Cold Weather Goat Care

Although they are hardy farm animals, goats do require a higher level of shelter from snow and cold. Many goat owners bring them into a barn and provide a thick layer of bedding for them and safe access to the outdoors where they are able to warm in the sun and absorb important Vitamin D.

A three-sided shelter with the open side away from the wind direction will help keep them warm. Goats can easily become chilled if the weather is rainy or snowy and they do not have adequate roughage. Some people think that increasing a goat's grain intake during the winter will help keep them warm. What most effectively helps goats create their own heat, is roughage. Keeping hay in front of them will help goats maintain their body heat. 

It is important that you are pro-active with regular parasite control for your goats. Research is showing that many types of worm larvae lay dormant until the animal stressed. An animal that is not fed properly, is too cold and does not have access to fresh water, will become stressed. When this happens worm larvae will hatch and migrate throughout your goats' body with devastating effects.

Support your goats through the winter by taking pro-active steps. Here are a few things to remember:

• Shelters are in good repair - covered with no area for leakage, strong enough to withstand winds and snow, give enough protection to keep the goats out of the cold, damp weather.
• Enough shelters for all animals.  Remember goats do not always share well. You might need to add some wooden pallets to "divide" the shelter areas so more goats can use the shelter.
• If feed areas are not in shelter areas, some sort of cover should be available that will keep the goats and food dry.

• Have enough paddocks/areas if you need to switch goats around - as an example, one or two goats are not being allowed in shelters or not allowed to eat their share - these goats would need to be in an area of their own.
• Goats are up to date on worming and hoof trimming.
• Remember goats need extra nutrition during the cold winter time - feeding grain or some alfalfa in the night time allows their rumens to work through the night helping to keep them warm.
• Have goat coats or people sweatshirts cut to fit ready for goats if you see some shivering.

• Fences in good repair.
• Quarantine pen available should you need it.
• Have your hay in storage, covered well. If you find a "steaming" hay bale remove immediately from other hay to keep from starting a fire.
• Have grain stored in covered containers - winter time causes unwanted little creatures to search for easy sources of grain.
• Have extra water available should lines freeze or other reason for not being able to have fresh water.
• Be prepared to provide hot water to the goats on days where their water is very cold or has ice in it or is ice!
• Start immune enhancer/vitamins to help goats stay healthy through the winter. These can be human holistic/herbal type or regular immune enhancer vitamins. 
• Keep minerals (should include selenium) available for the goats at all times in a dry area.
• Start on probiotic powder when feeding grain to keep their rumens at a good functioning level of good bacteria.
• Make sure your first aid kit is well stocked - you may find a storm is brewing and you cannot get out to the feed/farm store.
• Check lumbar score of each goat often – lumbar score shows what condition the goat is in.
• Check coat thickness to be sure they are ready for winter - if selenium deficient, coat may not be able to grow thick for winter cold.
• Keep an eye on hay and grain to be sure there is no growing mold brought by winter moist weather.
• Try and keep other wild critters from getting into your goat's water buckets - they may be carrying leptospirosis.
• Have older goats?  They are going to need special attention.
• If you have pregnant does who may have due dates during winter weather - be prepared with kidding stalls and kidding supplies.  These does may also need some special care so watching them closely is advised.  If you do have kid goats born in the cold weather, advice is "keep them warm" and the doe's body warmth is sometimes not enough.  If the kid goat seems chilled or your barn is cold and the heat lamp is just not keeping the area warm enough I advise bringing the kid goats inside – don’t lose them from the cold.

Rrraw Feeding for Your Cat

Making your own cat food is easy. Once you do it a few times, it gets even easier. Most people end up feeding a combination of homemade, commercially made raw diets and whole meats. This is actually preferred, variety is important, both in the types of meat and the different recipes. This variety helps to even out the nutrients provided. 

Typically, a healthy adult cat should eat 2 - 4% of its body weight per day (double that for kittens up to a year old) and be fed twice daily. As an example, a ten pound cat, eating 3% of its weight would intake 4.8 ounces a day. Kittens should eat about every four hours, and senior cats often do better eating three or four smaller meals per day. 

If your cat is not at an ideal weight or has existing medical conditions, consult a qualified animal nutritionist, a holistic veterinarian, or your current vet prior to beginning a new diet.

When embarking upon a homemade food for your cat, the basic ratio guideline to follow is:

83%  meat

  7%  bone

  5%  liver 

  5%  other organs 

Important supplements to have on hand include:

Taurine powder

Vitamin E capsules

Vitamin B Complex (powder or capsules containing powder)

Wild Salmon Oil (do not use cod liver oil as it contains high levels of Vitamin A which can be toxic for your kitty)

Lite Salt that is iodized (or use regular iodized table salt but use 1/2 the amount any recipe calls for)

Psyllium Husk Powder (Temporary use is beneficial in the prevention constipation as your pet adjusts to its new diet.)

Both recipes call for eggshell powder. You can make this yourself by leaving the shell's nutrient rich membrane, removing the egg white from the shells and drying them in a 300 F oven for 10 minutes. Allow them to cool then grind to a fine powder using an old coffee grinder or mortar and pestle.

Raw Chicken Dinner

4.5 lb   boneless chicken thighs and breasts (If they have skin, remove it from half of the meat.)

   7 oz   chicken liver

  14 oz  chicken heart (If you are unable to locate chicken hearts, add 4,000 mg taurine to the amount listed below, plus 3 ounces of thigh meat.)

   8 oz   spring or filtered water (do not use unfiltered tap water)

   4       egg yolks

   2 tsp egg shell powder (Grinding the shell of one large egg yields approximately 1 tsp of powder.)

2,000 mg taurine

4,000 mg fish oil

   200 iu  Vitamin E

   200 mg Vitamin B complex  

   4 tsp psyllium husk powder (optional)

Mix together well, serve a meal fresh and freeze the rest

Raw Rabbit Dinner

3 cups    rabbit meat (ground or chunks)

1/3 cup  chicken liver

1/2 cup  chicken heart

   1         raw chicken or turkey neck, chopped (DO NOT COOK)

1/2 cup  cooked carrots, diced small

   1         egg

   1 tsp   fish oil

   4 tsp eggshell powder

3,000 mg  taurine powder

Mix well, serve appropriate portion and freeze the rest