The Goat Spot Forum banner

Mixing grain

1K views 19 replies 9 participants last post by  kramsay 
#1 · (Edited)
I have been spending time with goat hiker. She has been mentoring me on how to care for goats, such as feeding, hoof trimming, healthcare, and poisonous/nonpoisonous plants. Man, there is so much to learn! Today she taught me how to mix grain for my goat, who will be starting his training soon. But first he is going to get weathered, which will be done tomorrow. I decided to call my little guy Duncan, and I can't wait to start hiking with him.
 
#2 ·
How exciting...Do you have Pictures of Duncan? maybe start a thread on his progress...There is nothing like starting a new adventure, and for you and Duncan to learn together is great. We brought home a few miniature donkies, my 13 year old took a little jack into her care..(mind you we never owned any equine ever) she has trained him to do so much, learning as she goes, She loves it. And sounds like you got great mentoring from Goathiker..she has a world of wisdom to offer..Dont for get to post Pictures...we LOVE pictures..best wishes
 
#3 ·
Lucky you! Goathiker is a great mentor. I started a thread on our wether Orion under hiking this year and it has been a wonderful adventure hiking with him. We're to the point now when we have to go hike without the goats...it's just not as much fun....something is missing. Watching your little guy happily hop over the logs and bounce around on lookout platforms...stopping at every overlook to catch the view is priceless. Enjoy!
 
#8 ·
Where we live, we do hike off lead almost always.

Moonlight and I had a great weekend. She is going to be a very caring goat owner. I am very glad that I decided to wait and band her buckling in the cool of evening right before she left. He decided to be one of the ones who lays around acting like you killed him, poor little guy. She did get to watch it done and help recheck the band placement. No worries, ALL of Barbara Gene's kids are drama queens. They are also highly intelligent, one person goats. I can't wait to see what they do together.:D
I have Duncan's birth pictures. Moonlight doesn't have access to internet, cameras, etc. unless she's here. We'll work on up dates next weekend
 

Attachments

#9 ·
Awe..hes so cute!!! Congrats Moonlight...hes a doll...
 
#13 ·
Goats just aren't wired that way. Their instinct is to stay in the herd, not to go off alone. The herd is their safety. Mine are taught to stand their ground when they see something scary. Since they don't run from dogs and mountain bikes, it is much safer for them. A running goat is a target, a herd together presenting strength is more intimidating.
While we are moving through the forest, they stop and browse at a particularly tasty spot. They will let us go 10 or 15 feet ahead and then they run to catch up. They get quite good at snatching bites on the move as well.
Truth is not all goats make good pack goats. If they have no bravery or herd mentality no amount of training is going to fix it.

They are started very young. Onyx took his first beach trip at 3 weeks old and hiked about a mile and a half that day. Also they are bottle fed so they include people as part of the herd. This pair of goats is much better then the last group I trained. More in tune to me.
The only real secret to it is getting out there as often as possible, not to let them get bad habits, and a pocketful of peanuts.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top