Raising Pygmy Goats - 4 Basic Guidelines to Help You Raise Pygmy Goats

Often, people assume that raising pygmy goats
would be an arduous task. They consider this
breed rather dainty and frail, but that is
actually the farthest thing from the truth.
Pygmy goats are as hardy as their larger
counterparts. And despite their miniature
stature, these animals can be raised for meat,
milk and fiber. Nowadays, more and more people
are raising pygmy goats as pets. Taking care of
these animals can be simplified if you follow a
few basic guidelines, like:

1. Make sure that you have a good "stock" before
you start any breeding program. Raising pygmy
goats means breeding healthy does with healthy
bucks. For this, you would need to study
meticulously each potential breeder to see what
desirable traits these animals might have. For
example: goats with heavy body builds are
excellent for producing meat. Goats that produce
large volumes of milk and those that have denser
coats are also favorable as milk and fiber
producers, respectively. When it comes to
keeping goats especially Pygmy breeds as pets,
you need to choose the more mild-mannered
creatures.

2. Establishing the right feeds and the
recommended volume of food should be done under
the supervision of the veterinarian. Like all
goat breeds, pygmy goats will gorge themselves
whenever they can. But overweight livestock are
not only unproductive, but tipping the scales
can also affect their health considerably. And
for this kind of small breed, being overweight
can lead to a lot of medical complications like
poor bones, constricted lungs and mastitis: a
potentially disastrous condition when gas from
eating too many grain-based food items can lead
to intestinal infection.

If possible, try to keep the pygmy goats on a
fresh diet of greens or plant based food items
like fresh shrub leaves, tree bark, fruits,
vegetables and pulp. Supplementing their diet
with vitamins and minerals could be done through
the formulated feeds that are available in goat
supplies stores.

3. Pygmy goats would need more grooming that
their larger counterparts. This is especially
true if you are marketing the animals as pets or
as fiber producers. Grooming would include
regularly brushing their coats with a good
bristled brush (similar to horse grooming
brushes,) and trimming their hooves every month
(or every 4 to 5 weeks.) A regular grooming
schedule also helps keep parasites away, and
prevent foot rot and splayed toes.

4. Lastly, it is essential that you provide your
pygmy goats clean drinking water always. These
animals are rather fussy with their drink, and
are very unlikely to touch contaminated,
discolored or mossy water. If these animals do
not have a good water source, their health
suffers visibly, causing their coats to become
lank. In some cases, the goats would refuse food
until they get their clean water.

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Are you planning on raising pygmy goats? Separate
yourself from the usual goat owners who are prone
to common mistakes. If you would like to learn
more tips on caring for goats and how to raise
goats correctly, please visit
http://www.raising-goats.com

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