Is this enough for 2 goats?

[Feathers n Fur]

My hubby gave me the green light to get 2 small goats (either dwarf or pygmy). I already have 13 chickens in a 96 sq ft coop with 384 sq ft run so asking for more yard space was tough. He showed me where I could keep them. He would fence it in and build me a shelter for them. The area is about 24 ft by 110 ft (roughly 2640 sq ft.). Is that enough for 2 small goats or do I need to ask for more yard?

Second question - is this too small for 2 regular sized goats in the event the dwarf or pygmy does not work out? Just want to know before I continue. I don't want to have the animals live in too small of a space.

I have three dogs so before I could let them be together I have to introduce them in controlled situations over time. Until then the dogs will have run of the rest of the yard but if they never get along I want to be sure the goats have enough room and then keep the dogs inside periodically to let the goats roam.

 

[rebirdchild]

It should be plenty for pygmys...I have a neighbor who keeps a pair in a 30 ft circular pen with no problems...I would go for more space if you want standards though.

 

[Feathers n Fur]

Thanx rebirdchild! I'll ask for more space and see what I can get...may have to pour on the charm

. I could probably take over the back third of our 2 acre back yard (I tried for the front acre but got a big old "NO") but he wanted it to be closer to the house so I wouldn't have to schlep all the way to the back in order to care for them in the winter. The chicken coop is close to the house so electric and water are easy. We have a barn that currently houses classic cars about half way down the yard and it has electric so building off of that is no problem. He just worries about winter/evil weather days and is trying to make it easy for me since I tend all outside animals.

 

[Feathers n Fur]

What would be ideal or recommended outdoor space per goat? Not trying to bump but I forgot to ask the first time.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

What would be ideal or recommended outdoor space per goat?

Any space were your goats can get plenty of groceries is enough space.

OK, lets start over, remember that both goats and chickens are quite destructive to their environment. What impact do the 13 chickens you currently own have on this space? Your goats will also likely need a daily ration of hay and a dab of sweet feed or maybe a small child's hand full of yellow corn every day, if you expect two goats and 13 chickens to make it through a New Jersey winter on 2,500 square feet. This foot print by the way is about the size of most middle class homes or about 6% of one acre. The old timers used to said that you could winter 5 goats on one Sears and Roebuck catalog, if my memory is correct they claimed that was equal to 1 & 1/2 pages per day per goat. LOL I am not that optimistic.

Do be advised that keeping 2 goats inside any chicken pen may prove harder than keeping every fox, raccoon, and other predator out.

 

[Feathers n Fur]

Chickengeorgeto...I don't plan to keep the goats and chickens together. The chickens have their own space (roughly 100sq ft coop and 400 sq ft run) and the goats would have their separate 25 x 110 ft area that would not be combined or touching. The goats could have a larger area if I moved them to the far back of the yard but like I said Hubby would rather they be closer to the house so my winter/rain visits to them would not be too evil.

One more question.....I have read that goats do not demolish lawn to dirt as they are "browsers" providing they are fed enough hay, feed etc. but you mentioned they are destructive to their environment. Does that mean they will turn their enclosure into a dirt pen?

 

[Stacykins]

Chickengeorgeto...I don't plan to keep the goats and chickens together. The chickens have their own space (roughly 100sq ft coop and 400 sq ft run) and the goats would have their separate 25 x 110 ft area that would not be combined or touching. The goats could have a larger area if I moved them to the far back of the yard but like I said Hubby would rather they be closer to the house so my winter/rain visits to them would not be too evil.

One more question.....I have read that goats do not demolish lawn to dirt as they are "browsers" providing they are fed enough hay, feed etc. but you mentioned they are destructive to their environment. Does that mean they will turn their enclosure into a dirt pen?

It might turn into a dirt pen. One of my pens with my goats, a 16x 16 with my two boys, became dirt in a matter of weeks. A 75 x 75 with four girls has grass, and has been in use for over a year. There is a path of bare dirt in the high traffic areas, like near the toys, food, water, and shelter, but the rest is grass. They let the grass be for the most part, having devoured the dandelions and clovers long ago.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

No, goats are not like what I think you mean. Observe this piece of road building equipment.




The name of this contraption is a "Sheep's' Foot" It could just as easily be named a "Goats' Foot." Goats are technically a browsing animal but that only refers to their "preferred" food type. I guess you could say that the goat is mother nature's Round-Up. If it is green and if it is growing, a goat will sooner or latter get around to eating it. Usually sooner rather than later. Unlike cattle, goats (and sheep) bite the grass off even with the ground, then they tend to grind the stems and shallow roots into the dirt with their sharp hooves. Goats are apt to kill even quite large bushes, shrubs, and trees by gnawing the bark off. It has been said more than once that goats (and sheep for that matter) are what happened to the famed Ceders of Lebanon. Two goats are equal to 16 sharp hooves cutting into, and compacting the ground with ever step they take. I don't know how big of an area that two goats can share and still earn a living off of it. I think that it depends on the goats, the area, and the herdsman. Good luck.

PS:
Oh yea. How about having hubby add an appendage or make a L shaped goat pen. Then during inclement weather you can make the goats come to you instead of you needing to go to the goats. Then during WARM weather you can deny the goats access to the part of the goat pen "L" that is closest to your house, you'll like that.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

It might turn into a dirt pen. One of my pens... a 16x 16 ...became dirt in a matter of weeks. A 75 x 75 with four girls has grass... except in the high traffic areas, [were thy walk the most] like near the toys, food, water, and shelter, but the rest is grass. They let the grass be for the most part, having devoured the dandelions and clovers long ago.

A 16 X 16 foot pen is equal to 256 square feet. Divide that by 2 goats and you get 128 square feet for each of Stacykins' 2 billy goats. Definitely not enough.

A 75 X 75 foot pen is equal to 5,625 square feet. Divide that by 4 goats and you get 1406.25 square feet per nanny goat. With only 2 miniature goats sharing this much ground I see no real problem.

Your mileage may vary.

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

I'm not sure how large our goat pen was, but it wasn't huge. We had two full size Nubian whethers in it and fed them goat feed with plenty of hay. Most of the goat pen was green (weeds of course) and they spent most of their time in one area near the gate. They had a run in shed and were very happy, though not incredibly active (They would climb up on a log in the pen and spent most of their time on that).

I think the space you are planning should be plenty, as long as you supplement with feed and hay.