Care Program
BRIAR MTN FARM
Purebred Nubian Dairy Goats
Rocky Mount, Virginia
Here you will find our recommendations on how to care for your new Nubian Dairy Goat, from the time that you pick them up from our farm and through adulthood.
As soon as the kids are born we remove them from their mom and then clean and dry them off. We then will take them to an indoor location for at least 2 days ( depending on the weather ) to allow them to warm up and start being mobile. We always try our best to be there for every birth and are usually good about doing this since our does are not pasture bred. We will give the kids a 1/2 cc shot of BoSe ( Vitamin E and Selenium ) to get them the nutrients their bodies need. All Colostrum will be heat treated and the kids will be raised on pasteurized milk, since we are on a CAE prevention program. Kids will be bottle fed for the first few days to a week and then will be switched over to a Lambar feeder. By or around one week of age all goats will be disbudded. They will receive a 1.5 cc shot of Tetanus Antitoxin at this time. When they are done being disbudded we like to put a little Blu Kote on their horn area to guard against infection. You can repeat this a couple of days later if needed ( just be very careful NOT to get it into their eyes ). We use a Rhinehart X30 dehorner and it does a very nice job. If you ordered a wether, around this time is when we will also do the banding. If the wether is picked up early and the band has not fallen off yet, you will occasionally want to spray some Triodine-7 to prevent infection. Kids will be introduced to hay by 2 weeks of age as well as water so that they may start to develop their rumen. The kids will be exposed to grain by 1 month of age, we start out by giving them small quantities at first, just to allow them to get the taste for it. At three to four weeks of age the kids will be started on Dimethox for the prevention of coccidiosis. They will receive 1/2 cc by mouth, twice daily, for one week and then a 1/2 cc dose once per week until they are weaned. We do this by simply mixing it in their milk. The kids will receive their first shot of CD&T ( Tetanus and Enterotoxemia ) follow dosing recommendations on bottle. At 4 weeks of age and will get their second dose at 6 weeks of age. All kids will be wormed prior to leaving our farm. The kids will be raised on Purina Noble Goat medicated feed for the prevention of coccidiosis and you should continue them on this as they grow,
Bucks and Wethers: We give both of these an endless supply of hay year round, as well as access to pasture and wooded areas. Full grown Bucks receive one to two quarts of grain each day, some may need more, you will have to judge by their appearance. Young bucks will be less. Be careful with the wethers because they tend to put on excessive amounts of weight if they receive too much grain.
Yearling Does and Dry Does: They receive about 1 quart of grain a day. Younger does will be less if any at all. They also receive unlimited supply of hay and access to pasture / woods. After they are bred you will slowly want to increase the amount of grain that you give them 1 month prior to kidding.
Milking Does: They receive an endless supply of hay as well. They also receive a mixture of 4 parts grain, 1 part Alfalfa pellets, 1 part sunflower seeds, and a heaping cup of beet pulp two times per day when they are on the milking stand. You will have to gauge the amount of feed that your goat requires, simply by looking at them, you should be able to tell if they are getting too much or too little. A heavy milker like our Doe Daisy, requires about 2-3 quarts a day to maintain her body size and her milk production. Try to only feed them on the milking stand so you are assured that they are getting the amount they need and not too much or too little. Our Does are also on pasture and wooded areas as well. We wash all of the udders prior to milking and afterwards we spray them with Fight Bac as a disinfectant for the prevention of mastitis. Milking should be done 12 hours apart and at the same time each day. ( Goats like schedules )
Our Feed: We purchase our feed from Performance Livestock located on route 8 just south of the town of Stuart, Va and just about 2 miles over the North Carolina / Virginia line. The feed is called "Super Goat" and it is a 16% percent protein feed. We also obtain our Alfalfa pellets and Beet Pulp here as well. They are excellent on their pricing and it is worth the trip. 1-888-777-5912
Minerals: Our goats receive Free choice Goat mineral and also free choice Diamond V Yeast Culture and Sodium Bicarbonate ( baking soda ). This helps with digestion and helps alleviate acid in their stomach. The yeast and baking soda will be in the same container and mixed at a 50/50 ratio. You can find all of these products at Southern States and if they don't have it, usually they can order it for you. We also give them Thorvin Kelp free choice which is very rich in Vitamins and Nutrients.
Hoof Trimming: We try to trim the hooves of our goats every 4-6 weeks just to keep them in good shape and to keep them from breaking off.
Worming: We use Safe-Guard Goat Dewormer and we worm our goats in the spring and fall ( or as needed ). We so far have been lucky in not having problems so far with worms on our farm yet, but it is fairly new as far as livestock goes. We use herbal goat wormer consistently during milking .
Shots: We give our kids a 1/2 cc of BoSe after birth, bred does will receive it 4 weeks prior to kidding at a rate of 2cc per doe. All goats will receive a shot of BoSe at breeding season and in the spring. CONSULT YOUR VET for dosing recommendations. We give kids their CD&T shot at 4 weeks and 6 weeks of age. Adults will receive their shot one time per year after that and it is given in the Spring 4 weeks prior to kidding.
