Important points of breeding and keeping alpine goats
Alpine goats are very profitable for farming. Animals are unpretentious in terms of keeping, very hardy and not afraid of frost. Moreover, they quickly acclimatize in any natural conditions. Due to their calm nature, Alpine goats will not cause trouble even for a novice farmer. Perhaps that is why many goat breeders start their business with breeding this breed. You will learn about all the features of the maintenance and care of these creatures from this article.
Features of the breed
A description of the Alpine goat breed may look like this. The color of animals is white, dark brown or black. The muzzle is straight, erect ears and small flat horns.
The coat of the Alpine goats is smooth. It is worth noting a short neck and thin legs, crowned with strong hooves. In general, the animals look quite proportional and even graceful.
In terms of height, the animals differ little from each other: the female is 70, the male is 85 centimeters. Weight varies between 60-80 kilograms.
The nature of the Alpine goats is calm and balanced, but this does not prevent them from occupying leading positions in a large herd.
The most important thing to mention is the productivity of the breed. Every year you can get about 1500 liters of milk from each female.... It should be noted that the milk produced is of a fairly high quality. Therefore, he is willingly taken to dairy production for the manufacture of cheeses.
Alpine goat feeding
In the warm season, animals are on free bread. Their diet consists mainly of pasture green fodder. You can also feed the goats with food waste. In addition, if you have a vegetable garden, then weeding weeds can also be fed to your wards.
In winter, representatives of this breed feed on hay. Roots and vegetables are eagerly consumed. In addition, it is necessary to include in the diet and concentrated feed.
Important! To maintain health and for prevention purposes, it is recommended to add chalk and mineral supplements to winter feed.
Please note that eating almost any feed, this breed of goat is very picky about water. If there is heavily contaminated water in the drinkers, animals will not touch it, even if they are very thirsty. That's why it is necessary to regularly check the condition of the drinkers and change the water in them.
Features of the content
There are no special requirements for the premises for keeping Alpine goats. This can be any shed or barn that is suitable in size. It is worth noting that one adult needs at least 3-4 square meters. The main thing is that the room is dry and light.
Goats of this breed are not very susceptible to winter cold. For the winter, they grow a dense undercoat that protects the animals from the summer cold.
The most vulnerable place in goats, and in many herbivores, is the hooves. Therefore, it is imperative to equip a plank floor in the goat house. Moreover, it is necessary to raise it above ground level.
It is recommended to equip small shelves made of boards, at a height of about 60 centimeters from the floor. Animals like to climb higher, moreover, no goat will sleep on the floor if there is a special flooring.
Alpine goat breeding
In addition to good productivity, alpine goats also reproduce quickly. The first pregnancy can add at least one goat to your herd, although more often the first litter brings two babies.