Are goats picky eaters?
Goats may have earned themselves the reputation of eating garbage. However, goats are actually very picky eaters and have some major nutrient requirements to follow.
Below is a great guide to following what feeds
How do goats digest their food?
Goats have a unique digestive system. They are classified as small ruminants. This means they have four stomachs. The rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum.
When you are feeding a ruminant, you are feeding the micro-organism colonies in the rumen. These microorganisms process feeds further and prepare them for nutrient absorption in the abomasum (the stomach like us humans) and the intestines.
You must keep a healthy rumen to ensure a healthy goat.
Image by Wiki Commons via File:Желудац_преживара.jpg
Do goats need different feeds for different things?
Are you feeding a meat goat? A dairy goat? Or are you just keeping your goat as a pet? The different seasons and geography also matter.
A goat in production for meat or milk has a higher energy requirement.
If you are keeping a goat just as a pet, it will only have energy requirements to maintain its everyday requirements. But if you reside in a northern location with harsh winters, they will require a higher energy diet during the winter months.
What types of hay do goats need?
Goats must have a source of forage provided to them. This is because their rumen needs the forage to help synthesize protein and maintain a healthy rumen pH.
A forage containing 18 % crude fibre. These can be shrubs, weeds, grass hay, and alfalfa.
Do goats need grain?
A concentrate is a mixture of different types of processed grains and premixes. They have a high sugar and starch content and supply protein to the diet.
Concentrates are only required when goats need to meet increased energy demands. Like meat or dairy production. Winter feeding also may require concentrates when energy levels are low in forages.
You should start with a concentrate specifically formulated for goats to ensure it meets all requirements and contains 14-16% crude protein. Feed this at a rate of 0.5-1lbs /day, twice a day.
Overfeeding a goat concentrate past its requirements or when it is not required can be dangerous. This causes obesity and the rumen pH will drop too low and kill off the microorganisms.
This can cause a very sick goat.
What minerals and vitamins do goats need?
Along with providing adequate energy and protein. Minerals and Vitamins are essential to carry out regular bodily functions.
Most minerals and vitamins can be derived from the goat’s diet. But depending on the geography, stage of production or housing. They may require supplementation.
Providing a free choice of minerals for your goats to ensure they receive their necessary mineral and vitamins.
Minerals that goats must have in their diets are calcium, phosphorus, salt, potassium, iron and copper, iodine, sulphur, magnesium, selenium, and trace minerals (Zinc, manganese, fluoride and cobalt).
Not all these minerals are necessary to supply in the diet. The minerals potassium, iron and copper, sulphur, magnesium, and most trace minerals are supplied in the regular diet.
Vitamins are also present in a goat’s regular diet.
Due to the uniqueness of the rumen microbes, all the K, C and B vitamins are produced in the rumen. Vitamin A is also produced in the rumen if the goat is provided with good leafy green forage.
If goats are kept indoors Vitamin D should be supplemented in the diet. Sun-bleached hay can be a great source of vitamin D as well as vitamin E. Most general mineral supplements will provide a level of vitamins A, D and E.
There are many different types of minerals and vitamins to keep track of! It can be a little overwhelming. For more clarity take a look at the image I created below.
Do Kids require different requirements?
Kid nutrient requirements are different from an adult goat. Not only because they are in a rapid growth stage but also because their rumen is underdeveloped, and they digest food like a monogastric (we humans are monogastric).
Click here to read up on How to Feed a Kid Goat