Nigerian Dwarf Goat Care Guide: Housing, Feeding & Health

Taking your goat home

People may get overwhelmed when they take their goats home – but if you have your goat pen ready, the rest it really is quite easy.

Your goat pen should include 4 things:

Protection – from mountain lions and coyotes, your goat looks like a 4-legged snack, so keep them in a pen at night and/or have good motion lights.
Water – There should always be water available and it should be clean
Hay – have a bale of that hay matches their current feed. We mostly feed our goats a grass hay and alfalfa
Baking Soda – A Goat’s stomach is a little brewery always fermenting. That is how they get protein from plants. Sometimes their stomach gets imbalanced and they need to supplement with Baking Soda. You should always have baking soda available for them to eat when needed.

Now that you have the basics the rest is just maintenance!

Feed

Feed forage, alfalfa, or grass hay. Grain is a snack, not a main feed. They need roughage for their rumen to stay healthy.

Always keep clean water – no algae in the water trough or water bucket

Supplements

Keep minerals out and free for them to eat. We prefer minerals that are exclusively for goats. ( It is not for sheep) or else some supplements will be missing.

We also keep baking soda next to their minerals. Baking soda is what goats eat to regulate the digestion in the first section of their 4 part stomach, called the rumen. It is basically a fermenter which is why you hear them gurgling and burping so much.

Sick Goats

What does a sick goat look like?

Bloat – A goat who has an imbalanced digestive system will have their stomach fill with pressure, this is called bloat. A combination of forcefeeding them a baking soda solution with water and rubbing their left side can help. Many goats will self care before it gets this far as long as you leave our a bowl of baking soda t=for them to eat as needed.
Scours – happens when they have a digestive sickness. Watch their poo:
- Healthy – pebble-like and not clumped together.
- Keep on Watch – If they have pebbles that are clumped together they may have an upset stomach from eating something they shouldn’t or by eating too much grain – On our farm this happens if they sneak too much chicken feed.

Needs treatment – runny, no pebbles at all. This means you have a sick goat and you should treat them with Corid.

Supplements and shots:

Copper bolus – every 6 months
BO-SE – selenium supplement
CDT – annual shot
Worming – every 6 months

Pest prevention (Big and small)

First keep stalls clean by keeping fresh bedding. Sprinkle lime powered on top of wet spots to neutralize goat pee. Also can spread diatomaceous earth to keep down mites.

Ticks, fleas, mites – varies based on type of pest. You can rub diatomaceous earth in their coat to kill bugs. Use chemicals, dips, and sprays as a last resort.

Grooming

Watch their hooves – hooves should be trimmed every two or three months.

Owning a Milk Goat

Nigerian Dwarf Goats are great for your homestead if you are looking to own a milk goats. Because of their shorter size they require less feed and get into less trouble!

How do I get my Goat to start producing milk?

Goat start producing milk after they kid. So you will need to find a farm who offers stud service. You would pick up the buck (or deliver your doe) and leave them there for a couple of hours when your doe is in heat. 150 days later they will kid and begin producing milk. The first month you should allow her kid to consume all the milk, but afterwards you can separate them at night and come out and milk in the morning.

How often do I need to Milk?

To keep your doe in milk, she must be milked every day! If she has a kid with her, they will drink from their mothers allowing you a break and helping on the rare day when you miss.

What do I feed my doe?

Goats are very versatile with their feed, but if you are milking them what you feed can change the flavor of the milk – refer to our article on feeding your does that are in milk.

Goats for Homesteads

A homestead is not complete without some dairy goats. If your dream is to live as independently as possible a dairy goat has much to offer.

Goat Milk and Milk Products

A single dairy goat can consistently produce 2 quarts of milk per day. Some people have concern about goat milk having that ‘goaty taste’. The taste in the milk is mostly based on what the dairy goat is fed. When we first moved onto our farm the ground was covered in eucalyptus leaves and the goat milk did have a faint eucalyptus smell and taste.

To sweeten the milk you should feed your does a higher protein diet with alfalfa and a grain mixture optimized for sweet milk production. We have found that feeding black oil sunflower seeds and shredded beets work very well for this.

We have pleased several of our neighbors with goat cheese and recently started making goat milk soap.

Weed Abatement

The goats will continue to keep their roaming area weed free and the trivial amount of weeds that they would eat will have no effect on the flavor of their milk.

Goats perfect for HomeSteads

Goats for Weed Abatement

Nigerian Dwarf Goats are excellent not only for weed abatement but also tree trimming. Goats eat pretty much everything but being picky eaters they eat the yummy stuff first! With these tips you should have weed free areas just like you imagine and happy goats!

Containment Areas

Nigeria Dwarf Goats are browsers, meaning that they eat a little here and there and just like children they will eat the tastiest stuff first. So the secret to good weed abatement is containment. Create zones using a temporary electric fencing or a portable pen for each area that you want cleaned up. For very low cost you can use T-bars, temporary electric fence wire and an electric fence charger used for 5-miles or less (the type used for dogs works just as well).

Inside this enclosure the goats will be content spending all day munching away on grass, weeds, star thistles, and even poison ivy. Wherever you enclose them, always make sure that your goats have easy access to plenty of water and a bit of shade.

Nigerian Dwarf goats grazing within a temporary electric fence enclosure at Diamond E Ranch.

Goats are great Tree Trimmers!

Nigerian Dwarf Goats are the perfect size for trimming the bottoms of your trees. In our back area all our trees are perfectly trimmed at 4-feet!

Poisonous Plants

Be careful not to give your goats easy access to poisonous plants. They have robust digestive systems and are very tolerant of the occasional unhealthy plant – like a tomato plant. But bad things can happen if they were allowed access to a hill full of nightshade or azaleas. Make sure you do some quick research on the types of plants your property has to ensure they are not poisonous to your goats. Some examples of poisonous plants include azaleas, China berries, sumac, dog fennel, bracken fern, curly dock, eastern baccharis, honeysuckle, nightshade, pokeweed, red root pigweed, black cherry, Virginia creeper, and crotalaria.

Goats for Sale

What to feed Nigerian Dwarf Bucks/Wethers

Nigerian Dwarf Bucks and wethers are fed only grass type hays such as forage hay or Bermuda grass. Because of the urinary tract of male goats, wethers are at higher risk of developing urinary calculi or ‘stones’. The development of these stones can cause an obstruction in the urethral process (a small tube that acts as a urine sprayer). In our feeding practices we avoid feeding legume hay and grain to our wethers and not frequently to our bucks.

Preventing Calculi buildup

There are a couple of things you can do to detour calculi build up. You can supplement their fed with aluminum chloride to counter act the acidity of the urine. Wait to castrate bucklings until they are 3-5 months old to give more time for the urinary tract to mature and open up more. Feeds should be lower protein with plenty of water available.

Also read our article on feeding your Nigerian Dwarf Does and Kids

Goats as Pets

Nigerian Dwarf Goats make excellent outdoor pets. They are herd animals so it is important that you start with a pair of goats or else they will be miserable when by themselves. As herd animals they will see you as part of the herd and come by to be pet and they also love to be brushed.

Pet Goat Cost

The amazing thing about livestock pets is they are low maintenance and low cost. Goats are cheaper to feed than large dogs, as they graze they drop their feces that does not need to be picked up as it makes great fertilizer. You can keep your goats in your backyard so they will keep your lawn trimmed and simultaneously fertilized. Since we got goats and KuneKune pigs I have not mowed my backyard for 3 years!

Nigerian Dwarf Goat in pen, herd animal, Diamond E Ranch livestock pet

Health visits to a livestock Veterinarian are also much cheaper than your typical domestic pet veterinarian and you can expect a healthier animal as the goat is eating feed that they were naturally made for, this is still a question that has yet to be answered by dog and cat food for your domestic animals.

Pet Goats for Sale

Getting your Goat Pen Ready

Please take the time to get your property ready for your new animals. When they come to you they are young and small – so if it is winter be sure you have extra bedding until they get more bodyfat. A heat lamp is also a good idea – on very cold winter nights we have used a 250W red heat lamp for the youngest babies.

Goats are not considerate of where they go to the bathroom. Unlike pigs they do not have a favorite corner, so plan your pen to make it easy to clean and replace the bedding.

Fencing

Goat kids (and adults) will be sure to exploit any hole they can squeeze through, a table they can climb on, and chew any plant they can reach! We recommend using pigwire when you build out their pens, it is strong and the holes are smaller toward the bottom. T-Bars are a great way to erect fencing quickly and still keep it strong. Make sure your fences are a minimum of 4′ high (but keep climbing objects away from the fence as goats will just jump off a table or large rock over a 4′ fence). Playground equipment for goats would include a toddler slide, large tires buried vertical, boulders, or large spools used by electrical contractors.

Shelter

Goa Dog igloo shelter for goats at Diamond E Ranch ts can live in a simple shelter such as a medium to large dog igloo to a goat condo! What is of imperative importance is that they are able to get out of the weather. There is a common saying among goat owners, “a wet goat is a dead goat.” That being said, goats absolutely hate getting wet! Whatever shelter you choose to buy/build it will need to be mucked out weekly or sooner. When waste matter is left behind (especially if there is no air circulation) ammonia fumes build up and linger at the bottom of the enclosure. The build up and constant inhalation of these fumes can/will irritate the goats lungs and they can develop pneumonia. Pneumonia in goats more times than not results in the death of the goat.

If you buy a dog igloo, get the large size (over 50lb animal) and flat bottomed igloos are easier to rake out.

Water

Bowl-type livestock waterer with float for goats and other farm animals. Make sure you have a freshwater delivery system as well. So as you prepare your farm now is the perfect time to run some PVC and setup a livestock waterer.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/little-giant-automatic-waterer

Paddle water bowl for goats, automatic livestock waterer with float We recommend a bowl type that mounts to a fence and includes a float and if you have high water pressure (above 50 PSI) use interactive watering devices like a paddle water bowl that requires your goat to push on a level with their nose. Put these waterers high enough so they cannot poop in them. Also be prepared to use a cinderblock so your bucklings and doelings can reach the water until they grow taller.

If piped water is not available, use a flat backed bucket and a bracket to mount it securely to the wall of a barn or wooden fence. These buckets are great for feeding. Flat-backed bucket for goat feeding and water access at Diamond E Ranch

Feeders

Flat backed buckets work great for Hay feeder and trough for goats at Diamond E Ranch feeding grain, but if you have many goats I would consider a trough that mounts to the fence. Goats are messy with their hay so use a large trough or a hay feeder.

Fence-mounted goat trough for feeding grain and hay.

What to Feed Nigerian Dwarf Goats

Most people think goats will feed on anything, “tin cans,” but this simply isn’t true; they are actually very picky eaters. In spite of popular belief, Nigerian Dwarf Goats are not strictly grazers actually, they’re browsers. The difference between the two are browsers like to take a nibble here and a nibble there of any bush or tree that they might have access to on your property. Shrubs and leafy plants will be the first things that goats go for, especially the pretty ones! They will eat grass but if they have a choice they will choose leafy plants as evidenced in my backyard. All our bushes are stripped of leaves and the trees are trimmed perfectly at goat head height! However, we still don’t mow our lawn because goats will default to the grass once everything else is no longer reachable.

Now that there is some common ground in defining Nigerian Goat feeding behavior let’s talk about what to feed. What you feed your Nigerian goats depends on 2 things:

The nutritional quality of the soil in which the feed is grown.
The gender and stage of your Nigerian goat.

What to feed Nigerian Dwarf Does

The feeding regime we implement for our Nigerian does involves using quality alfalfa hay in the morning and quality forage hay in the evening. Alfalfa is legume hay and contains more calcium and protein than forage/grass hays. Legume hay (alfalfa) will have about twice as much calcium and protein as grass hay. Does in milk and their growing kids will benefit from the extra protein provided in the legume type of hay. Forage hay as well as Timothy, Bermuda and Orchard grass hay are all grass hays with lower protein and calcium percentages.

What to feed Pregnant Does and growing Kids

Our does are supplemented with a mixture 2:1:1 rolled oats, BOSS (black oil sunflower seeds), and Alfalfa pellets. Does that are in the late stages of pregnancy, about 1 month to go, are given this grain mixture to give them extra nutrition and energy for the finishing of fetal & mammary development. Growing goat kids also need the extra protein provided by the grain. You may be able to find some premixed grain rations available in farm supply/feed stores. Check the label to ensure that the grain mixture is around 16% protein, 16% calcium to 8% phosphorus.

In the end you will have a grain mixture that looks like the picture on the right.

Grain mixture for Nigerian Dwarf goats: rolled oats, BOSS, and alfalfa pellets

What to feed Milk Does

If you have Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Goats as a source of your own milk, there are things yo can do to influence the flavor of their milk. We have found that if you feed the Nigerian Dwarf Does a 2:1 ratio of the mixture above and shredded beet pulp the combination of the beet pulp and the BOSS will sweeten the milk. It is also a good idea to keep your milking does away from eucalyptus trees and leaves.

You may also want to read our article on feeding Nigerian Dwarf Wethers

Supplementing your herd with Selenium

Nigerian Dwarf goat kid in Diamond E Ranch pen, a source of milk.

Selenium is a form of Vitamin E that usually occurs naturally in the feed for your livestock animals. However, there are several geographic regions where selenium is not found in the soil, so the locally grown hay will be deficient requiring you to supplement. That happens to be the case for our ranch as well.

For goats, a deficiency in Selenium can lead to White Muscle Disease and you can especially see this in your kids. You an consider Selenium the ‘Folic Acid’ for your farm as this is a very important nutrient when your does are pregnant.

Selenium is important for the pig as well increasing the efficiency of the immune system.

Supplementing can be as easy as sprinkling it on their feed, and for goats you can leave the minerals out for them to freely consume.

Why Supplement with Copper

Copper (Cu) is an essential trace mineral required for the healing of normal connective tissues including tendons, ligaments, cartilage and bone. Copper is also important for vibrant color in a goat’s skin and coat pigments. Copper has also shown helpful for proper nerve signaling and the absorption and utilization of Iron. And of course Iron is key for healthy blood. Copper also aids in parasitic resistance with your herd.

Copper deficiency in goats can result in poor hair coats, reduced growth, reduced fertility and impaired immune system function.

The best way to supplement your herd is with loose minerals freely available in an open trough. This trough should be kept high enough that adults can eat the minerals when needed. If kept too low goat kidlings are more likely to play in it and goats poop on everything so you will need to clean out their mineral trough more often.

if more copper is needed, or you prefer to know exactly how much each of your goats is consuming, you can feed copper directly to them, this is called copper bolusing. When you purchase copper supplement pills from your feed store they are in capsules (or a boluse) but at a dosage for cattle (23.5g). Contained inside each capsule are small coper rods. Goats love grain so you can easily give them their copper dose by sprinkling about 2g of copper in their grain. An easy guide for dosage is 1g of copper per 20 lbs of body weight.

Nigerian Dwarf Goat Care: The Complete Diamond E Ranch Guide