Your results will appear here.
Enter your values and press Calculate.
Enter the goat body weight in kilograms, pick the life stage, and enter the herd size. The calculator returns daily dry matter per goat, hay and concentrate per goat as fed, and the totals for the whole herd per day. Intake rates are planning midpoints from the published stage ranges, and the hay and concentrate split is a planning split, not a balanced ration. These are estimates for healthy goats, not veterinary advice: breed, body condition, forage quality, weather and milk yield all move the real figure.
Goats eat a percentage of their body weight in dry matter every day, and that percentage rises with production. Dry goats sit near 2 to 2.5 percent, late pregnancy near 2.5 to 3 percent, lactating does near 3 to 4.5 percent depending on singles or twins, and growing kids near 3.5 to 4 percent. This calculator uses midpoints: 2.25 percent for dry goats, 2.75 percent for late pregnancy, 3.75 percent for lactating does, and 3.75 percent for growing kids.
Worked example: a 60 kg dry goat needs 1.35 kg of dry matter a day, which becomes 1.38 kg of hay and 0.15 kg of concentrate as fed, or 15.30 kg of feed a day for a herd of 10. A second example: a 40 kg lactating doe needs 1.50 kg of dry matter, which becomes 1.02 kg of hay and 0.67 kg of concentrate as fed, or 8.45 kg a day for a herd of 5. Dry matter is the nutrient weight after water is removed, which is why as-fed weights are always higher.
The table shows the intake rate and the hay and concentrate split this calculator uses for each stage. Lactating does with twins sit at the upper end of the published range, so the single lactating rate here is a planning midpoint, not a twin-specific ration.
| Life stage | Dry matter intake | Hay share | Concentrate share | | Dry, maintenance | 2.25 percent of body weight | 90 percent | 10 percent | | Late pregnancy | 2.75 percent of body weight | 75 percent | 25 percent | | Lactating doe | 3.75 percent of body weight | 60 percent | 40 percent | | Growing kid | 3.75 percent of body weight | 65 percent | 35 percent |
Goats are browsers, not grazers: given a choice they pick leaves, shrubs and weeds before grass, and they are famously selective and wasteful eaters. Use this goat feeding chart to check any result, and remember these figures are feed requirements for planning, not a balanced ration. For goat winter feeding, when pasture is gone, hay becomes the everyday staple and the same daily figures apply, with extra hay offered to cover waste. Offer more hay than the calculation says if you feed on the ground, where waste can reach 20 to 30 percent, and use a rack or keyhole feeder to cut waste to 5 to 10 percent.
Hay and forage are the foundation of the goat diet: they supply fibre that keeps the rumen working and prevents bloat and acidity. Grass hay suits dry goats and wethers well, while legume hay such as alfalfa carries 16 to 22 percent crude protein and extra calcium, which suits lactating does, growing kids and late-pregnancy does, but can cause urinary problems in bucks and wethers if overfed.
Concentrate, grain or pellets, fills the energy and protein gap that forage alone cannot close in late pregnancy and lactation. Introduce grain gradually and split it across feedings, because a sudden grain load can cause acidosis and bloat. As a rule, grain for a milking doe runs around 1 lb of grain for every 3 lb of milk produced, adjusted to body condition, and non-lactating does often need little or no grain at all.
Dry goats and wethers thrive on quality grass hay, free-choice goat minerals and fresh water, with little or no grain. In early and mid pregnancy, grass hay is usually enough, but in the last month, increase both quality and quantity, moving toward a grass and alfalfa mix, because foetal growth is fastest then and the doe needs energy reserves for kidding and colostrum.
Lactating does are the hungriest animals in the herd: feed the best hay you have, add grain on the milk stand, and keep minerals and water freely available, since a doe in milk drinks far more than a dry goat. Growing kids need high-protein forage and steady concentrate for rapid growth, plus clean water and shelter, since goats tolerate wet and cold worse than sheep or cattle because of their thinner fat layer.
Goats need free-choice minerals formulated specifically for goats, including calcium, phosphorus, copper and selenium, plus salt. Never use sheep minerals for goats, because sheep minerals lack adequate copper and goats need more of it. Fresh water must always be available, and intake rises in hot weather and on dry feed.
Never feed mouldy hay: mycotoxins can cause respiratory distress, poor growth, reproductive failure and even death, and affected bales should be discarded whole, not picked over. Toxic plants to keep out of reach include wilted cherry, peach and plum leaves, azalea and rhododendron, nightshade, pokeweed and yew, and treats such as chocolate, avocado and onions should never be fed.
Most goats eat 2 to 4 percent of their body weight in dry matter daily. A 50 kg dry goat needs about 1.13 kg of dry matter, while a lactating doe of the same weight needs about 1.88 kg. As-fed hay weights are higher, because hay is only about 88 percent dry matter.
Most adult goats eat 2 to 5 lb of hay a day, depending on size and stage, and a 150 lb dairy goat may eat 3 to 6 lb a day. Lactating and pregnant does eat more than dry goats, and miniature breeds scale down proportionally.
Dry goats about 2 to 2.5 percent, late pregnancy about 2.5 to 3 percent, lactating does about 3 to 4.5 percent, and growing kids about 3.5 to 4 percent. This calculator uses the midpoints of those ranges.
A common guide is about 1 lb of grain for every 3 lb of milk produced, on top of quality hay. Introduce grain gradually, split it across feedings, and adjust to body condition rather than feeding a fixed amount regardless of yield.
Yes. Goats need free-choice minerals formulated specifically for goats, including copper and selenium, plus salt. Never use sheep minerals for goats, because they lack adequate copper.
No, never. Mould produces mycotoxins that can cause respiratory distress, reduced appetite, poor growth, reproductive failure and death. Discard affected bales entirely instead of removing only the visibly mouldy parts.
It depends on stage. Grass hay such as timothy or orchard grass suits dry goats and wethers. Alfalfa or mixed grass and alfalfa hay suits lactating does, growing kids and late-pregnancy does, because of its higher protein and calcium.
Goats drink more in hot weather and when eating dry feed, and lactating does drink far more than dry goats. Always provide unlimited fresh water, and check supply daily, since a goat that stops drinking will quickly stop eating as well.