Husbandry and Care

Our Holistic Philosophy

At Lofty Hearth we strive to raise our animals holistically in the classic sense of the word: caring for the whole animal and all of their needs in a well-rounded way that can include both traditional and modern methods. We give our goats as natural an environment as possible (mountains, rocks, pasture, and brush). We try to adhere to the most up-to-date standards of goat husbandry and medicine which meet and sometimes exceed US regulations and recommendations for livestock welfare. We believe strongly that prevention is one of the most effective medicines, and we practice traditional preventative care methods such as pasture rotation as well as contemporary ones like vaccines. We use both traditional and pharmaceutical medicaments when needed. We have had great success with our management philosophies, with some animals in our herd being 7+ years old and having never needed to be wormed.

Basics of Our Animal Care

All animals are given an initial series of CDT vaccines starting at 6 weeks of age, then boosted twice a year. Goats are very susceptible to clostridial disease in many areas of the US. CDT vaccines are cheap insurance.
All animals have free access to Sweetlix Meat Maker loose mineral and unlimited browse and second cut grass hay. In breeding season does and bucks receive DuraFerm mineral.
We practice full CAE control methods. All kids receive heat-treated colostrum within a few hours of birth to maximize maternal antibody transfer. Kids receive Formula of Champions 18% grower feed medicated with decoquinate for coccidia prevention until the age of approximately six months.
Does in late pregnancy and does in milk are given Kalmbach 17% Milk Maker pellet and chaffhaye (fermented alfalfa silage).
We use and recommend sulfadimethoxine (Albon) for coccidiosis treatment in kids, and decox or rumensin (Calf Pro, medicated feeds) for prevention.
- We want people to feel confident eating our dairy products and goat meat,so we monitor food animal drug legality and residue withholding closely. Toltrazuril (Baycox and its generics) is currently illegal for use in all food animals in the United States and has failed FDA approval multiple times because of suspected carcinogenic properties and detrimental environmental effects on plant growth. The difference between this and the many other medicines legally used "off label" in goats is that tolt is unfortunately not labeled for any food animals in the US, so not even vets are legally able to prescribe it. In addition, the grey market compounded products available for sale in the US are known to be unreliable and may contain wildly variable drug amounts. To ensure the health of our animals as well as the safety of the milk and meat we produce for human consumption, we don't currently use or recommend Toltrazuril. If you choose to use it, we recommend that you try to order it from another country instead of an unlicensed compounder for safety and consistency. See here for more information.
We use and recommend Land of Havilah herbal deworming formula during pasture season. Meryl's recipe for dosed herbal dewormer treats will follow shortly.
We do not band pet wethers. We follow EU standards for animal welfare which stipulate that banding after seven days of age causes animals significant pain and distress because of increased nerve and vascular supply to the scrotum. Because it is important to keep pet wethers intact for a longer time to maximize lifetime urinary health, we recommend surgical or burdizzo castration with pain management around 4 months of age for male goats sold as pets. This gives enough time for sufficient urethral diameter development and these methods are usually cheap procedures that significantly reduce pain and stress on your animal companions.
Our parasite prevention program includes: 2g copper boluses in susceptible animals to help make the abomasum hostile to barberpole worms, monthly fecals on the entire herd during pasture season, weekly FAMACHA and 5 Point checks, pasture rotation, and Bioworma to reduce parasite contamination in the pastures. When an animal (rarely) requires a pharmaceutical deworming, we use the "combination deworming" method to reduce dewormer resistance in our herd and on our land. See the American Consortium for Small Ruminant Parasite Control for more info.
When we (rarely) need to treat an animal with antibiotics or dewormers, we follow all milk and meat withholding and discard rules as advised by the Food Animal Residue Avoidance Databank (FARAD).