Timothy hay is comprised of approximately 7% crude protein, and 32% crude fiber. Much of the nutrition in the grass is preserved in the hay, and it makes great feed for goats. Some goats tend to be more prone to bloat than others, which means a keeper may need to adjust feeding habits slightly and provide more of an administered free choice supplement (baking soda) or keep bloat drenching. Goat Mineral Guide. Protein/energy malnutrition and vitamin deficiencies from poor quality feed lead to a host of disease states. We are enrolled in the Amazon Associates program, so we may earn a commission if you purchase something from Amazon after clicking one of our links. Just because your neighbor’s goats need supplementation does not mean yours do, unless you are feeding the same hay and have goats at similar life stages. Moisture content should be below 15 percent or there is a risk of mold or combustion. Mature sheep can get by on … It is rich in fibers, has decent calcium to phosphorus ratio, and has moderate amounts of calories.It can tend to your goats… Based on chemical analysis, this is straw, not hay, and without supplementation, cannot sustain life. Goat kids as well as their nursing mommas typically thrive on a legume style of hay. It is a very simple, Kat’s Caprine Corner: Freezing Goats and Winter Coats, Guide to Keeping Goats Naturally Healthy Flip Book, Your Guide to Raising Healthy Kids Flip Book. Many newbie goat keepers give salted crackers or bits of bread to their goats. This type of hay is good for pregnant and lactating goats since their … Barriers to testing range from costs to lack of availability of analysts or labs. In areas with longer growing seasons, a third cutting or even higher may be available. Food that is fed from the ground is far more likely to be subjected to soil bacteria, manure, and any worms that may be present in the goat droppings. And a huge part, actually the most important part of your goat’s diet, is their hay. Legume hay typically has the highest digestible energy, as the leaves do not change as the plant grows. her homesteading skills are unmatched, she raises chickens, goats, horses, a wide variety of vegetables, not to mention she’s an expert is all sorts of homesteading skills such as hide tanning, doll making, tree tapping and many, many more. Place a salt block on a clean and dry spot to help the goat herd replenish essential vitamins and minerals they lose when expending energy, and especially during the hot summer months. There are three types of hay: legume, grass, and cereal. Sulfur, iron, and molybdenum bind copper: one part molybdenum ties up six parts of copper. We grew up in gardening families, without livestock. This site may earn commissions when you click on certain links. It is a very simple process for the farmer or hay consumer. Very coarse hay or forage is not readily digestible by goats, so they prefer not to eat them. Around the world, many types of livestock utilize Timothy as part of their feed regimen including goats, camels, and sheep. When feeding hay as a primary feed, nutritional analysis is critical to the health of your herd. Chaffhaye can be fed as a hay alternative, with more nutrient density than hay. Cereal hay with seed heads must be fed with care to avoid bloat and urinary calculi. Each type of hay has unique advantages and disadvantages. The stems become courser and more fibrous, so the values are highest when the plant is young. This all-natural hay pellet is made from 100% pure sun-cured timothy. Use caution when feeding cereal hay. If you give bread, crackers, or even graham crackers to members of your goat herd, do so as only a special or rare treat, and not a daily or weekly small amount treat. Second cutting is generally the preferred hay for goats. This type of snack is not necessarily deadly, but can lead to significant health problems – especially bloat. Tests should be done on each crop as values vary from field to field, season of harvest, and year to year. Yes, goats can eat timothy hay. In alfalfa, avoid blister beetles which produce cantharidin, toxic to people and animals. Treats should only be given as a training aid or in small amounts on any type of a regular basis. Alfalfa hay is comprised of roughly 15% to 22% crude protein, and 32% crude fiber. By licking the mineral blocks a goat can help infuse more calcium, potassium, sulfur, copper, sodium, manganese, iron, iodine, and zinc into their system. To keep the ruminant stomach chamber healthy and fully functional, a goat must eat enough roughage and avoid ingesting too much rich grain feed. Hay harvested from roadsides and ditches is often contaminated with litter that can cause obstruction when ingested by the goat. Alfalfa hay is … They're dairy goats so don't bulk up like meat goats. In this analysis, all of the copper is bound, which indicates a need for supplementation. This varies depending on the maturity of the hay or alfalfa and the way that its cured and stored. Wethers: We recommend good quality orchard grass hay. How Your Water is Affecting Your Goats. I am … and all of mine are STILL thin. Dirt not only increases the weight of the bale, and your cost, but contributes to respiratory issues when breathed as dust. Timothy is great hay for goats. Legume hays, such as clover and alfalfa, usually have more protein, vitamins, and minerals, particularly calcium, than grass hays. Dairy goats are sometimes given more grain than meat and fiber goats in an attempt to enhance milk production. Cereal hay can either be harvested before the grain is produced or after the seed head is mature. There are two types of analysis — visual and chemical. While we look for bright green hay, color can be deceiving. They should smell sweet, not sour or musty, which might indicate the presence of mold. The closer you can keep to the traditional browsing habits of goats, the better the odds are that the animals will remain healthy. Hay analysis is a worthwhile investment. Calcium deficiency can lead to complications with kidding and lactation. For Morgan Filly and Goat A goat should eat between 2 to 4 pounds of hay on a daily basis. Goats are browsers and not grazers like horses and cattle. The long fiber lengths are necessary for this. Beautiful Timothy hay from Standlee's Hay Company. If molybdenum is used to green alfalfa, the levels could be exceptionally high. If adequate pasture is not available, feed your goat grass-type hay such as timothy. According to the Merck Veterinary Manual, hay for goats should be 7 percent at a minimum for maintenance. Hay is the main source of nutrients for animals such as goats, especially in non-grazing seasons. Legume hay (like alfafa) contains more protein and calcium than grass hay. Think of it as … This agricultural grade substance can be sprinkled over livestock grain rations or stirred into the grain feed storage tub to be fed as a supplement to the goat herd. In each case, goats will need supplementation of some type to maintain optimum productivity when hay … However, it is not enough to tend to all… These are the only plants that have made my goats VERY sick! Most commercial feed for goats ranges between 11-18 percent protein. Goats will ingest approximately 120% more energy from an alfalfa hay that they would from an oat style of hay. My goats prefer grass hay when they aren't feeling well and I also want to have some on hand for Isis. Good hay should bend easily; if it snaps, it has high fiber and low digestibility. Hay is grass that has been cut and dried, then baled or collected to use as animal feed. If you dread choosing hay for goats, you are not alone … there is much to know about what to feed goats. Goats … Either buy goat-specific mineral blocks, or read the content label carefully to determine what nutrients the goat herd will ingest when licking the block. Not only are some kitchen scraps or store bought food stuffs not safe for your goats to eat, some naturally growing matter that could be in the browsing area of pen can even be dangerous to deadly. This style of hay is a nice mix of essential nutrients, but it also has a lower protein percentage than alfalfa hay. The leaf-to-stem ratio is the most important criteria. Wethers (neutered males) have different dietary needs than does (females). So when it came time to start buying hay for our goats, we had to … Even during the winter time goats can browse for a portion of their roughage intake, depending on your climate, and on how much space the herd has to roam and forage for food. This highly digestible pellet can be used to completely replace loose hay or supplement pasture for horses, cattle, sheep, goats, rabbits, … Lab fees depend on the extent of the analysis: a basic nutritional profile is usually around $50 and results take one week. Maturity can be determined by stage of flower or seed head development. If not properly harvested, there is a risk of nitrate poisoning. © 2020 New Life On A Homestead | Homesteading Blog, The Ultimate Guide to Growing Your Own Mushrooms, How to Identify, Treat and Get Rid of Leaf Miners, Garlic – in very small amounts and to help naturally prevent worms, Bananas – some goats prefer only the peels. The cost of chemical analysis in this case would be cost saving. Their small mouths are not well equipped to eat such a coarse variety of hay. Soil quality and growing conditions can vary within the same field. In alfalfa fields, the use of molybdenum can alter the color, making the hay greener. Training the goats to stay in their pen, free range on your homestead, or simply to establish trust so the animals run towards and not away from you if injured or trapped in fencing are all great reasons for giving small amounts of healthy treats. The hay passed all elements of visual analysis and the goats were eager to eat it. Look for toxic and nuisance weeds such as foxtail, which can cause mechanical injury. When a goat is starting to bloat or is bloated, it typically gravitates to the baking soda to help alleviate the increase in gas buildup. Some mineral blocks also contain salt, but not all. Depending on the quality of these, a goat may need nothing more. To visually analyze hay for goats, it is best to break a bale open. 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