First off, you would never own just one goat. This is just to get an idea of what you pay to own a single Nigerian Dwarf Goat in our area. For any standard sized goat, you would probably double these figures. Second, this is based on you being the sole provider of food for your goat and not free ranging. Although having pasture for your goats is the most ideal scenario, and greatly cuts down on feed cost. So here we go . . .
Feed
We feed our goats a variety. In addition to grazing, we feed hay, pellets, and Chaffhaye. A variety is best. Hay especially provides much needed roughage for your goat even though it can be the most expensive. Goats are very wasteful when it comes to hay. Special feeders can help reduce the waste, or we’ll scrape up the wasted hay and toss it into their shelter for bedding. This is also why we supplement with less wasteful options like Chaffhaye and Alfalfa/Timothy Pellets. We’ve noticed the goats seem more satisfied with pellets vs Chaffhaye. Anyway, I went through and found out what the cost would be if you were to pick just one option and feed it all year. Servings can vary based on how big your nigie is from a smaller doe to a larger buck.
Standlee Pellets 26-40 servings per 40 lb bag, = 9-14 bags per year, $13 per bag = $117-182 per year
Chaffhaye 33-50 servings per bag 50 lb, = 7-11 bags per year, $15 per bag = $105-165 per year
Hay 12-24 serving per 60-70 lb bale, 15-30 bales per year, $12.25 per bale = $184-368 per year
Average Cost Of Using All Three $135-238 per year for one goat
Minerals
With our small herd, we use the Manna Pro Goat loose minerals. Based off the feeding guidelines, one bag would last one nigie for just under 1.5 years. For a larger herd and a few dollars more you can get a general 50 lb bag of minerals, BUT it may lack some nutrients that goats require like copper. Don’t get mineral blocks, even if it’s meant for goats! We tried it regardless of people saying use loose minerals. Goats loose interest in the blocks very quickly and don’t really use it. Even with the loose mineral, I find that I need to offer it small amounts or else they will waste it if it gets old before they get to consuming it.
Manna Pro Loose Mineral Supplement $13 per year
Grain
We only use grain when our goats are in milk. Grain can be rough on a goat’s system so it’s best use it only when they’re in milk, and then give their systems a rest when you’re not milking. We milk about 7-8 months out of the year. We generally make our own mix of grains for our goats. But sometimes we’ve found ourselves running out and end up buying grain mixes from the store. Most folks would use what’s at the store so those are the numbers I focused on.
Organic (Natures Best): 40 lb bag at $25 each bag, 80 servings, 3 bags for 8 month milk season = $75.00
Regular (Dumor Sweet Feed): 50 lb bag, $18 each bag, 100 servings, 2.5 bags for 8 month milk season (rounded up to 3 bags) = $54.00
Grain: $54-75 per year
Total
So all in all, you’re looking at a grand total of about $202-326 to feed one goat for a year. That’s cheaper than feeding my dog which is about $600+ per year. But when you own several goats it’s again, healthier and cheaper to free range them on pasture if that option is available to you.
Annual Cost Of One Nigerian Dwarf Goat: $202-326
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