Goats
And Stress

Success Guide For Raising Healthy Goats

Any unusual, painful, or unpleasant experience causes goats stress. Such experiences include being chased by dogs, teased by insensitive people, or handled roughly.

Many ordinary events in a goat's life are inherently stressful, including being weaned, castrated, disbudded, transported, isolated, or artificially bred. How a goat reacts to stress depends somewhat on its genetic background. Some breeds, especially Nubians, are more excitable than others. Reaction to stress also depends on individual temperament, past experiences, and familiarity with surroundings.

Developing a routine for managing your goats helps reduce stress. Goats like to be fed by the same person at the same time every day. If you are late, your goats will misbehave. The same goes for milking. If you fail to milk on time or send someone unfamiliar to do the milking, your goats may act up.

Oddly enough, although regular routine reduces stress, an overly rigid routine can also cause stress. The trick is to make change part of your routine. Instead of always taking care of your goats by yourself, occasionally ask a friend or family member to come along and help. Then, if one of them takes over while you are away, your goats won't be upset by the presence of a stranger. Similarly, if you don't feed or milk at the exact same time every day, your goats won't be upset if you arrive early or late once in a while.

Because goats are naturally curious, not all new situations are stressful. Forcing a goat to confront a new situation, however, always causes stress. When a goat balks, give it a little time to check things out, and it will probably soon proceed on its own.

Success Guide For Raising Healthy Goats

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Copyright Felicity McCullough

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