Proper nutrition of kids from the first days of life lays some foundation for their future health and immunity.
If the animals were initially fed the wrong way, then it is likely that the animal will develop improperly, will be unable to perform the reproductive function.
Therefore, the issue of drawing up the diet of a small goat is extremely important and requires special attention.
There are 2 ways to raise a kid - under the womb or without it.
The first method is used in the event that the goat gave birth to a female of the non-dairy direction. Kids will need to keep close to the uterus until the first age at 3 - 4 months.
If kids were born in winter, they will need to be brought to fresh air for a couple of hours, but only when they are strong enough. If the lambing is spring, then after 6 - 10 days after the birth of the kids, you can put it with a uterus for grazing, if the weather is favorable.
After 20 - 30 days after birth, the young need to necessarily to give mineral dressing in the form of 5 g of salt, 5-7 g of bone meal or chalk.
These rates are per diem. When animals grow to 2 - 3 months, they will need a greater amount of calcium, that is, 1 g of calcium-containing products must be allocated to 1 head.
If kids were born weak, then they need to feed concentrates. Usually, 1 month after birth, it becomes clear whether this animal is weak or not. So if a goat is weakened, then he needs to be given 30-50 g of concentrate per day.
At the age of 3 months, the kid will need to be given 200 - 300 g per day.
Keep kids near the uterus can be no longer than 3 months. Weaning youngsters need gradually, for 7 - 10 days, to give access to the uterus every other day.
After the kid has been weaned, the goats can be milked.
The second way of growing kids is without a womb. This method is used in the case of breeding goats with high milkiness. The essence of this method lies in artificial feeding, that is, the kid needs to be fed from a bottle with a nipple fresh or warm (38) milk.
Young animals mandatory need to give colostrum, which will clear the kidney's gastrointestinal tract from the original calories. In addition, there are compounds in colostrum that help improve the immunity of a young goat.
Before the animal reaches the age of 1 month, it should be fed 4 times a day with intervals of 4 to 5 hours. "Breakfast" should be at 6.00, and "dinner" - at 21.00. In winter, the first meal should be done at 7.00, and the last - at 20.00.
It is also interesting to read about the features of feeding dairy goats.
Kids need cereals, so it is advisable to give them boiled oatmeal every day. To do this, boil it, strain it, add a little salt and cool it.
In the diet should be present in crushed ground vegetables. Starting from the 10th day after birth you can give kids some hay, and also salt (on 4 - 6 g).
Be sure to give the animals water, and warm. Soldering is needed as much as the animal needs in order to get drunk.
It is important to monitor the cleanliness of the container from which you feed the kids. They can be driven for walking within 6 to 10 days after birth. Then the kids must spend in the fresh air for 2 - 5 hours.
From 3-4 weeks of age, it is already possible to transfer young animals to a full-fledged pasture range.
After 3 weeks after birth, the animals should be given concentrates in the form of bran or chalked meal, adding bone meal or crushed chalk.
If you feed the kids correctly, their monthly weight gain to six months of age will be 3-5 kg.
Already adult young (7 - 8 months) can be translated into stall. In this case, every day the animals need to be given hay (1.5 - 1.6 kg), concentrates (0.2 - 0.3 kg), silage (0.8 - 1 kg) or root crops.
With this diet, animals will develop properly.
Generally speaking, the diet of kids should be strictly regulated.
In the first hours of life, kids can only be given warm, freshly collected milk, as well as filtered colostrum. This diet should be observed up to 10 days of age.
Next, you need to enter into the diet porridge, hay, roots, as well as animal feed (bran + chalk + flattened hay).
It is necessary to transfer kids to a new feed gradually, within 10 - 12 days. For example, in order to wean the animal from milk, this product must first be given less frequently, then - every other day, and after that you can stop soldering the milk product at all.
If the goat is fed with milk from the mother, then the goat must either be handed over before admitting the cub to it, or it is possible to reduce the allowances themselves.
If an animal eats properly, then in half a year it will weigh 27-30 kg.
It is not very difficult to raise young goats, but this issue requires special attention, since the development of young animals directly depends on the diet.
