Goats farming - what do goats eat?

Farming goats for profit is becoming popular in India and Pakistan. Are you too planing to start goat farming for milk and meat production? A complete goats farming business plan will be discussed later in a separate article, this article is about feeding management. Feeding is the major component of goats farming. One of the questions that can arise in your mind is ' what do goats eat?' , if you are not much familiar with the livestock feeds and feeding habits.

Well, it may seem quite a simple thing to many as they already know that goats are herbivores and all herbivores eat vegetables and fodders, it is more important to get a know how about which feeds contain which nutrients and what do goats require at different stages of their life. This article is about the feeding requirements of goats What can cats not eat? click here

Farming goats for profit is becoming popular in India and Pakistan

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Goats are natural browsers and selective feeders. Like all other ruminants, stomach of a goat consists of four compartments known as rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum.

Feeding requirements of goats depend upon different factors including age, sex, size, breed and the physiological condition of the goat. Daily dry matter intake of goats in 3-5% of its total body weight. Young goats consume more feed than the mature goats and the nutrient requirements of goats increase during pregnancy and lactation.

We know that there are 6 types of nutrients that make a feed, these include water, proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals. The sources for these nutrients can be different. Some feeds contain more percentage of one nutrient than the other. In the next paragraphs I shall briefly describe it.

Protein sources include leguminous plants, poultry litter, cotton seed cakes. if you want to know about the common protein sources available in Pakistan, click here

Carbohydrates requirements can be met by feeding cereals and molasses to the goats.

Vegetables and green forage should be offered to the goats as they are good source of vitamins.

Mineral requirements of goats can be fulfilled by offering them the agro industrial residues and limestone flour.

Crop residues and hay are a source of fiber.

Water requirements of goats are met by water bodies and succulent feeding.

The common problems associated with the feeding of goats include bloat, acidosis, bladder stones, and plant poisoning which can be prevented by better feed management of goats. Consult a veterinarian if any such condition arises at your farm. Find a qualified veterinarian in Pakistan in your city for consultancy by clicking here

At the end, I would like to list the type of grasses and legumes that can be fed to the goats.

Grasses

Sorghum

Millet

Bana grass

Legumes

Cowpeas

Dolichos bean

Velvet bean

Forage trees

Lucaena

Acacia

Have any questions regarding what do goats eat? ask in the comments section.

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