Hopefully the trees in there are mature. Then we rescued our fourth. Wethers do not need grain, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, etc. I have manna pro, but it's very expensive for such a little bag. Zinc (Zn), min 245,000 ppm. Were in good hay, they get forage regularly, our well water is minimally mineralized after a water softener, and theyre getting purina loose minerals. Eventually her health became so bad that we put her down. Wethers are very easy keepers. Stephanie. Wethers are VERY easy keepers and do not usually need much for minerals. good foundation of quality food in your goats diet, Heres a great video on how to give a copper bolus. The flour product is hard to work with, to much dust! 18:18 or 18:9. Loose minerals should be kept available 24/7 in a dry, covered area. They get such a small amount that they eat it up in a few minutes. They are free to range over thousands of acres looking for what they need. I have given copper bolus once (against the advice of our vet) because all 5 goats had really obvious fish tails. Grain is high protein and made for does in milk. (Max) Seeds are grains. They do NOT currently have good quality pasture to browse. Thanks for sharing your knowledge! Is there a good go between we can offer to them both thats safe? If in doubt, consult with a nutritionist. You can feed high copper minerals to goats. I had a fecal done just be make sure all was good there and my vet said one had some coccidia and gave me SMZs to give them both. If you have local brands, be sure to check the label. If so, how much, and how often. I can only hope that what you get back in life is comparable to what you give. Do NOT believe the company that says theirs lasts for 12 months. Thanks for your insight! They need a loose mineral (which is the consistency of sand) rather than a block, lick, or bucket type mineral. All feed changes with goats should be made over the course of a few days to avoid digestive upsets. Goat Purina Goat Mineral 25 lb bag Write a review Purina Goat Mineral is a uniquely formulated goat supplement, rich in nutrients that are essential to the proper development and well-being of goats of all ages and breeds. I havent noticed them eating many minerarl lately so i gave some Kaeco Selenium & Vitamin E Gel yesterday. Goats and cattle have mineral needs that are so similar that you can use their minerals interchangeably. This last kind I tried is HighBoot from TSC, no luck so I have started sprinkling a bit on their feed once every couple weeks. Click here tovisit our Amazon store, which includes a list of things goats need. And if it will, when is blue salt used? They are not producing sperm or babies or milk, so their nutritional needs are very minimal. Free-choice access to minerals off the ground helps cut down on waste and keep it all in one spot for convenience. Since pygoras are a hybrid and produce three different types of fleece, it can get tricky. Anemia. Daily Diet, Treats, & Supplements For Goats - The Open Sanctuary Project Maybe he got too much grain one day or ate something else that upset the rumen balance. When I brought them home, one had clumpy poop (which I read could be stress induced) and currently she has dry flaky skin, is always scratching on something and her coat just isnt as nice as her sisters. Manganese You want at least 1500 ppm copper in the free choice minerals. Similar to the last post I am also new to goats. Some minerals contain up to 500,000 IU of vitamin A per kg. You can mix in some hay pellets (timothy or orchard grass), then gradually increase the hay pellets while decreasing the grain until it is all hay pellets. Remember that Se becomes toxic quickly, so do not overfeed it. Iodine listed iron in the ingredients but not ppm so Im not sure how much of that is in it, but Ive ask. Copper deficient goats will have problems with infertility, miscarriage, failing to shed their winter coat, andloss of color in their coat. Goats seem to be the farm animal with the most inaccurate (or non existent), feeding information out there, yikes! Wethers are fine because they are not producing sperms or growing babies. Thank you for your helpful suggestions! Would that work? Thats why I bought the HiBoot salt mineral that Im using now. Im in Canada and Ive asked you questions about my mineral choices here where I live on the West coast. We have does and kids in a pasture with a new mini donkey. Fresh Air Fencing is best for keeping goats on your land. Grain is a good source of P but it contains no Ca. Since its all a delicate balance, and Im struggling I figured Id at least ask. What form of goat minerals should I use? Per the farms request, I havent given them any Purina yettheyre just eating the hay and Triple Crown Forage . Furthermore, the answer to this question will somewhat depend on what your goat itself. Look for multiple forms of minerals. Neither of the Dumor goat feeds is medicated, and only one or two of the Purina feeds is medicated. Symptoms are: copper colored fur or off white fur- one of them Has a curly coat. Sometimes I see them eat it, and other times not. I have never used copper BoSe or anything else copper. If the goats, sheep, and donkeys go into their own stalls at night, you can have their species specific minerals in there. You normally want to see 2 to 1. She always struggled with parasites and would have spurts of good health and activity but was chronically lame without response to anti inflammatories. In cases of severe copper deficiency, goats will die. Is sweetlix okay for pet wethers? When you need to supply Ca to your goat, especially when on high grain diets, i.e. They wanted me to confirm that the Purina grain at least has ammonium chloride for the wether. 30-80ppm is optimal. Sudden dietary changes can upset their rumen. Manganese 6290ppm If nothing I said works, send me an email, I always have more ideas! I think they used to do that, but I havent seen it lately. Choosing a Mineral for Your Goat Herd - Province of Manitoba It drives me nuts when I see people saying that you need so many supplements and so much stuff. Which Minerals Do Deer Need? Remember they are not producing sperm or babies or milk or anything. Barley and BOSS is NOT a sufficient feed for a milking doe. I have NO idea what your goats will do with minerals that have no salt in them. Thank you!!! Secondary deficiencies are more difficult because they involve antagonists. From reading your site, it sounds like I need to replace the mineral block with a free choice mineral. I have no problem spending the money though its hard to find and $89. For some reason, unknown to me, animals tend to eat a lot more mineral in the fall and winter compared to the spring and summer. (Min) If I provide free choice livestock salt, will that be enough to compensate for the lack of salt in my mix? Is the Bermuda bay sufficient? All of a sudden, now it sends like zinc is an issue as well. I wont castrate earlier than 4 weeks, although I prefer 2 months. Minerals that contain salt usually are consumed better than salt free minerals. 0962 Is my understanding accurate? I have been feeding alfalfa hay because one of my kid wethers had gone off feed a couple times and after intervention he needed to gain weight, and my doe in milk (the one with possible selenium deficiency) had pink milk that wasnt mastitis. Thank you for your knowledge!!! 2.0 oz MannaPro Goat Min. But being in Eastern Canada I do not have the access to species specific minerals, but do have access to several types/brands of loose minerals. Its a good idea to check your goats eyelids weekly to be sure they are not getting anemic, which can be caused by coccidiosis or barber pole worms. Everyone is eating well, and always hungry come meal time. Sorry I didnt see this sooner. The right up says it is commonly used for non-lactating cows. Do you recommend a specific brand of loose minerals? Minerals are further subdivided into macrominerals, those required at 0.1 percent or more in the diet, and microminerals, those required at the part per million (ppm) level. Brown Dumor Goat Sweet Feed also has about 40 ppm, but the pelleted Dumor Goat has about half as much also. I have two Nigerian Dwarf boys that are 8 weeks old. I am not a fan of medicated minerals, but the medication is actually deadly for equines, so definitely should not be used around donkeys. Best Goat Mineral Feeder: How To Make One - Mother Farmland Theyve been eating hay and whatever else their mother was eating. Just be aware that if they get diarrhea with 3-4 weeks, its probably coccidia and will need to be treated. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. You can find all of this info on the feed tag that it attached to the bag. Im in Canada and have not been able to buy Sweetlix but I tried ManaPro only to have the same results. The first calculation is to calculate the amount of P in each bag. I am in Alaska, and we are deficient in just about everything you can imagine. 13% We want to do right by our boys (getting two young wethers), but cannot break the bank either. It does contain copper. If it's all stock, it's probably 80% or more salt, so practically worthless. In that case, they might try a free choice mineral with more copper. The concentrations of vitamin D and E are added in proportion to the amount of vitamin A. (Max) It will just be calories that she doesnt need. free access to timothy hay, baking soda, kelp and sweetlix or purina minerals. You made my day! If its better to feed them Grass Hay instead of Alfalfa and Grain then thats what well do. They may think they should top dress the goats feed rather than having the minerals available all the time. You could have pushed them into a mineral imbalance or a toxicity situation. Feed to growing and adult goats at the rate of 0.5 to 0.75 oz. and the total ration being fed. Already put in an order for the Sweetlix mineral you recommend. If Ive given you enough info, do you recommend these kids have medicated anything? Hi, I got two wethers a couple months ago and didnt know much about them so they havent been getting minerals but I just got Manna Pro Minerals and they say you should feed 1/4-1/2 oz a day but everything Ive read says free choice but Im paranoid of them overdosing. Wethers are more likely to have a problem with urinary stones if you give them grain. You dont need to do that. We all have seen the cartoons with a goat . As long as you are not using medicated minerals, the donkey will be fine. I meant to say something about the selenium but forgot. In the past, when I have noticed they are becoming copper deficient, I would give them a dose of Replamin Gel Plus and it would clear it up almost immediately. Its a coccidiostat, which should only be given to goats at high risk of coccidiosis, which three wethers should not be. If the iron is listed as a percentage, then it is much higher than anything listed in ppm because 1% is 10,000 ppm. Salt makes a mineral palatable and prevents over-consumption, but too much salt will hinder the consumption of the other minerals, and your loose mineral will be nothing more than a mineralized salt.. This year Ive noticed they are getting coats that I would call frizzy thats gotten more noticeable as they shed their winter fluff, and what I would call very minimal fishtail in about half of the adults, but no sign of bleaching or much hair loss, so Im on the fence about giving a copper bolus. Iodine 205.6ppm Salt Rox Himalayan Salt Block Lick With Minerals For Livestock, Deer, Cows, Goats, Horses (5 Lb) Check On Amazon. Marlene thanks for letting me know you are in Canada, minerals are definitely different there; the best one I have found in Canada is this one: https://www.masterfeeds.com/nutrition/ritemins-ranch-n-range-beef-mineral-salt/ I highly recommend trying it. I tried to find a comment that had my goat problem to no avail. I have 3 does, one wether. Even if theyve already been vaccinated for coccidiosis? There is NO need to give medicated feed to adults. Having a high-quality loose mineral is important, as each brand varies with the form and amount of each mineral. But you really shouldnt be using medicated minerals anyway. Our horse vet who is familiar with goats said she looks healthy. Dont use alfalfa pellets as alfalfa has too much calcium in it for wethers. Female goats are called does. My boy takes them just fine and I have given Manna pro goat minerals for years, but my younger doe always manages to chuck them back up and chew them which defeats the purpose. Predicted consumption of Sweetlix Meat Maker is about 14 grams per day, which is almost twice as much, so that also leads me to think that the salt content is going to be at least 30% in your mineral. I am in no way a goat expert and my opinions are only that of personal experiences, and my insights shared are not medical treatment suggestions, care suggestions, or any directions for raising goats at all. We will be moving them around to different grazing areas of our property. Minerals should always be available free choice that means they are in a feeder on the wall, and they can consume as much or as little as they want. We consulted with fellow goat owners, paid over $500 in vet care just for diagnostic testing only to tell us there was nothing we could do except supportive care. I was assuming they dont need it, but their appearance seems to say otherwise. He is 4 wks old now and also eats alfalfa and forage. There are many different kinds of minerals available for goat producers. Your email address will not be published. Around the world though, other options include Golden Guernsey, White Russian, the Norwegian milk goat, and more. Thanks. Limestone is 38% calcium and it is cheap to buy. Dry does only need good grass hay and pasture. There are many mineral antagonists which bind to certain minerals and prevent proper absorption. Im a little concerned that the seller may not have had minerals available for them, so they are just used to eating dirt instead. Often times a goat will wear down their teeth to the gums just trying to get enough minerals out of a block. 99 PPM I always say to watch your goats, as theyll tell you what they need. lb. Some feed companies use dried molasses to encourage intake. I have not given it to them because Im not sure if its needed (her poop returned to normal pellets). Copper 2000ppm The blocks dont have enough minerals in them, so dont be surprised if they go after the loose minerals like crazy for a week or two. Best Mineral to Help with Goat Horns | The Goat Spot Forum Goats are very good about only consuming as much as they need. If you like to listen to podcasts, I interviewed a ruminant nutritionist a couple of months ago here: Are they showing signs of any mineral deficiencies? You can also try varying feeders which help protect from moisture more! Also, free-choice baking soda is a good idea, especially for those goats eating grain. Unfortunately the slightly bigger baby ate most of it. Very worried now. You start with one mixed mineral, such as Sweetlix Meat Maker. Would there be an ideal timeframe for this transition? Expected consumption of Purina is about 1/3 to 1/2 as much as Sweetlix and it has about 50% more salt. Although some people have had luck with blocks or buckets, Ive also heard of goats winding up with deficiencies or chipping a tooth as they desperately scraped the block with their teeth trying to get enough minerals. Overall it's not great. Purina Goat Chow and Dumor Sweet Goat Feed have the most consistently high level of copper Ive seen its around 35-40 ppm copper. Iodine (I) actual 70 mg/kg 200 mg/kg It would be terrible if the feed store had a bag of minerals that was more than a year old. It is likely that they need copper. Thanks, appreciate any info I can get. Complete Goat Feeding Guide: How to Feed Your Goat the Right Diet (Max) I do the same thing with selenium. Ive seen a mineral with copper as low as 300 ppm and salt as high as 85%, which means the goat is getting mostly salt and practically no copper or anything else. feedlot kids, it is much more economical to supply Ca from limestone (calcium carbonate). Goats should have FREE CHOICE minerals available so they can take as much or as as little as they want. Loose minerals are formulated to be safe when given free-choice. If you can't find goat-specific . If you want to raise your goats organically, the #1 most important thing is that they get LOTS of mamas milk for several months. When goats are copper deficient, their coat fades, so a white coat looking darker is NOT copper deficiency. Zinc (Min)12,500 PPM This farmer also does not pasture his goats. And, am I reading right that we should stop feeding them the goat feed & balancer? So, because Ive seen them eating the minerals, Im supposing we still have an antagonist. Sorry ooooof. Some minerals contain up to 500,000 IU of vitamin A per kg. If a certain amount is top-dressed only, they may eat too little or too much. Its an issue of controlling the goats intake of the mixed minerals. If a goat is zinc deficient, they will have balding in more places on various parts of the body. Just check the feed tag and look for 35 to 40 ppm copper. I use the pelleted formula, not the sweet feed. It is too low for breeding does and probably bucks. Her bag and her daughters are the ones that are looking full. t there a med in that mineral which treats coccidia? That is the most common cause of urinary stones in wethers. (Max) I have a goat that has a big bald spot on her nose. But whenever you do give any grain or mineral to goats, it should NEVER be for sheep and goats because that means it has 0 or next to 0 copper in it, so you will wind up with copper deficient goats. I have a mini Nubian does and Nigerian dwarf doe, bother born May/June of this year. 321 mil CFU\LB Kelp/Herbamins (free choice) WARNING: This feed contains added selenium at 67.22 mg/kg. There are two types of deficiencies: primary deficiencies and secondary deficiencies. They lick at them once or twice a day. Thank you, I will see if the feed store can get me some of that brand. What do you recommend? You may notice that a fresh bag of mineral has liquorice like smell when opened. A specific color is not indicative of copper deficiency. One goat may need mineral supplements for life, and another may only need a few doses of a supplement before returning to a normal, healthy state. couple of years ago , no sign of problems with them. Success! I am not a fan of premixes in general, though. Appreciate any advice. For #1 the calculation is 0.18 X 55 lb = 9.9 lb of P and for #2 the calculation is 0.09 X 55 lb = 4.95 lb of P. Next you need to calculate cost ($) for each lb of P. for #1 the calculation is $20.00/9.9 lb for a cost of $2.02/ lb of P and for #2 the calculation is $16.00/4.95 for a cost of $3.23/ lb of P. This calculation shows that the more expensive bag of mineral (#1) is a much cheaper source of P. Remember to do this calculation when comparing two minerals to make sure you are getting the best deal. Just be sure you dont get medicated minerals for goats. Meat Goat is medicated. You can learn more about my free online course, Copper Deficiency in Goats, by clicking on the link. Our Myotonic is 4 weeks old this week, Im looking to introduce hay and minerals to him. Thank you foor your help! They need to consume it daily for best results. Here is more on diet: https://thriftyhomesteader.com/what-do-goats-eat-it-depends/. When buying a mineral, look for the product that has the highest concentration of vitamin A. If I am understanding correctly, you are mixing sweet feed into the medicated feed. We are new goat owners and have 4 ND kids 8 weeks, 6 weeks, 4 weeks, and 1 week! It says A list of the ingredients used in this feed may be obtained from the manufacturer or registrant. Id suggest contacting them to verify the lack of salt. I just want to do right by them! They have an acre of land to graze on. Our Vet wants me to get Zinpro because she thinks its possibly a zinc deficiency. They are in a fenced in area about 50 feet x 75 feet with lots of grass and a few trees. Copper: Helps reduce issues with parasites, hair loss, and coat issues. So Only one of them has been pregnant. Can I use a block or a poured bucket? People dont realize that they see goats licking the blocks constantly because they cant get enough minerals from it. Is that possible if I put the minerals free choice? Sweetlix would be great for them. All you need is a couple licks, its perfectly acceptable! They used to have twice as much salt, which meant goats wouldnt consume much. How have they changed? Any advice? Goats: Loose Salt or Block Salt, Which One? - Best Farm Animals I go to the MFA and ask for the cattle mineral with highest copper. So Im wondering if I should start their Purina tomorrow rather than wait any longer. They may or may not need baking soda depending upon the grain situation at your farm. Sounds silly, but I feel really guilty not giving her feed when she sees her horsey brother eating feed. I have been watching YouTube and looking at blogs and am TOTALLY overwhelmed in trying to decipher just what we need. and cobalt, uniformly blended with granulated salt for free choice I see that the Purina Grower does (which I did not buy), but he Goat Feed does not. They have manna pro loose minerals, and icelandic kelp loose minerals and baking soda, all in separate bowls. Tips for providing free choice mineral supplements to goats **** P.S. Guaranteed Analysis the website isnt finished yet so I included it though its not viewable yet****, In your situation with such a small number of animals, a lot of people will simply offer each goat a dish of minerals once or twice a day and let them lick up what they want. In the picture you have displayed, it looks like there is salt on one side and loose mineral on the other. There isnt some magic date on the calendar when this happens. Shipping gets expensive if you have a lot of goats. I just rewatched your videos as I realized recently that there is no salt listed in this mineral mix. We plan to feed a sweet mix food (non-medicated), mixed with black oil sunflower seeds and sprouted pumpkin seeds, giving each goat 1/2 a cup a day. I searched my email and found the feed tag you sent me, and it does not have a list of ingredients. In fact, thats a perfect diet for obesity. Salt is needed to make it more palatable, but too much can make your goats eat less of the minerals. Sweetlix Meat Maker is my favorite because it has plenty of copper, selenium, zinc, and cobalt, which are minerals that goats are most commonly deficient in. (Min) Choosing a Mineral for Your Goat Herd - Province of Manitoba You dont buy more. Its high in calcium and helps with milk production. Growth slows down quite a bit after 6 months though, so its best to switch them to a grass hay around that time. As I previously mentioned our plan was to feed them Alfalfa and Grain (theyll also be foraging) until they are about 6 months old. Heres our plan based off your answers to the other questions. Please note that this blog post only contains some of the basics, and minerals are such an individualized topic that I highly recommend reaching out to me directly for a more in-depth conversation. First of all, thank you! Thank you so much! These are the first goat i have ever had. Ive saved it for later! Also, HOW should we feed them? I am not talking about using medicated feed. Our does are 3 months old and get a free choice loose mineral. To make things worse, some people have told me that they use the block because they see the goat licking it all the time, whereas they dont see them consuming the loose minerals. Supplement, Cobalt Carbonate.. They also get free choice broamy/grass hay along with ample graze in our wooded and pastured areas. I know people whove used it and wound up with copper-deficient goats because they believed that company instead of paying attention to their goats. Coccidiostats are really only needed when a young goat is going through a lot of stress, such as weaning or moving to a new home, so feeding a medicated goat feed at that time is a better option. Goats have even been shown to self-medicate. You can check the Sweetlix website for a list of distributors and probably find someone near you. Its a very old myth that goats should not chew the copper. They also said to ease into foraging outside (which makes sense)all in the name of not taxing their rumen, or stressing them out. Goats have very soft tongues, unlike cows whose tongues are like sand paper. Hey! Are you aware that Purina and Sweetlix, two of the most popular goat mineral companies, changed their formulas in 2019? Whats important is how the coat changed. You dont put it in a bucket. There is no reason to wait to start giving them the Purina. Blocks are too hard for goats to get enough minerals because they have a small, soft tongue. Calcium (Min)15.00% I have two male goats who I was told to feed Blue Seal Medicated Goat Feed, daily, and I have been doing so for approximately 16 months (they are almost a year and a half old).

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