This is the first year we ever ended up with what I'm pretty sure is fescue. So I will have to put him out slowly during the day to let them get used to each other. If the hay is of poor quality, no, it’s not … It is good for them for the fiber content and help prevent impaction I also used it for my guinea pigs, with no problems. Not many options around here. I am feeding both cows and goats a predominately clover and orchard grass hay with a 16% dairy ration and alfalfa once a day. I feed Timothy hay mix to all my goats cause I can’t get alfalfa hay for my girls and I supplement with Timothy pellets for my buck and wether and alfalfa pellets for the does. I do mix the pellets with grain occasionally.. Went up and they were all picking on him. Could get it for less if I bought a semi load. It is shipped in from the midwest somewhere, and costs $7.50 per square bale, but we decided to go ahead and get enough for this winter anyway. When we had nannies that were due to kid we would lock'em up separately from everyone else, and feed them sweet feed, and good quaility alfalfa hay. Average orchardgrass-alfalfa mix hay will contain roughly 14-17% crude protein and 53-56% TDN on a dry matter basis. It can cause digestive and respiratory problems, among other things. Put my pyreenes in with them last night and he barked till 2:00 am. Orchard grass on the other hand has three cuttings per year. I feed mostly alfalfa hay which I get delivered in 5 - 10 ton lots at a time. The only thing about the first two, is you loose alot when pulling off a flake. Alfalfa hay is also popular for feeding goats and has more protein, vitamins, and minerals than grass hays, typically. They would be good for providing names and numbers of hay growers/sellers though. When we had our goats they would "free range" during the day and we wouldn't feed them anything, just provided them with fresh water. What kinds of hay do you all use? I get 4 - 5 deliveries a year. Never feed moldy hay to goats! But you can feed your goats timothy if alfalfa is not available. They love grass hays for some reason. This fall we decided to try some timothy, and so far most of our goats love it. I used to have rabbits over the years and always had the timothy hay with no problems. I only bought 1 ton from the local supplier, so it was not worth my time. I live on the Gulf Coast and we just can't get alfalfa here, so I'm currently feeding grass hay and alfalfa pellets. You can see that a good clover hay is not far off from the alfalfa. The man down the hill from me who raises Alpacas turned me on to a man who selld beautiful hay---second cut, green, soft...they dive into it as if it were grain. If you feed a mixed hay of orchard grass and alfalfa, alfalfa should not exceed 10% as alfalfa is thought to contribute to the potential for urinary calculi (blocking). My goats like Timothy. so don't know if that will affect them much. Hay typically loses only about 5 percent of its original dry matter during the first year of storage---assuming that it is kept in a dry environment, not exposed to direct sunlight or precipitation. During the cold winter months when pastures contain scant forage, hay is the typical diet for cattle, horses, sheep and goats. It tested out at 18% and they love it. we have some in the kitchen right now. Each of … Grass Hay can be timothy, orchard grass or other types of grass or broom grass. By Heather Smith Thomas During the cold winter months when pastures contain scant forage, hay is the typical diet for cattle, horses, sheep and goats. Alfalfa is too sweet and will cause bloat. Goat candy! But now that mine get that, they are most likely gonna be picky unless starving. Orchard tends to take over so we don't have that much. I do feed alfalfa during pregnancy and early lactation. -Nancy. Come join the discussion about livestock, farming, gardening, DIY projects, hobbies, recipes, styles, reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more! Welcome Guest. How long will a ton of feed last your goats? ... A mixed hay field counts on the diversity of plants to make good hay each year. If your goats don’t graze aggressively, it can grow about 30 inches tall. It is a bit moldy. Wethers: We recommend good quality orchard grass hay. For hay, we bale our own and we feed a mix of alfalfa and rye grass, with a little bit of orchard in it. Next to pasture, good quality hay is the ideal feed. Timothy grass is a good alternative of alfalfa. It was a lifesaver last year when she had ketosis and milk fever. I may be able to get some timothy, but I was wondering if they'd eat it. My goats aren't fussy over their hay, except this timothy from one farmer. Alfalfa, clover, and peanut are legume hays, while timothy, oat, bermuda, and orchard are examples of grass hays. An alfalfa and grass mix is a good type of hay for goats, especially ones lactating. If your timothy was cut a bit late, add in a little alfalfa for some extra protein and you will have it made. Hay, and/or grass and roughage should make up the majority of a wether's diet. Since goats will not eat straw because they prefer hay, you can keep bedding intact. Right now they don't like it. They love grass hays for some reason. Click here to remove banner ads from this forum. This type of hay is good for pregnant and lactating goats since their bodies use up a lot of nutrients and energy. pellets. Well, it certainly isn't their favorite, I can say that. Suite 500, Troy, Michigan 48084 USA. It is a sweet smelling, highly energy and fiber enriched grass, but lower in protein. But it would work out to 190 per ton. They get alfalafa as a treat but no horse in our barn is fed 100% alfalfa after the vet said that was bad for them. G… In this video I show you what we feed our goats and also talk about how we started growing our own hay. However, there are significant differences in the variety, quality and availability of hay, which can make feeding your livestock a time-consuming chore. http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/misspillow, Outdoor Hub, LLC (d/b/a Carbon Media Group), 3290 W. Big Beaver Rd. Jon. Timothy hay can be as high in protein as Alfalfa. Grass hay may contain a blend of different grasses. BUT: Switching their hay too quickly will cause their stomachs to get upset and diharrea will occur. When we began raising dairy goats, we barely knew hay from straw. Do you have it shipped, or do you buy it from someone locally who has it shipped? We cut and stored quite a bit of our own, but had to buy it as well. My word! Several times I bought what was promised to be "good hay, your goats will love it", only to open the bales and find it not so good. My animal's milk production has gone up with the introduction of the clover hay. Timothy hay is popular in the east and a grass hay is good for small ruminants. Yes, if the hay is of high quality and more than meets her daily caloric needs, meaning it depends upon the goats you have. They sorted out and ate a little of the weeds. In the south, Bermuda grass hays are popular. Donkeys think it's heaven if I drop some on the ground in their pasture when carrying it! The leaves of grasses change as the plant matures, making grass hays more digestible when the plant is fine-stemmed and immature. This does me NO good feeding to bred donkey jennets! so cute and fun to watch. - what you have looks good, good price, i'd try that. I heard a story today that a house contractor has 17 acres, bought two goats and they lasted about 2 weeks. Grass Hay vs. Alfalfa . Then we tried poorer quality coastal with weeds. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. I do feed alfalfa during pregnancy and early lactation. There are a lot of cow dairys. I have limited options. JavaScript is disabled. So I let him down to the shop. Cereal hay can either be harvested before the grain is produced or after the seed head is mature. From a feed store. We grew up in gardening families, without livestock. The mean sob's, they must have not been raised with a guardian dog. ... alfalfa pellets or timothy pellets can be given to wethers instead of grain. Year before last we planted a small patch of alfalfa. mix their old hay with the new and gradually transition them. You may hear of types such as timothy hay, orchard grass, canary grass, fescue, etc. Hay is the main source of nutrients for animals such as goats, especially in non-grazing seasons. But my goats don't seem to care for bermuda hay half the time, and the other half they love it. There are a LOT of farmers who hay up here, it's one of the main crops---that and feed corn. I'd seek out mom and pop feed stores in your area and ask for a good legume and grass mix of hay. I feed a orchard timothy / brome mix for my boers and it works wonderfully! If you have a source of well made timothy hay, consider yourself to be pretty lucky and buy some for your flock! Next to pasture, good quality hay is the ideal feed. Thank you Sully for the comparison chart. Average Orchardgrass hay contains about 9-10% crude protein and 55% TDN on a dry matter basis. Timothy. There is no single perfect forage or hay for goats. what a shame. Mine is timothy/clover mix...green and not dusty. I've heard that some folks feed peanut hay but I don't know if it's a good alternative for goats. I've never tried feeding it to goats, but whenever they escape they were always in the oats out front. BTW, chamoisee, isn't it really bad to feed moldy hay to any animal? There are three different types of hay, Grass, Legume and Cereal Grain. Last night I heard the coyotes yelling, no doubt mateing. I found my goats really like burdock too. Timothy is great hay for goats. Although I quickly learned that hay is food and straw is bedding, I just assumed that all hay was the same. My goats aren't fussy over their hay, except this timothy from one farmer. You can also feed it to your animal if you live in an area where you cannot let it free to browse for food by itself. Learn the intricacies of hay types, nutritional content and quality before purchasing your next load. Pellets are convenient if you have limited space for hay storage or if you want to mix it with grain. We just stayed with the good quality local grass hay. DOn't get it - it looks good, smells terrific, green, not stemmy at all. But I find that if you pull out a few wafers, you loose some on the ground. Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates. They are still feeding on blackberries and, I also bought some straw for 1.50 a bale for erosion control, they have been digging through that. If the guy was buying for alpacas then it was most likely Orchard or Timothy hay. Grass hay is a good source of food because it includes a moderate amount of proteins. That is definitely not the case. Thats 180 divided by three and at 3.00 a gallon would be 180 dollars. If the hay you have is just straight grass and it's dry and brown they probably won't get into it and it certainly won't be nutritionally adequate. The rumen is the first stomach compartment (rich in live bacteria) that begins to digest the fiber. If put up correctly (harvested with less than 20 days of growth), the Bermuda hays can be a good … But they all ran up to the gate when I showed up and at noon today, I am going to the next post for hoof rot. We put out good quality coastal bermuda, from two different farmers, for our goats last winter and they wouldn't touch either. Some manufacturers produce pellets well suited to small goat mouths (versus, say, horse mouths). Please Login or Register. Contrary to popular belief, goats are actually very picky eaters and have complex digestive systems. Wethers (neutered males) have different dietary needs than does (females). Timothy hay has two cuttings per year. When I went to look for hay this august, I found that the guy who supplies a lot of the feed stores wanted the most for orchard grass at 235/ton, 225/ton for timothy, and 210 for alfalpha. Grass hay (like timothy, orchard) contains less protein and calcium than legume hay. Oat hay is a very good women's remedy. and worried about them going under the fence. The only hay grown locally here is bermuda and fescue. I am so glad I live where farmers hay! Here, we pay $85 - $90 a ton including delivery fee. When I got started with goats I barely knew the difference between hay and straw. jeeesish ..... My understanding is that alfalfa is a bit rich for the goats. A healthy goat needs to eat approximately 4-6% of their bodyweight in hay, with more food necessary if they are health compromised, very young or old, a new mother, or during colder seasons.If possible, the best grass for goats comes in the form of high quality pasture, especially mixed grasses and clover varieties kept higher than three inches in growth. Anything we have fed it to loves it. Hay just needs to be there for the forage, and most don't really care to know the details (except that it's not moldy). So I'm trying to feed this stuff up as fast as I can and hope they won't be affected in their late pregnancy by it. I got some "grass mix" first crop from a highly recommended farmer, it cost me an arm and a leg and the crap is fescue. But now we have breeding and youngstock, so we went all out and got them second crop 50% timothy 50% red clover/alfalfa. It can be a good choice for feeding milking goats as it … Most of it ended up as bedding. Although your goats may not find it as tasty as other grasses. A forum community dedicated to living sustainably and self sufficiently. We had a hard time getting good hay this past winter. wait until you get babies. Hay availability differs according to region of the country. I fed One bail of timothy along with one bale of orchard grass before I got the orchard grass. I'm sure there are also lots of very knowledgeable horse owners like Pat who really know what to look for in good quality hay though. I found orchard grass for 180/ton about 180 miles away. Timothy is really good as well, but if you can get good quality grass hay - that would be cheapest. Mine did eat timothy the first year we got them, just a few as pets. Over the summer and early fall I go with round hay bales - grass and timothy - and supplement with alfalfa pellets. My goats aren't fussy over their hay, except this timothy from one farmer. 7.50 a square bale!!! I tried to feed it to the goats and they looked at me like I was crazy and refused to eat it at all. The palatability of orchardgrass is good and goats readily consume it. They are all under 1 except for my Nubian she is 3 . Alfalfa pellets are commonly available, as are timothy pellets, orchard grass pellets, etc. Have went through 6 bales of hay over the last month and a half. Grass hay, such as timothy, orchard, brome, and bluegrass, is a suitable maintenance hay for goats. I am also buying some local grass hay this week. Timothy hay is wonderful! DOn't get it - it looks good, smells terrific, green, not stemmy at all. Hay can come in concentrate form, i.e. Page 1 of 2: 1: 2 > Lower Navigation Thanks for your answer. What can ya'll tell me about your experience with peanut hay? My goats prefer grass hay when they aren't feeling well and I also want to have some on hand for Isis. But if that and bermuda hay is all that can be had, that's the way it is! Proper feeding is of utmost importance as feeding errors account for a large percentage of goat disease and death. Hay is the mainstay diet for our livestock. ADGA Nigerian Dwarf and MDGA Mini Mancha goats for show, home use and pets. I am going to geather it up for bedding, but then I have to clean it out once a week. we feed alfhafa hay, 3d and 4th cut , that is what you need to make good rich milk. Some of it the goats refused to … Goat are very selective, "picky" eaters, choosing only those hays and forages which will give them the nutrients they need. As long as it is digestible, a wide variety of plants and hays will be consumed. We can't store large quantities of hay, and that means we've been stuck buying it as we go from the feedstore. DOn't get it - it looks good, smells terrific, green, not stemmy at all. ... Goats without good minerals will not thrive and are more prone to wormloads and illnesses. I don't feed any grain then either. But darned if I know what kind it is...maybe I should ask...I think it is timothy though. ... Don’t go with beef cattle hay or goat hay.