How much feed you give your goats depends on several factors. Read on for Purina's advice on how to make your decisions.
A customer asked our service team a great question about feeding her goats. Since there are varying opinions, we decided to seek out Purina’s advice. Our customer asked:
“I have 2 goats: 2 months and 3 months old. The feeding amounts on the bag are confusing to me. I was hoping you could tell me approximately (in cup measure) how much to feed each goat, daily. Should I feed them once a day or divide the daily amount and feed them twice a day?”
Here’s an answer from Patrick Biggs, PhD., Purina Animal Nutrition Technical Nutritionist for Companion Animals:
How much should I feed my goat is a common question, but it is not an easy one to answer. First, I would need to know how much the goats weigh. Ideally, you would feed those goats 2-3% of their body weight in pellets. For example:
A 50-lb goat would need 1 lb of feed per day: 50 lbs x 0.02 = 1 lb
That is going to vary slightly depending on how active your goats are. More active goats need more feed than less active goats.
Providing a number of cups to feed your goats is also a difficult question to answer. First off, the density of the diets can fluctuate based on the ingredients being used in the diet and the manufacturing process. This is why it is better to feed based on the weight of the feed and not the volume (# of cups).
How many times you feed them is going to be dependent on how you are feeding them. If you are just feeding them pellets, then I would feed them two or three times per day to keep the rumen functioning properly. If you are feeding them hay, then they should have access to this throughout the day, and you can provide the pellets once or twice a day. There isn’t a right or wrong answer in this scenario. Just be sure that you are watching their weight. You don’t want overweight goats.
