Questions: Keeping a billy, breeding the doe, fencing a pasture and what tools are needed?

Answers: We let our goats breed at their own time as they are all in the same pasture. If we have one that's still milking,

We have two billies and they run free in the pasture with the dry nannies. The fence isn't really tall, if there is enough feed, they stay where they are. They only get out if there's not enough food and/or water.

We used several rolls of wire. The one standard was 5' t-posts drove into the ground to hang the wire on. Some of it was from an auction, like chicken wire, another side is only 3 strands of wire strung from post to post. There is some that is square holed. We have a 5 acre pasture so its rather large. The goats have trees for shade on hot days. A shed for shelter from the rain. A 5 gallon pail for water. We grain them in pasture once every 3 to 5 days. Otherwise, they eat grass and weeds as God and nature intended.

To build the fence, you should have a post driver. This is a tube of steel with an end on it and two handles on the sides. You put the open end on the t-post and pick up the driver by the handles and let it drop or help it drop. The force of this causes the t-post to go down in the ground. Pliers to cut and twist wire are essential. Other than that, go ahead and lay out your t-post's where you want them around the pasture and go to it. You should plan to put the t-posts no farther than 6 foot apart. It depends on the wire that your using. You will need help when you get started with the wiring. It takes two to handle the wire and attach it to the posts. Some people use electric fencing with goats, but we don't seem to need it. Our goats are happy and well fed and they stay where they're put. Hope this helps, my rest period is over and I have to go back to planting and picking up rocks. Kathy

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