The weight of Goat is totaly depend on which type of feed are you giving to your goats. the Goat feed should be packed with All the nutrients like Protein,
Quality goat feed is the key part of commercial goat farming. All the aspects of Meat production and milk production depend on the which type of quality feed you are giving to your goats. How much dry matter is present in the feed. The quality feed to the Goat gives quality results. 60% of the total cost is only spent on the goat feed.
the combination of Dry Fodder, Green Fodder, and Concentrate Fodder should be present in the Diet of Goat Every day for the better production.
Goat feed should be Packed with Nutrients Like Protein, Carbohydrate, Minerals, Vitamins & fiber for the Good health. The proper nutrition in the goat feed Helps them to stay free from major disease.
Contents
Required Nutrients in the Goat Feed
Protein
for the quality meat production, Enough Protein in the Diet is quite much needed. Protein helps in muscle growth of goats and keeps the goat free from weakness. Extra protein should be present in the diet of Lactating goat and Breeder of the Farm.
Energy
Approximately All the feed provides energy but the concentrate feed is full with energy and energy is quite much needed for daily routine like exercise, walking, ruminating and another Daily routine of goats. The good source of energy is Fat, Grains, Bran, etc.
Minerals
the minerals in the goat feed keep them free from stress because minerals help in the proper functioning of Brain. the minerals also help in bone growth or milk production. Therefore the proper amount of minerals is much needed in the goat feed. Important minerals for the goats are Calcium, phosphorus potassium, selenium, copper, and salt.
Vitamins
Vitamins in the goat feed are required for growth and good health. The B vitamins help in cells growth also important & it also helps in feed digestion and proper working of metabolism. Important vitamins for Goats are Vitamin C, B1, B12, A, D, E, K.
Water
Fresh Water should be present 24 hours in front of the goats. Water is much required for the proper working of the body. It also helps with food digestion and milk production.
Types of Goat Feed
Dry Fodder
The Dry fodder for the goats is much valuable it helps in weight gain also provide energy to the goats. Dry fodder improves the milk production of lactating goats.
Types of Dry fodder
Hay- if you have your own land than you can make hay it is quite simple and cheaper feed for the goats. In which the green crops cut and make a bundle and stored. It has 90% dry Matter. There is a set time to cut grass. Hay is very helpful in weight gain of the goats.
Silage: silage is a type of dry feed it is like the pickle and loves to eat silage. In which green crops chopped mixes with the mineral mixture and salt and packed in the airtight plastic or under the vessel. The goal is to make moisture free silage.
Straw: forages stored for Goat Feed.
Green Fodder
the green fodder contains 60 to 70 % water in it.
Some important Green forages good for Goats
Cowpea, Sorghum, Pearl millet, Moringa or oliefera, Lucerne (alfa alfa), HedgeLucerne, maize grass, cowpea, , Napier grass or Elephant grass), Guinea, Beffel grass, Marvel grass, Sewan grass, cluster bean, fenugreek Grass,
The green forages should contain high leaves and fewer stems. The stem should be soft or the color should be dark green.
- Maize Fodder – 9 to 10% crude protein and 70% Moisture
- Sorghum – 6 to 7% crude protein 70% Moisture
- Cowpea – 16 to 18% crude protein and 60 to 70% Moisture.
Concentrates
The concentrate is much needed in the Goat feed it provides energy, protein, and carbohydrates. Concentrate should be according to age and bodyweight of the goat. Extra concentrate should be provided to the lactating animals or Breeder of the farm. A concentrate made with the mixture of Grains, Soy or groundnut cake, Wheat or rice bran, salt and mineral mixture. It fulfills all the required nutrients for the Goats which helps in the better health of the goats.
Concentrate for the Kids (1 to 6 months age) or Goat Feed Starter
| Ingredients | Weight in Kg |
| Maize/wheat/Millet | 30 |
| Gram | 17 |
| Soy or Ground Nut Cake | 30 |
| Wheat Bran | 20 |
| Mineral Mixture | 2 |
| Salt | 1 |
| Total | 100 Kg |
Starter Goat Feed should be Feed up to the age of 6 months for the better results. It also can feed according to the weight of the goats. The Goal of the starter Goat feed is to makes the good structure of kids. If we provide good feed in the starting then the weight of the goat should be increase regularly up to their slaughter age.
The feeding schedule for the kids are
| Age | Milk | Starter Feed | Green Fodder | Dry Fodder |
| 0 to 5 days | colostrum | – | – | – |
| 6 to 1 month | 300 ml | Little | Little | Little |
| 1-2 month | 400 ml | 50-100 g | Little | Little |
| 2-3 month | 500 ml | 100-150 g | 250 g | 100-150 g |
| 3-4 month | – | 100-200 g | 400 g | 100-200 g |
| 4-6 month | – | 200-250 g | 500 g | 200-300 g |
Concentrate for the Kids (6 to age of slaughter) or Goat Feed Grower
| Ingredients | Weight in Kg |
| Maize/wheat/Millet | 35 |
| Gram | 17 |
| Soy or Ground Nut Cake | 25 |
| Wheat Bran | 20 |
| Mineral Mixture | 2 |
| Salt | 1 |
| Total | 100 Kg |
Feeding Schedule for the adult Goats
| Age & Class | Grower feed | Green Fodder | Dry Fodder |
| 6 to 12 Months | 250-350 g | 1 Kg | 500 g |
| Pregnant Goat | 400-500 g | 2 Kg | 1 Kg |
| Lactating Goat | 400-500 g | 2 Kg | 1 Kg |
| Breeder | 500-550 g | 2.5 Kg | 1.5 Kg |
The Pregnant and lactating goat required the Extra Nutritious feed. Because they need extra energy. In the last two months of pregnancy, proper care and management are required. When the goat is in milking period they required feed to produce milk or to maintain their own health.
All the production of the farm and health of kid totally depend on Breeder. If your Breeder is Healthy then the future production of the incoming Kids will be healthy. Therefore, some extra feed is required for the farm Breeder.
Water requirement For the Goats
Normally, the water is present in the green feeder that’s why Goats required less water. The water should be feed to the kids after 15 days of age.
| Class of Animal | Water Requirement |
| Kids (0 to 3 months) | 300-500 ml |
| Kids (3 to 6 months) | 500 -1200 ml |
| Pregnant Goats | 3 – 7 liter |
| Lactating goats | 5 – 10 liter |
| Breeder | 5 – 7 liter. |
How To Make Artificial Colostrums
If the goat is not producing the colostrums than we need to make artificial colostrums. Colostrum is quite much needed for the kids. the possibility of survival of kids is only when they feed colostrum.
The formula of colostrums is
| Warm water | 275 ml |
| Raw Egg | One 55 g |
| Castor oil | 3 ml |
| Vitamin A | 10000 IU |
| Worm milk | 525 ml |
| Aureomycin (Antibiotic) | 80 mg |