When do you feed your does Alfalfa? I was told to not have it fed to them as their main source, just as a supplement (a flake a day or so) but then have Grass Hay available to them all the time. I always thought that you feed lactating does and does one month before kidding just Alfalfa but now I am a little confused. I would appreciate anyones input on this.
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I have fed pure alfalfa at times because it was all I could find, but I prefer not to most of the time. I will feed it after the does kid and the does are in peak production, but otherwise 50/50 grass/alfalfa is the richest you have to get. A vet professor from Tuskegee recommends 50/50 during late pregnancy.
I don't know how common that is. I know some people who do with Nubians (the other breed I own and am at all familiar with), but I don't know any ND owners that do. IMO so far, Nigerians are such easy keepers that a little alfalfa goes a long way, and I wouldn't want to feed straight alfalfa at any time.
mmon and safe thing to just feed Alfalfa while they are in milk?
I have had issues with large kids, so I don't supplement with ANY extra feed until kidding. I also don't want to worry about GMO, so I don't feed alfalfa. I feed whole barley, oats and BOSS. I assume that the reason I don't need to supplement, is because the grass hay I get is good quality.
As long as my doe's condition is good, I leave her on hay/browse only.
I personally don't usually start feeding alfalfa until about a week before, and just a very small amount at a time then to get them used to having it. Circumstances vary so much though that there's no easy one size fits all answer. This year the grass hay I got is of rather poor quality, so I think I may have to supplement it with a little bit of alfalfa this winter. I'll be keeping an eye on everyone's condition and adjusting as needed.