Cold and Barns

Hey everyone,

This is not my first herd, but it's the first time I have locked my goats up at night in the barn. I have heard a couple of things that made me want to check if I am doing it right.

To describe our barn/shed, there is a big hinged door for us to go in at the front of the barn, a flap door on the side that was there before we moved here, and a small sliding door into the goat-yard in the back. Inside it is divided in half with a railing and a gate in the middle of the railing. The goats stay in the back half with a sawdust type mulch and straw bedding.

In this photo (from the last herd), you are looking at the back of the barn. The goat door is on the other side of the feeder. It has a new tin roof now.

The man I bought them from said to be sure there is ventilation so they don't get sweaty while inside and then go out into the cold and get chilled. We haven't done any ventilation yet. I was thinking we could maybe drill a few 1 inch holes in the goat door for this purpose???

I also read from someone in this group something about a barn and pneumonia. Yikes!

The last few mornings it has been around 0º and I have been asking my daughter to open just the people door and let a little cold air in and feel the goats to see if they are sweaty, then let them stand up and walk around and THEN go around and let them out through their door.

This morning it is -18º so I went out with her to do that. Everyone was huddled in the corner and the two adult goats were slightly sweaty where their bodies were touching, so I had them stand up and walk around a few minutes while just the one door was open and then let them all out. However, that one door let in a lot of cold.

So, I guess I'm just wondering if I am doing this right or if anyone has a suggestion. My last goats stayed outside in the 3-sided shelter in all temperatures, but I'm more nervous with these little goats because they are so small. (We have coyotes quite often in the state piece across the road.) So I have been locking them up at night.

Also, what do I watch for as an indication of pneumonia?

Sorry this is so long =)

Kare

This is a tough one. Is there a door or window that you could open that is not on the side of the building where the wind is coming from? I wouldn't drill holes in the door. Most barns are not that airtight. I'm not sure you have anything to worry about, but you're there, so I'd just say play it by ear.

Usually the first sign of pneumonia is that an animal is down. Unfortunately, that is also usually too late. I did manage to successfully treat one goat with pneumonia (out of the three cases we've had). He couldn't stand, and I put my ear up to his throat, and his breathing sounded gurgly or scratchy. It's hard to describe in writing, but it definitely did not sound right. It's one of those "you'll know it when you hear it" things. When in doubt, listen to other goats' breathing.

I totally understand about locking them up because of coyotes. We have the same problem here!

Replies

Kare February 1, 2011 at 4:25pm

Thank you both. I will work on putting in some ventilation up in the rafter area. In the summer, I'll have to figure out what to do that will also keep the coyotes out. There is a window, but it's huge.
Adrienne February 1, 2011 at 4:13pm

I don't know if barns are anything like chicken coops, but I would imagine they are... rather than cutting holes in doors... Ventilation needs to be up high in the winter and I have heard it needs to be lower in the summer. We have what would be gable vents if it were a house and in the summer the short sides can be fully opened to chicken wire and we try to position it so the wind will blow through it like a breezeway. I imagine if I had a barn I would have the gable vents or something similar and a cupola up top and down lower i would probably cover windows with something like hardware cloth so that they could stay open at night.
Deborah Niemann-Boehle February 1, 2011 at 12:40pm

This is a tough one. Is there a door or window that you could open that is not on the side of the building where the wind is coming from? I wouldn't drill holes in the door. Most barns are not that airtight. I'm not sure you have anything to worry about, but you're there, so I'd just say play it by ear.

Usually the first sign of pneumonia is that an animal is down. Unfortunately, that is also usually too late. I did manage to successfully treat one goat with pneumonia (out of the three cases we've had). He couldn't stand, and I put my ear up to his throat, and his breathing sounded gurgly or scratchy. It's hard to describe in writing, but it definitely did not sound right. It's one of those "you'll know it when you hear it" things. When in doubt, listen to other goats' breathing.

I totally understand about locking them up because of coyotes. We have the same problem here!

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