Pen-raising techniques for black goats

With the further development of agriculture and livestock farming in our country and the abundance of rural straw resources, vigorously developing pen-raised black goat production and increasing farmers' income have laid an important supporting industrial foundation for building a moderately prosperous society in rural areas. When switching from grazing to housed pen-raising, technical issues are the most critical. Below, let us take a look at the pen-raising techniques for black goats!

Advantages of pen-raising black goats

1. Black goats grow and develop quickly. Because wandering and foraging activities are reduced, the conversion rate of forage into mutton increases, more mutton can be produced per unit of grass, the feeding cycle can be shortened by half, turnover is fast, and benefits are high.

2. More manure accumulates. A grazing goat accumulates an average of 500kg of manure per year, while under pen-raising it is 1000kg.

3. Fewer diseases and a high lamb survival rate. Because grazing black goats are “exposed to wind and dew”, they are prone to infection, and sick goats are not easily discovered in time, so lamb deaths often occur. Pen-raised black goats can be managed precisely, do not drink dirty water, and have fewer chances of infection; therefore, the dams are fat and the young are strong, and the survival rate can reach almost 100%.

4. Pen-raising black goats can also promote the recovery of vegetation, resolve the contradiction between forestry and livestock, help commercialize the forage industry, and drive the development of herbivore production toward intensification and large-scale operation.

Building the goat shed for black goats

1. Shed area: The goat shed should have sufficient area so that the goats are not too crowded inside and can move freely. The minimum average area per goat is: 1.2-1.5 sq m for breeding bucks, 0.8-1.0 sq m for adult does, 2.0-2.5 sq m for lactating does, 0.5-0.6 sq m for young males and females, and 0.6-0.8 sq m for castrated goats.

2. Goat exercise yard: There must be an exercise yard outside the goat shed, and the area of the exercise yard should be 2-5 times the area of the goat shed. The height of the exercise yard wall is 1.5 m for young goats, 2 m for does, and 2.2 m for bucks. Watering devices, hay racks, feed troughs, etc. should be set up in the exercise yard.

3. Heat prevention and cooling: The goat shed should be built as an open shed with a dry interior, air circulation, sufficient light, warm in winter and cool in summer, with eaves more than 3 m high. The goat beds set up inside the shed should be 1-1.5 m above the ground, and trees should be planted outside the shed to help prevent heat and lower temperature.

4. Roof waterproofing: The roof must be completely impermeable, drain well, be fire-resistant and durable, and have a certain slope. Apart from flat roofs and round arched roofs, if bark, tiles, or grass are used for the roof, slopes of 15, 35, and 50 degrees are respectively required to facilitate waterproofing and drainage. The climate in Mashan County is hot, so the roof of the goat shed should focus on heat prevention; therefore, when a cement roof is used, an insulating layer should be installed.

5. Floor, doors and windows: The floor of the goat shed should be 20-30 cm higher than the ground outside the shed. The floor should be dense, solid, level, free of cracks, and have a certain slope from the inside toward the outside, and a manure drainage ditch should be opened in the lower area near the outside. Doors, windows, and walls should be sturdy and durable, and a manure storage pit should be built outside the goat shed.

Breeding techniques for black goats

1. Sexual maturity: In males, generally at 3-4 months of age, the testes can produce sperm and male hormones; in females, at 4-5 months of age, the ovaries can produce eggs and estrogen. At this stage they can reproduce offspring.

2. Signs of estrus: Restlessness while grazing, bleating and wagging the tail, and some mount other goats. In the early stage, transparent mucus flows from the vulva; in the late stage, the mucus becomes gelatinous and thick (viscous). From the beginning to the end of estrus generally takes 1-2 days, and the estrous cycle is 18-21 days.

3. Timely mating: The suitable age for first mating of does is 8 months. The first parity is mated in early April and lambs in early September; the second parity is mated in early October and lambs in March of the following year. Natural mating is mostly used, because artificial insemination requires relatively high equipment and technical requirements, and the conditions for promoting artificial insemination and embryo transfer techniques in goats are not yet mature.

4. Pregnancy and parturition: If a doe no longer comes into estrus 20 days after mating, it indicates that she may have conceived. The gestation period of a goat is five months. One or two months after conception, the doe's udder develops and becomes redder in color. Before parturition, she walks slowly, the flanks sink, the abdomen droops, the vulva swells and discharges mucus, she behaves restlessly, lying down and standing up alternately or turning her head to look at her abdomen and bleating. When transparent mucus flows from the vulva, or she lies down or strains, she is considered close to parturition, and preparations for assisted delivery should be made. Usually, white mucus discharge indicates a live fetus, while red mucus with white indicates a dead fetus; if the fetal water has not broken, it is a normal birth, and if the fetal water breaks first, it is a difficult birth.

Management techniques for black goats

1. Timely castration: For male goats not intended for breeding, except for some males kept as teaser goats, the rest should be castrated at 7-60 days of age. After castration, male goats have a gentle temperament and are easier to manage.

2. Feed combination: Goats are herbivorous animals, so the feed should be mainly forage grass and tree leaves, supplemented by concentrate. In summer and autumn, more grass, tree leaves, or forage grass should be fed (generally, 0.15 mu planted with Guimu No. 1 can raise one adult goat). The feeding ratio of grasses (such as Guimu No. 1, napier grass, maize-like grass, etc.) to legumes (such as leucaena, pigeon pea tree, sandpaper tree leaves, etc.) should be 4:1, with an appropriate supplement of concentrate. In winter and spring, forage grass is relatively scarce. Where conditions permit, winter fallow fields should be used to plant ryegrass as a supplement, and the problem of insufficient forage can also be solved by feeding more mixed feed. A reference formula for the mixed feed is 54% cornmeal, 40% grass meal, 4% soybean or peanut cake, and 2% wheat bran, plus an appropriate amount of minerals, with 5 grams of salt fed per goat per day.

3. Sufficient drinking water: To digest the roughage eaten, goats must secrete a large amount of digestive fluid every day, and water is also indispensable for internal circulation and nutrient transport. Therefore, the consequences of water shortage in goats are often more serious than feed shortage, easily leading to decreased appetite, indigestion, and loss of body condition. Therefore, sufficient and clean drinking water should be supplied, and warm water should be given in winter.

4. Careful management: Clean the floor of the goat shed once a day, and disinfect the pen and its surroundings regularly. Remove the goat manure under the raised goat bed once every half month, and pile it far from the goat shed for fermentation. Does in late pregnancy, lactating does, and the lambs they carry should be isolated and raised in small individual pens (2 sq m/pen) to prevent crowding from causing miscarriage in does and crushing lambs to death. The small individual pens should be kept dry, clean, and hygienic, with sufficient sunlight and fresh air, and a temperature of 18-20°C is suitable.