Does anyone or should we feed alfalfa pellets free choice to does?
Mine have grass hay in front of them all the time. Unfortunately, their browse/grass is usually limited. Minerals, kelp and baking soda are free choice and a mineral block if they want to chew/lick that. Capri (milking) gets grain morning and night (a local milk grain mix), Summer (yearling) and Ginger (4-1/2 months) get a tiny bit of goat feed for grain morning and night for psychological reasons (so they don't feel left out and abused<g>). I usually give them a quart, sometimes two, of alfalfa pellets each day but lately they seem to want more and were even fighting over the quart I just gave them (so I split another quart between two feeders). Don't know if the fighting was about the pellets or because they are miserable with our heat wave; unfortunately our heat is going to be even worse the next two days. I know those of you in the Midwest and Southwest think that 95-105 isn't a heat wave but in the western Northwest, it absolutely is. The girls still want their water at bath temperature, won't touch cool water.
Would it be okay if they have alfalfa pellets free choice?
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God bless you all! Every time I hear talk on the news etc. of the droughts and crops and all that is going on I think of all of you and feel so sad for you and how hard it must be to get through this. Some days I wish I could send ya'll some of my rain. I pray ya'll get some relief soon and plenty of it too!
What a coincidence! I just had my daughter check on the difference between the two at TSC -- the timothy pellets are 8% protein, the alfalfa is 16%. I had her check because last night, my dear sweet Carmen (who is only 19 inches tall!) had a heck of a time getting out two, FOUR-POUND kids! I couldn't figure out why on earth she would have had such big kids because I had not been giving her hardly any grain, and then it occurred to me that we have almost zero pasture because of the drought, and she has been eating almost nothing but alfalfa hay and Chaffhaye, which is alfalfa and is apparently so well metabolized that it is the equivalent of 20% protein. So, I have to figure out how I'm going to get a lower protein diet into my does come January so they don't all have monster sized kids! The good news is that they were unbelievably healthy -- in spite of the fact that the buck's head was sticking out for about 15 minutes before we got the rest of him out! Both were standing within ten minutes and nursing about five minutes later.
I am also worried about my does getting too much calcium on this rich alfalfa diet so am considering switching to Sweetlix Magnum Milk, which has less calcium and is made for does on an alfalfa diet. Carmen had a very long, slow labor yesterday, and I'm wondering if it's because her calcium was a little off. A proper calcium level is very important for good, strong contractions. She was having very wimpy contractions for about 9 hours.
This drought really has everything messed up! Just when I figure out a good diet for my does, I suddenly have no pasture and can't find grass hay. It is like starting all over again!
Debbie Lynn said:
I'll check, Debbie, at our local feed stores and see if they have them. Thank you for the suggestion.
Glenna, another possible alternative to using Alfalfa pellets is to use Timothy pellets instead. They would not be so "high powered" and less likely to cause weight gain. If you have a local TSC (Tractor Supply Company) near you they come in 40 pound bags and run a little cheaper too :)
She is at day 147 now and appears to be in labor. The kids are still super active!
Having had Summer go over that 6-foot fence this spring, I totally appreciate "jumpers extraordinaire." I'm suspecting the offending goat my have her "hands" full after they are born, Karma can be kid some times.<g> I'm so glad things look okay so far. I have only the most positive thoughts (and prayers) for them as we all do. What is her due date?
She is still pregnant, and I'm still seeing movement, so hopefully they are all fine. Those kids have been so wild for the past week anyway -- much more than normal -- that I've been worried about them ripping an umbilical cord or something. But I know there is NOTHING I can do about it. The funny thing is that Carmen is the most calm, mellow goat in the whole herd, but her daughter Lizzie (and some of Lizzie's daughters and sons) have been jumpers extraordinaire! Makes me wonder if she has more jumpers in there!
I had to laugh at Margaret's comment about them being spoiled. They are so much even if they don't think so. What is it about this little girls (and guys) that steal our hearts so completely?
Yes, it would be so nice to have no fighting. This was the first time I've seen them fight over the pellets (or any food). They will push each other aside for grain/goat food but not this body slamming stuff that happened last night with the pellets. So I am thinking perhaps I should continue do what I have been doing and just divide the pellets in different feeders if the bucket is empty. I've been hesitant to give them more than two one-pound coffee cans over the course of the day and if they have a decent amount of browse, I only give them one or less. They always have grass hay in front of them and even when I think they are being too picky, I will notice them on the camera eating it anyway just about when I was ready to put that feeder's hay on the floor for bedding. Leaving the camera on in their stall has been a good thing; I intended it only pre-birth, but it has really been handy many times for watching their behavior which is often so different than when they know I am watching.<g>
They truly don't look like they are missing any meals, but are not fat either though I told Capri this morning she looked pregnant.<g> I often call Ginger my little tubby girl, but the older ones look very much like when I first got them, not skinny but not fat. Their tails do look right - thank you, Deborah, for such a good description.
Also, Deborah, do babies seem to be okay? I can only imagine how your heart must have jumped when you saw that. Karma would be if those babies pester the offending goat to bits when they get big enough.<g>
Keep an eye on their body condition. They can definitely get fat on free choice alfalfa, whether it's hay or pellets. Their tail should be a nice triangle when viewed from behind as they are holding it up over their back. The base should be pretty thick, but if the whole tail starts getting fat all the way to the end, that's a fat goat.
And I SO wish we could do something about the fighting! Two days ago a goat slammed into the belly of a 5-month pregnant doe at feeding time and nearly gave me a heart attack! Her babies did not like that one bit and looked like they were going to pop right through her skin! I've never seen a goat's belly move like that before!
I agree with Ms C that we should collect more opinions, but I feel pretty sure you should keep doing what you are doing for now. I would be concerned about giving them alfalfa free choice because it is rich and we all know that goats will over-eat to the point of killing themselves. It can make them way to fat for sure and we also know what kind of problems that can cause. Glenna it is not unusual for them to fight over food, though it is frustrating. Sometimes they don't, but truthfully it only seems to take 1 goat with the wrong attitude to stir up the whole herd at feeding time and they will go nuts fighting until the food is gone and then everything seems to be fine. You have to admit your girls are spoiled. Course all the rest of ours are too, LOL!
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