Care of Our Herd
DISCLAIMER: We are not veterinarians. This document only represents what does and does not work for us, and should not be taken as professional advice.
At Twin Willows, we believe that proper care and maintenance is extremely important to the health and happiness of our herd. We strive to maintain clean facilities. We test annually for CAE and our entire herd is negative as of April 2016.
Stall Maintenance
We have one large community stall for the junior and senior does that resides in an insulated barn. In the warmer months, we use pine chip bedding and barn lime under the bedding. This stall is spot cleaned throughout the week and completely emptied, cleaned and refilled once a week. In the winter months, we layer clean pine shavings and straw and completely muck out the stall once every 3-4 weeks. We find that the layering keep the goats more comfortable during the winter months. On frigid days, we fire up the wood stove to take the edge off. The does have 24 hour access to the outdoors where they can play and browse on about 3 acres.
The bucks have access to the back of the barn in a separate stall with a separate pasture. Their barn is lined with shavings and is regularly maintained for cleanliness. The bucks have 24 hour access to both shelter and pasture and roam on about three acres. They can regularly be seen browsing around the ponds with their miniature donkey guardian, Guinevere.
We have built play yards where all of the goats can jump on spools and Little Tykes Toys, climb up ramps, and cross bridges.
Food
All of our goats have access to 24 hour pasture, with the exception of babies who are being weaned, who are let out to play in the yard and browse at regular intervals. The milking and pregnant does are fed a daily ration of Noble Goat Dairy Parlor 16% non-medicated feed specially formulated for lactating does. All babies are fed a daily ration of Noble Goat. We prefer to feed 4th cut alfalfa to all of our does free choice as their daily roughage requirement. All animals have 24 hour access to loose minerals.
At Twin Willows, we believe that proper care and maintenance is extremely important to the health and happiness of our herd. We strive to maintain clean facilities. We test annually for CAE and our entire herd is negative as of April 2016.
Stall Maintenance
We have one large community stall for the junior and senior does that resides in an insulated barn. In the warmer months, we use pine chip bedding and barn lime under the bedding. This stall is spot cleaned throughout the week and completely emptied, cleaned and refilled once a week. In the winter months, we layer clean pine shavings and straw and completely muck out the stall once every 3-4 weeks. We find that the layering keep the goats more comfortable during the winter months. On frigid days, we fire up the wood stove to take the edge off. The does have 24 hour access to the outdoors where they can play and browse on about 3 acres.
The bucks have access to the back of the barn in a separate stall with a separate pasture. Their barn is lined with shavings and is regularly maintained for cleanliness. The bucks have 24 hour access to both shelter and pasture and roam on about three acres. They can regularly be seen browsing around the ponds with their miniature donkey guardian, Guinevere.
We have built play yards where all of the goats can jump on spools and Little Tykes Toys, climb up ramps, and cross bridges.
Food
All of our goats have access to 24 hour pasture, with the exception of babies who are being weaned, who are let out to play in the yard and browse at regular intervals. The milking and pregnant does are fed a daily ration of Noble Goat Dairy Parlor 16% non-medicated feed specially formulated for lactating does. All babies are fed a daily ration of Noble Goat. We prefer to feed 4th cut alfalfa to all of our does free choice as their daily roughage requirement. All animals have 24 hour access to loose minerals.
We find that our bucks do very well on pasture alone in the warm months. During the fall and winter, they are fed free choice alfalfa/grass hay. When the bucks are in rut, and before breeding, we give them a ration of grain to make sure they have plenty of energy when they breed. Our bucks also have free access to fresh water, salt block and minerals.
Breeding and Kidding
Our does are hand or pen bred when standing heat is observed. Our does are paired with bucks that have the best chance of improving certain characteristics that we are working on at the time.
Two weeks before the kidding date, we trim the doe's hooves, and give them a dose of BOSE. We also shave the hind quarters and udder of the doe a week before kidding. As the kidding date nears, we check the doe's tail ligaments for signs of softening. We usually start checking this about day 143. When the ligaments are nearly gone, or we question whether or not they are still there, the doe is put into one of our three kidding stalls inside the barn. The stall is prepared first with a fresh scrubbing, then a layer of barn lime over the concrete floor, and plenty of clean, deep bedding. The doe is given hay, fresh water and grain, and is monitored for signs of labor either in person, or from the security camera and baby monitor in the house. We have gotten pretty good at predicting labor, and it usually starts within a couple of hours of locking the doe down in the kidding stall.
When labor starts, we stay with the doe, pet her and give her comfort and treats, while checking her regularly for progress. Labor is a special time of bonding between the doe and her caretaker. I have had does go into the kidding stall as wild as a March hare, and come out much more cooperative and tame. When the doe begins pushing we enter the stall to help her, and prepare to catch and tend to the babies. Being present for the births of kids is very important to us, as we have had to intervene many times. We use puppy pads to catch the kids and keep the stalls as clean as possible, and plenty of towels to dry the kids. We also have used a small electric heater to blow warm air on the kids to help dry them. This is especially helpful if there are many kids born to one mom (like QUINTS!)
After the kids are born, the doe is given a warm pail of electrolyte drench or molasses water to help her build her energy and rehydrate. We do not leave the barn until every kid has nursed, and the doe has passed per placenta. The kids cords are dipped in iodine, and we also use iodine on their hooves to seal out bacteria. The stall is spot cleaned before we leave for the house so that everything is dry and cozy for the new family. The day following the births, we trim the doe's hooves and deworm her.
We like to leave the kids with the doe for at least two weeks. Mom and kids may be moved to another private stall or a community stall for moms and babies after the first day so that the stall can be stripped and cleaned for the next kidding. Especially during show season, when the doe is required to be uddered up, we milk the does and bottle feed the babies. Even if the kids are not born during the show season, we still like to bottle the babies as soon as possible so that they are used to taking the bottle from us. When they have mastered the bottle, we move them to a lambar. Doelings are allowed to grow up with their moms and sisters, while buck kids are weaned around two months of age and moved to a junior buck pen. Kids begin to wean at about 7 weeks of age, and are exclusively on hay, grain, and water by the time they are 10-12 weeks old.
Kid Care
Kids are disbudded with an iron at 1-7 days old, and tattooed around the time they are weaned. Bucklings which will be castrated are banded at three months of age. We feel that this gives the buckling time to develop his urethra, and guards against stones in the future.
Maintenence
All of our goats are FAMACHA checked regularly and wormed quarterly at the change of the seasons as needed. We conduct our own fecal exams at the farm to inspect for internal parasites and bacteria, when suspected. If a doe is pregnant, we do not worm unless absolutely necessary.
We also give quarterly injections of BOSE, as necessary, and a bi-annual dose of copper bolus. Each goat on the farm has his or her hooves trimmed and maintained regularly. We shave the goats when the weather is nice for show season, and for the comfort of the animals. We give antibiotics only when necessary.
Breeding and Kidding
Our does are hand or pen bred when standing heat is observed. Our does are paired with bucks that have the best chance of improving certain characteristics that we are working on at the time.
Two weeks before the kidding date, we trim the doe's hooves, and give them a dose of BOSE. We also shave the hind quarters and udder of the doe a week before kidding. As the kidding date nears, we check the doe's tail ligaments for signs of softening. We usually start checking this about day 143. When the ligaments are nearly gone, or we question whether or not they are still there, the doe is put into one of our three kidding stalls inside the barn. The stall is prepared first with a fresh scrubbing, then a layer of barn lime over the concrete floor, and plenty of clean, deep bedding. The doe is given hay, fresh water and grain, and is monitored for signs of labor either in person, or from the security camera and baby monitor in the house. We have gotten pretty good at predicting labor, and it usually starts within a couple of hours of locking the doe down in the kidding stall.
When labor starts, we stay with the doe, pet her and give her comfort and treats, while checking her regularly for progress. Labor is a special time of bonding between the doe and her caretaker. I have had does go into the kidding stall as wild as a March hare, and come out much more cooperative and tame. When the doe begins pushing we enter the stall to help her, and prepare to catch and tend to the babies. Being present for the births of kids is very important to us, as we have had to intervene many times. We use puppy pads to catch the kids and keep the stalls as clean as possible, and plenty of towels to dry the kids. We also have used a small electric heater to blow warm air on the kids to help dry them. This is especially helpful if there are many kids born to one mom (like QUINTS!)
After the kids are born, the doe is given a warm pail of electrolyte drench or molasses water to help her build her energy and rehydrate. We do not leave the barn until every kid has nursed, and the doe has passed per placenta. The kids cords are dipped in iodine, and we also use iodine on their hooves to seal out bacteria. The stall is spot cleaned before we leave for the house so that everything is dry and cozy for the new family. The day following the births, we trim the doe's hooves and deworm her.
We like to leave the kids with the doe for at least two weeks. Mom and kids may be moved to another private stall or a community stall for moms and babies after the first day so that the stall can be stripped and cleaned for the next kidding. Especially during show season, when the doe is required to be uddered up, we milk the does and bottle feed the babies. Even if the kids are not born during the show season, we still like to bottle the babies as soon as possible so that they are used to taking the bottle from us. When they have mastered the bottle, we move them to a lambar. Doelings are allowed to grow up with their moms and sisters, while buck kids are weaned around two months of age and moved to a junior buck pen. Kids begin to wean at about 7 weeks of age, and are exclusively on hay, grain, and water by the time they are 10-12 weeks old.
Kid Care
Kids are disbudded with an iron at 1-7 days old, and tattooed around the time they are weaned. Bucklings which will be castrated are banded at three months of age. We feel that this gives the buckling time to develop his urethra, and guards against stones in the future.
Maintenence
All of our goats are FAMACHA checked regularly and wormed quarterly at the change of the seasons as needed. We conduct our own fecal exams at the farm to inspect for internal parasites and bacteria, when suspected. If a doe is pregnant, we do not worm unless absolutely necessary.
We also give quarterly injections of BOSE, as necessary, and a bi-annual dose of copper bolus. Each goat on the farm has his or her hooves trimmed and maintained regularly. We shave the goats when the weather is nice for show season, and for the comfort of the animals. We give antibiotics only when necessary.