Monthly Archives: October 2014

Making Sense of Feed Labels: Part 2. Balancing Major Minerals in Your Goat’s Diet

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In Making Sense of Feed Labels, Part 1: Balancing trace mineral deficiencies in your goat’s diet we learned how to determine if your mineral supplement balances deficiencies in trace minerals, such as copper, zinc and selenium. Daily mineral requirements for goats were based on diets for large breed diary cattle adjusted for differences in body weight. We will use the same approach in balancing the major minerals listed in Table 1. Guaranteed Analysis Mineral/Vitamin Supplement.  Read the full length article at Hoegger Farmyard.

Author (George Lager) with his prized milking goat Fanny. Fanny is still producing about 1/2 gallon milk per day 5 years postpartum first freshening.

Author (George Lager) with his prized milking goat Fanny. Mitchell Plain Farm is located in Harrison County, Indiana near Corydon.

Making Sense of Feed Labels: Part 1. Balancing Trace Minerals in Your Goat’s Diet

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You are at the feed store looking for a mineral supplement for your goats because you have heard that grass and hay in your area are deficient in minerals.  You read the label of a recommended supplement with a “guaranteed analysis” expressed in terms of % (percent), ppm (parts per million), IU (International Units) and USP (U.S. Pharmacopeia) and have absolutely NO idea how all these numbers relate to your goat’s diet (Table 1. Guaranteed Analysis Mineral/Vitamin Supplement). Sound familiar!

To read the full-length article, link to the blog site at Hoegger Farmyard.

Author (George Lager) with his prized milking goat Fanny. Fanny is still producing about 1/2 gallon milk per day 5 years postpartum first freshening.

Author (George Lager) with his prized milking goat Fanny. She is a very reluctant subject, more interested in browsing among the honeysuckle than being photographed!