Stall-Fed Goat Farming
Goats are raised in a confined space, where they get excellent care and a diet that includes farmed fodder, forages, silage, and concentrate feed. Goats, on the other hand, prefer the safety and security of a confined space, such as a shed or home, and will avoid wide pastures at all costs.
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This method is similar to the intense zero-grazing method. Goats are increasingly being kept in stalls rather than on pastures, since this alternative feeding strategy has several benefits. Because of how effectively it works for mass-producing goat meat, stall-fed goat farming is preferred by most commercial farmers.
Stall-fed goat farming method
- Low maintenance and few real estate needs.
- We need to become better at collecting and using manure. Manure may be collected and used for growing vegetables or other crops, or for other reasons.
- Goats of different ages have varying nutritional needs; hence, their feed may be of varying quantities and qualities.
- Unwanted mating may be avoided, leading to healthier offspring and increased productivity.
- It’s simple to keep track of agricultural data.
- When grazing, less energy is lost.
- The prevalence of diseases has decreased. There will be no risk of disease introduction from wild animals or plants. Plus, improved measures are needed to prevent reinfestation by parasites.
- Goats raised in stalls are protected from predators and other potentially dangerous animals.
- In comparison to a pasture-based or conventional goat-raising technique, a stall-fed goat-farming approach results in healthier, heavier goats that are more profitable for their owners.
Advantages
Goats have less stress than in a grazing environment. Goats are safe from the effects of climate change, including illness, wind, and heat stress. The conditions in which goats are reared are quite clean.
Goat records can be easily monitored, and the right amount of food can be fed to each animal. Checkups for both infectious and noncontagious diseases are essential in stall-fed goat production.
Energy savings are enhanced in stall-fed goat farming because of the simple transformation of forage and feeds into edible products like meat and milk. The bloat infections are managed by wilting the forages before feeding the goats.
Reduced risk of infection due to isolation in a sterile setting. In order to maximise goat output, it is possible to split goats into different pens depending on their weight and age.
Goats as a species have rapid growth after birth, and the care of their offspring becomes simpler as a result.
Breed Selection
Selecting meat-producing goat breeds is essential to the stall-fed method. Some goat breeds that are ideal for a stall-fed goat farming method are the Boer, Spanish, Kiko, Pygmy, Black Bengal, Sirohi, Frisian, and others.
Choose and buy healthy, high-quality goats, regardless of the breed. Doe purchases between 5 and 15 months old and buck purchases between 5-7 months old are ideal.
Animals should be purchased from local farms wherever possible. If you must buy goats from a livestock market, do your research and keep a close eye on their well-being.
Feeding
Goats need a daily diet equal to 4–5% of their body weight. 60–80 percent of their diet should consist of high-fibre foods (grass, leaves, hay, etc.). And give them goat feed as a supplement of 20–40%.
About 1 to 1.5 kilogrammes of green feed and 200 to 250 grammes of supplemental feed per day are needed for a maturing castrated buck. A doe of around 25 kilogrammes in weight with two or three young will need about 1.5 to 2.5 kilogrammes of greens and 350 to 450 grammes of supplemental meals each day.
A daily diet of 1.5–2.5 kg of greens and 200–300 grammes of additional feeds is recommended for an adult breeding buck.
Health Management
Goats should be dewormed twice a year, at the start of the rainy and cold seasons. Vaccinate them on schedule, and maintain communication with a local vet.
Goats need two doses of the enterotoxemia vaccine, the first three days after birth and the second fourteen to twenty days later. PPR vaccinations should be given at 4 months of age, and goat pox vaccinations should be given at 5 months of age.
With the right attention and treatment, illnesses and other health issues may be overcome. Try to give your goats the best care possible.
Goat care in this system
Careful monitoring is done routinely to find out any irregularities, strange eating habits, or diseases in flocks. Regular visits from vets may help keep outbreaks of seasonal illnesses at bay on farms that are well-maintained.
Goats that get ill should be separated from the herd as soon as possible, and pregnant women and newborn youngsters need special attention. These infants need their own shelter so that they may stay close to their mothers, who will need to nurse them often.
Tips
- Goats should be allowed to forage freely for most of their dry matter needs so that their active grazing behaviour may be put to good use.
- Goats kept in pens should be given a diet that consists of a 1:1:1 ratio of concentrates to dry fodders to green fodders.
- Leguminous cultivated fodders such as lobia, berseem, and lucerne are particularly well-liked by goats, while a 1:1 mix of non-leguminous fodders is also acceptable.
- Depending on the time of production, goats in the last stages of pregnancy, at the height of their location, or during active development would basically need supplemental feeding of concentrate at 1% to 2% of their body weights.
- In order to keep the concentrate mixture’s DCP and TDN unaltered at a lower cost, it should be created using alternative components such as agro-forest by-products and organic waste.
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