Transitioning Goats to pasture

[gash]

I have 5 Pygmy Goats whom have been in the barn since I brought them home 3 months ago. They have been fed a field hay mixture of alfalfa and grass since I brought them home. We have an outside pasture fenced in for them now, I've read that I need to slowly introduce them to the pasture to avoid bloat and other not so fun issues. Does anyone know approx. timing on how long they can stay in pasture to begin with and how long until they can stay out in pasture? I'm having a hard time finding exact information.


Thank you for your input.

 

[Rainey]

I would say it would depend somewhat on where you're located and how lush the pasture is that you'll be putting them on. We have goats that are on pasture spring through fall. In the spring they are out on it early enough so they have to sort of hunt for the new green sprigs so they get some time to adjust. They don't like the pasture so much once the grasses are seeding out, so we rotate them among 3 areas. If one gets too overgrown, we mow it and let it grow back (works best to mow it before a good rain)
You could cut some of the green stuff they'll be grazing and give them some for a few days while they are still inside or penned and eating hay, then let them out once they're eating as much or more green than hay.
Many questions will get more helpful answers if you list your location.

 

[gash]

Thanks for your input!

I'm in South Dakota. The goats are Pygmy Goats, all under 6 months of age. The fenced area is a mix between weeds, thigh high grass, dead spots, rocks and shrubs. They are frequently fed fresh cuttings, as the kids and I go gather up armfuls of random odds and ends from the property for them. The hay they are eating now is a fresh cut from 2 weeks ago, it's a good mix of a wee bit of alfalfa and a whole lot of different grasses/weeds from the property.

I'm a little bit of a scare-de-cat as I just got done battling Goat Polio not too long ago in one of my bucks. He had some bad bloat and polio together. Scared the ever living lights out of me. I've never seen an animal so bad survive to make a full come back. Still haven't figured out how the heck he got it as I wasn't able to find any spots of mold any where and they are fed grains very sparingly. I let them out today for about an hour, they were having such a good time I had a hard time making myself bring them back in. They won't be staying overnight in the pasture, as there isn't a good enough shelter for them, plus I feel more comfortable with them in the barn at night.

 

[Rainey]

We've always had dairy goats--saanen or alpine--and I don't know anything about pygmy goats, whether they are more sensitive or anything. But I'd think that if you've been giving them fresh feed similar to what is in the pasture it shouldn't be a problem to put them out in the pasture for the day without any worry about them getting too much fresh feed. We have lean-to shelters for our goats in each paddock they graze so they can get into shade or out of rain during the day. Then they are inside overnight--partly for predator protection.

 

[gash]

Thanks for your help!

There are big trees in the pasture but I did put up a lean-to this morning before letting them out. It's been rainy on/off the past 24 hrs and I didn't want them to get soaked if they didn't want to Be wet.

 

[Dood]

I'd keep them inside in the morning and let them out in the evening to browse about an hour or so before putting them in for the night, then 2 hours before bed, then 3 until they are out from morning till night