I really don’t want a cow or donkey or anything bigger than goats that eats grass, I clean up enough manure as it is🙃
What would you do???
So I have been posting a lot lately, but I need some advice !!!
I just got done mowing are 1 and 3/4 acre goat pasture and it takes a long time to mow and weed wack everything that cants be mowed and so far we have to mow it every other week unless we want a jungle 😋 I’m not kidding we just mowed 2 weeks ago and the grass was basically as tall as my Nigerians , we only have 3 Nigerian dwarfs so they really can’t keep it trimmed down at all, here’s what I thought for some solutions, which one would you go with and if you have any more ideas, I would appreciate it.
1. Get 3-4 cheap buckings, wethers them and keep them till fall because are barn is not big enough to keep more 4 adult goats over winter. I say cheap because we really don’t have a good market for bucklings around here so they usually go for under a 100 dollars. So they could help eat our pasture over the summer and I wouldn’t have to mow so much.
2. See if anyone needs somebody to keep their goats till winter, da do that I will make sure they are from a clean tested herd and are all healthy.
3. Suck it up and just mow the pasture all summer long.
That’s all I thought of so far, if you think number one is the best idea what kind of goats are good weed/ grass eaters, because Nigerians just don’t eat tons.
Thanks everyone
I just got done mowing are 1 and 3/4 acre goat pasture and it takes a long time to mow and weed wack everything that cants be mowed and so far we have to mow it every other week unless we want a jungle 😋 I’m not kidding we just mowed 2 weeks ago and the grass was basically as tall as my Nigerians , we only have 3 Nigerian dwarfs so they really can’t keep it trimmed down at all, here’s what I thought for some solutions, which one would you go with and if you have any more ideas, I would appreciate it.
1. Get 3-4 cheap buckings, wethers them and keep them till fall because are barn is not big enough to keep more 4 adult goats over winter. I say cheap because we really don’t have a good market for bucklings around here so they usually go for under a 100 dollars. So they could help eat our pasture over the summer and I wouldn’t have to mow so much.
2. See if anyone needs somebody to keep their goats till winter, da do that I will make sure they are from a clean tested herd and are all healthy.
3. Suck it up and just mow the pasture all summer long.
That’s all I thought of so far, if you think number one is the best idea what kind of goats are good weed/ grass eaters, because Nigerians just don’t eat tons.
Thanks everyone
1 - 20 of 25 Posts
Number 1 is the best option, in my opinion. However, goats are light grazers. They need brush and trees to play and climb on. Is it possible you could get sheep instead of goats? Sheep can pretty much live off of grass, and don't need as much to play on as goats do.
I thought of sheep but sheep are very copper sensitive and I have free choice minerals for my goats that are very high in copper, plus I don’t want to sheer sheep and I know nothing about sheep, their pasture is mostly weeds and clover with hay grass mixed in so there’s not much just plain grass.Number 1 is the best option, in my opinion. However, goats are light grazers. They need brush and trees to play and climb on. Is it possible you could get sheep instead of goats? Sheep can pretty much live off of grass, and don't need as much to play on as goats do.
Understandable. There are some sheep however that shed their coats and don’t need to be shorn.I thought of sheep but sheep are very copper sensitive and I have free choice minerals for my goats that are very high in copper, plus I don’t want to sheer sheep and I know nothing about sheep, their pasture is mostly weeds and clover with hay grass mixed in so there’s not much just plain grass.
I didn’t know that, do you know what breed they are?Understandable. There are some sheep however that shed their coats and don’t need to be shorn.
Katadhin sheep. They are pretty easy to deal with. They shed once a year, but they have enough fur to deal with winter.I didn’t know that, do you know what breed they are?
👌🏻, I might look into that, do you know what breed of goat would eat the most weeds and grassKatadhin sheep. They are pretty easy to deal with. They shed once a year, but they have enough fur to deal with winter.
That’s probably what I’m going to end up doing, it just takes forever because half our pasture is very uneven and we have a stream that goes through our pasture so I cannot mow those parts so I have to weed wack the rest and the stream bank, it took me 3 hours, I know the hard work is good for me but I just wish there was a easier way 😊Just mow.
Build a bridge to drive over. 
We do have a bridge, getting across isn’t the problem the steep banks are. And the frogs that attack the weed wacker 😔 I feel sorry for them, but I didn’t tell them to jump at the weed wacker🙃Build a bridge to drive over.
I feel for you. We have 5 fenced acres (among our 37) and it’s mostly cleared now but still very steep and rough, wooded terrain in parts with streams and a pond, plus we have a huge amount of roadside to maintain. We brush hog, mow, and weedeat every 2 weeks and, if my husband is home, it takes both of us doing separate tasks 7 solid hours. And then we mow the easier parts around the house and a couple acres of pasture every single week which takes about 5 hours for one person. When he’s not home, it takes me two days of work. Sometimes more. He can be gone for months at a time, and when he’s gone it feels like as soon as I finally get done, it’s time to start over.
I wish I had some good advice for you, then I’d take it myself. For me, I’m not ready to take on more animals right now, so mow is my only option. If you have a better one, take it.
I wish I had some good advice for you, then I’d take it myself. For me, I’m not ready to take on more animals right now, so mow is my only option. If you have a better one, take it.
Any reason you couldn't get some electric netting from Premier 1 and rotate your goats through the whole pasture so that they eat it all down? This way they would be in a smaller area and keep it clipped short.
Wow , how you do that every two weeks, good for you, can I ask you one thing though? How do you take care of 37 goats?!! I have 3 and I think that’s enough drama!!! LolI feel for you. We have 5 fenced acres (among our 37) and it’s mostly cleared now but still very steep and rough, wooded terrain in parts with streams and a pond, plus we have a huge amount of roadside to maintain. We brush hog, mow, and weedeat every 2 weeks and, if my husband is home, it takes both of us doing separate tasks 7 solid hours. And then we mow the easier parts around the house and a couple acres of pasture every single week which takes about 5 hours for one person. When he’s not home, it takes me two days of work. Sometimes more. He can be gone for months at a time, and when he’s gone it feels like as soon as I finally get done, it’s time to start over.
I wish I had some good advice for you, then I’d take it myself. For me, I’m not ready to take on more animals right now, so mow is my only option. If you have a better one, take it.
I’m not sure my dad would like that idea, but I’ll see what he says, thanksAny reason you couldn't get some electric netting from Premier 1 and rotate your goats through the whole pasture so that they eat it all down? This way they would be in a smaller area and keep it clipped short.
I have 3 goats and 37 acres of land, we just only have 5 acres fenced and somewhat tamed. I should have been a bit clearer. Sorry.Wow , how you do that every two weeks, good for you, can I ask you one thing though? How do you take care of 37 goats?!! I have 3 and I think that’s enough drama!!! Lol
You'd get the benefits of less parasites with lots of pasture rotation too. 😉I’m not sure my dad would like that idea, but I’ll see what he says, thanks
Okay that makes more sense 😆I have 3 goats and 37 acres of land, we just only have 5 acres fenced and somewhat tamed. I should have been a bit clearer. Sorry.
I didn’t think of thatYou'd get the benefits of less parasites with lots of pasture rotation too. 😉
1 - 20 of 25 Posts
- This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
The Goat Spot Forum
A forum community dedicated to goat owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about breeding, health, behavior, housing, adopting, care, classifieds, and more!
Full Forum Listing
Explore Our Forums
