How to Keep Pygmy Goats

By N.f. Mendoza

Instructions

Things You’ll Need:

appropriate fenced pen
feeder
water
feed
brushes

How to Keep Pygmy Goats

Step 1:
You need at least a 20-by-20 foot fenced area for two Pgymy Goats. Fencing should be at least 5 feet high (you must keep stray dogs out; they’ve been known to kill does). You can get non-climb fencing. For kids, you may need to adhere cardboard to the fence to prevent them from squeezing out. Be sure you use good quality hardware.
Step 2:
Make a sleeping platform; an old door can serve this purpose.
Step 3:
Keep hay feeders off the ground to protect against parasites. Hang on a fence or in a shelter on a metal rack.
Step 4:
Always have fresh, clean water available. Elevate the water above the ground for cleanliness. (Make sure a kid cannot fall in; they can’t get out). Automatic waters are convenient, but expensive.
Step 5:
Make or buy Grain Mix: 6 parts rolled barley, 4.5 parts rolled oats, 2.5 parts rolled corn, 1.5 parts soybean pellets. Feed pygmy goats quality alfalfa supplement with grain twice a day. (Wethers should not be fed grain after they are weaned due to the high possibility they will develop urinary calculi (stones). Fresh clean water is of course a must.) Goats will not eat feed that falls on the ground (to them it’s dirty).
Step 6:
Trim hooves at least every four months.
Step 7:
Goats need a yearly booster of Tetanus C & D. Give does and bucks a vaccination of 2cc of Clostridium perfringens types C&D tetanus toxoid (CD&T) yearly. (Ask your vet about pregnant does)
Step 8:
De-worm goats more than six-months old once a year.
Step 9:
Give your goats something to play on. They like to climb and jump. Wooden cable spools are a lot of fun for them.
Step 10:
Groom your goat. Goats really enjoy being groomed, especially in spring when they are shedding their winter coats (I like to have on hand a a dog undercoat rake for combing out their undercoat). Grooming is an excellent bonding activity with your goats.

Tips & Warnings

For two pygmies, a dog house provides adequate shelter, however, a larger shelter would be ideal and is a must if breeding the doe or adding another goat is planned.
Bucks and wethers can be weaned as early as 6 weeks. Wean does for eight or nine weeks.
Pygmy goats scan be used as milking goats (supplying up to a 1/2 gallon of rich milk a day).
Sheep and cattle are grazers and goats are “browsers.” The won’t mow your law, but they love blackberries and brush.
Consult your vet immediately if any of the following occur to your goat:
It goes off its feed (in very hot weather this is common).
It stops running and playing
It stands hunched up, tail drooping
It has loose or mucous-y diarrhea (also called scours)
It has a high temperature. Normal goat body temperature is about 102.5. Take your goat's normal body temperature for reference.
Feeding grain to bucks and wethers could facilitate the development of urinary calculi, or urinary stones.
Never feed a wether grain after they turn three months old. It puts on excess fat, threatens his health.
Rhododendron are highly toxic to pygmy goats and require immediate vet care for survival.
Pygmy goats hate to get wet.
Symptoms for worms: weight loss, in spite of a good appetite, a rough coat, and/or a general "ratty" appearance. You can take a fecal sample to your local vet for testing if you suspect worms.
Watch out for lice, too.

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