Husbandry

Goat Mating: How to Recognize a Doe in Heat & Billy in Rut

Sunday 21 July 2013

Black goatWhen looking to breed a pair of goats, there’s a lot to understand if you’re inexperienced. First, the proper terminology to call your farm animals should be understood. Goats have a variety of names that are used by farmers to properly explain and classify the maturity and reproductive history of the animal.

A female goat that is young or old, but has never given birth, is known to farmers as a “nanny” or “doeling”. After giving birth for the first time, the female gets a new name. That newly conferred title is “dam”. The term lets anyone, certainly someone familiar with farm animals, know that the goat has been through the birthing process and has experience of mothering.
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Goat Meat: a Healthy and Tasty Option

Saturday 13 July 2013

Goat’s meat is not as popular as fish, chicken, beef, or pork. However, if you are a person who values health it should be on your plate. This horned farm critter’s body carries less cholesterol and less fatty make-up than any of the other meats typically sold for consumption at grocery markets. When prepared properly (a phrase whose exact definition depends on the chef and the eater, of course!) it also has one of the best tastes of any farmyard animal you can name.

The meat provided by domestic goats is what is sold on markets, though some hunters will go for “game” animals as well. The goat sold at market is usually called cabrito, capretto, chevon, mutton, or kid meat. Chevon or mutton mean that the animal used at slaughter was an adult, while the other three terms refer to meat derived from a kid.
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Goat Kids: Facts to Know about Raising the Newborns

Saturday 13 July 2013

A kid (young goat) feeding from two bottlesIf you have goat kids or are expecting some, there are a few essential things to know about your baby goat(s). There are management guidelines farmers have come up with to produce the finest of bucks and nannies that should not go ignored. Focusing on the nutrition, housing, hygiene care, and exercising of a kid will help greatly with creating an amazing flock. One should even have a veterinarian to regularly check the health of their newborn or youngster.

In the very beginning stages of a kid’s life, you should be prepared to help deliver the nanny’s baby. Once the baby goat drops, you will have to cut its navel cord from its mother. Trim it 3 to 4 inches long from the kid’s body, then dip the tip of it in iodine solution. This act will prevent infection from bacteria and dry the fleshy extension quickly. If there is blood on the cord, you will have to tie the navel with surgical suture material.
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