportunity for walking.
