This method of using goats to keep weeds to a minimum, called “mitigation,” helps reduce the risk of brush fires. Goats of different sizes are a good idea in a herd of weed-control goats since each size goat will focus on plants that are most suitable...
Chill Milk Quickly Goat's milk contains several acids that give it its characteristic tang, and when left warm, they increase the milk's “goaty” flavor. The United States alone has several dairy goat associations, and a simple Internet search will...
Consists of wall, sole and frog. Sub Goat Physiology Life span: 10 to 12 years, up to 30 in rare cases Heart rate: 70 to 80 beats per minute Respiratory rate: 15 to 30 breaths per minute Temperature: 102.5 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit Water intake: 188 cubic...
This article first appeared in the November/December 2007 issue of Hobby Farms magazine. Level 2 Very rarely stiffens, never falls. “The Myotonic breed,” Pat says, “is listed as a rare breed with the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, so there...
Your local cooperative extension office can help you with this. What makes people so thrilled with the manure of chickens, goats, cows and horses? Manure has a lot to offer that commercial fertilizers don't provide.
Buy one online or subscribe today. There are lots of good reasons to raise bottle-baby livestock, including mine: It's a relatively inexpensive way to add popular genetics to my breeding stock, the youngsters raised this way are friendlier and more easily...
Sew the back connector to center over the padding. On each piece, turn under one end 2 inches, and sew to a new ring. J – Girth Strap: Cut one 36-inch piece of longe line. (Add one connector to each side of the chest strap.) Turn under the opposite...
Find a nice, meaty bit and just quickly push the needle in and depress the plunger. Electrolytes and kaolin-pectin, for example, are pretty tasty. Slow and steady is the way to go, though.
What most goat keepers can agree on is that doelings bred at a younger age tend to have a single kid the first time they're bred. Their rationale is that she has to grow a strong body and bones before she's mature enough to carry kids.
Rudolf the Red-nosed Reindeer made his appearance in a booklet written in 1939 by Robert L. Next week we'll talk about real, live reindeer and how you can raise them on your farm Ask Martok! Do you have a livestock or wildlife question you want me to...
No one knows for sure when cattle dairying began, though Dr. Evershed's team used the same technique to date dairying to 9,000 years ago in the Near East, 8,000 years ago in Eastern Europe and 6,000 years ago in Britain.
Shake again before each use. Flies, especially of the biting variety, can drive goats (and goat keepers) to distraction. Midges USDA/Flickr Midges, also called sand flies, punkies and no-see-ums, are one of the world's tiniest biting flies.
They became hardy and agile and proved valuable livestock for the people who called this part of Europe home. Both French and American Alpines come in a variety of colors and patterns, including cou blanc (white front quarters and black hindquarters with...
It is estimated that up to 85 percent of goats don't show clinical symptoms but rather act as a reservoir of infection to the population at large. Any joint can be affected, but the carpal joint appears to be most commonly affected.
This is Sweetie. You can carry disease pathogens on your clothes and shoes. Some people Mom's friend knows bought Sweetie at a sheep and goat auction at a place called a sale barn.
Like a dairy cow, the dairy goat's diet changes as its stage of pregnancy and production changes. There is never just one right answer to animal husbandry, especially when it comes to nutrition.
Purebred LaMancha elf ears are no more than 1 inch long, triangular in shape and have cartilage in them. She takes them all outside to poo and pee instead of using an indoor pad, like she did with Kerla .
(I'll be awaiting your hate mail.) Here's the skinny: Aside from maybe a routine, post-kidding worming, you really shouldn't be doing any other worming without actual data saying your goat needs to be wormed.
Be specific, asking for makes and models of machines and materials they use. Before bringing goats to your farm, get a book or two on general goat care and locate your nearest vet so that you can have that number on hand in case of emergencies.
That can be dangerous. Today's "Ask Martok" question is something I have a teensy bit of experience with: goat breeding. Ha, Kerla ! Once bred, most does stop coming in heat and 145 to 155 days after the beginning of her last standing heat, she'll give...
The livestock electrolyte powder can be stored long-term, unopened, so we always try to keep a few on hand. Stock your goat's medicine cabinet for these remedies to use in an emergency.
If frightened, we run a short distance and then turn to face whatever scared us. Uzzi and I helped Mom research a book she wrote called The Backyard Goat: An Introductory Guide to Keeping Productive Pet Goats (Storey Publishing, 2011), and these are some...
I'll let you know as soon as the video goes live! « More Mondays with Martok » Tags contest , goats I got to demonstrate how I use the laptop to write my blogs. Tumnus drank a beer —he had a tummy ache and the nice people from Barkley had never seen...
Start them young and you can expect many years of faithful and reliable service from your working goat. Jobs For Goat Hauling Stuff Goats are great pack animals and adept at pulling carts .
To clarify, we don't expect kids on the ground after 30 minutes, but we do expect to see at least one of the following: thick ropes of goo, a bubble or a rush of broken water. In our herd, some does will come back to the barn and have kids on the ground...
Milk gently, so goats learn it's a pleasant experience with rewards of tasty grain and udder-pressure relief. Wash hands before milking, strain the milk as soon as possible after milking and cool the milk immediately.
They're a boy named Ranger and a girl named Rapunzel. Myotonic goats are the exception because if they faint while working, they can get tangled in their harness or packing gear and get hurt.
