How long do goats live: indicators at home and how to extend the term

It is important for farmers and owners of household plots to know how long domestic goats live, which affects their life expectancy. After all, the cultivation of these animals flies a pretty penny. Goats need food and a place to live. If favorable conditions are created, they will live 15-18 years. True, the period of economic use of goats is slightly lower. It is only 8-10 years old.

How long do goats live

Domestic animals like goats are bred for milk, meat and wool. Life expectancy depends mainly on the diet and conditions of detention. Proper nutrition affects the digestive system, as well as the condition of the teeth.He althy animals live longer than sick ones. On average, life expectancy is 15-18 years.

Meat

Oriental meat breeds (Boer, Nubian) come from South Asia, they are adapted to life in a warm climate. In temperate latitudes, their life expectancy is 8-10 years. True, no one keeps representatives of the meat breed until such an age. Usually they are sent for slaughter at 8-12 months. The meat of these animals becomes tougher with age.

It is also desirable to renew breeding goats after 7-8 years of life. And in females, reproductive functions decrease with age. At the age of 8, old goats miscarry, unviable or dead kids are born.

Dairy

Dairy goats, as a rule, begin to be milked after the first lambing, that is, at the age of 2 years. The peak of productivity comes to 4-5 years. Then milk yields gradually decrease. Dairy goats are desirable to keep up to 8-10 years. It can be longer.With good care and proper nutrition, these animals will live up to 15-18 years. True, old goats will give a cup of milk a day.

Mini goats

Decorative pygmy goats (Nigerian, Cameroonian) are dairy breeds. Such animals can live up to 20 years. These centenarians have excellent immunity and good adaptive qualities. True, the period of their economic use is no more than 10 years.

What determines life expectancy

The lifespan of pets depends on the person, or rather, on the conditions of detention and feed. With proper feeding, they will be he althy for many years. Well-coordinated work of all systems and organs is the key to high productivity.

Climate

Habitat influences he alth and life expectancy. These animals are not recommended to be kept indoors all year round.In the warm season, it is desirable to graze them on pasture. Sunlight, juicy green grass - all this hardens the body of animals, has a positive effect on their he alth.

Thickly-coated breeds adapted to life in cool climates will suffer from heat in southern latitudes. On the contrary, representatives of Asian or African species will often get sick in places with short rainy summers and harsh winters. It is better to get the breed that has long been bred in their native area.

If desired, you can grow exotic or rare animals in a particular region. True, in this case, they need to create optimal conditions for detention.

Heat-loving breeds in cold latitudes will have to be kept indoors for 9 months. In favorable home conditions, even goats atypical for the region can live 10-20 years.

Containment conditions

Goats are pets that need to create all the conditions for life. Before you start them, you need to take care of the barn, think through all the nuances of feeding. They should graze on the pasture in summer, and be in a special room for stall keeping in winter. Females should preferably be covered once a year and milked twice a day.

The barn should always be dry and clean. The optimum temperature for keeping these animals is 10-20 degrees Celsius all year round. If animals are kept in the cold, in mud and dampness, then even representatives of the local and most hardened breeds will not live long. Goats are prone to various colds and infectious diseases. At 3 months of age, goats need vaccination to protect them from dangerous diseases. Under favorable conditions, a goat lives about 15-18 years.

Food

He alth and longevity, of course, depend on the quality and quantity of feed. The more complete the food, the better the condition of the animal. Goats should receive the full range of nutrients, vitamins and minerals. The productivity of animals depends on the quality of feed.

True, when compiling a menu for your ward, you need to pay attention to one important nuance.

He alth, productivity of goats, especially dairy goats, depends on the condition of the teeth. Animals have 32 of them. Moreover, there are 24 molars, and only 8 incisors, and all of them are located on the lower jaw. At first, baby teeth grow in goats. Up to 4 years, they are replaced by permanent ones. These teeth should be protected. After all, the longer they last, the better the goat will eat, that is, eat more. Nutrition, as you know, depends on the he alth and life expectancy of animals.

Goats that eat soft food live longer. Their teeth just wear out and grind down more slowly. In addition, soft foods (fresh grass, finely chopped vegetables) are more beneficial for the body.If the animals have kept all their teeth, they will live for 20 years. If goats are kept on roughage, the picture is sadder. It happens that at the age of 8, females lose their teeth. Of course, such animals will not be able to chew food normally, which means they will eat less and give little milk. As soon as the teeth of the females begin to deteriorate, they should immediately be replaced by younger individuals.

Can the deadline be extended?

The lifespan of an animal depends on its he alth. The better the condition and well-being of the goat, the longer it will live. He alth is influenced by a number of factors: feed quality, habitat, conditions of detention.

What prolongs the life of goats:

compulsory vaccination of young animals at the age of 3 months;
soft food for teeth (meadow or forest young grass, fine hay, grated vegetables);
pharmaceutical vitamins and minerals;
milk feeding of young animals up to 3 months;
spruce and pine branches in winter;
clean water for drinking (at least 5 liters per individual);
grazing on a fenced off and clean pasture;
no contact with sick animals;
timely (early) treatment of diseases;
Kept in a warm, dry and clean barn;
Stress and Anxiety Prevention Activities for Animals.

Goats will live longer if they are regularly given the optimal amount of feed. You can not keep them on a starvation diet or, conversely, overfeed. In summer, after the dew, they need to graze in the meadow. In rainy weather, the animals must remain in the barn. In winter, it is necessary to feed them with hay from young meadow and forest grasses. Roughage (grain, tree branches) is given to goats in a minimal amount. Instead of brooms in winter, it is better to feed them with dried leaves of shrubs and trees.

What reduces the lifespan of a goat?

Diseases affect the lifespan of animals. Sick goats, if left untreated, do not live long. Most often, animals suffer from colds, gastrointestinal diseases, and mastitis. In order to prevent goats, it is advisable not to graze in the rain, in winter they must be kept indoors.

Diseases of the stomach occur with improper feeding and due to poor quality feed. Mastitis is a disease that can be prevented if milk is given in a timely manner and dirty bedding is changed daily. True, with age, in any animals, he alth and productivity become worse. Usually goats are kept for no more than 8-10 years, and then they are replaced with young goats.