Goats and Hay Nets

Goats are the worst wasters of hay of all the animals on the farm, hands down. They even beat the cows and the cows are bad. At least the cows will continue to clean up the hay they have stepped on, but for goats, once it is on the ground, they will not touch it, especially if it has been walked on. Goats are like deer in their eating habits, that is, they browse from the top down. It is nature's way of keeping the worms at bay and worms are the goat's number one worst enemy, especially barber pole worms which suck the blood out of the lining of the stomach. They are hard to eradicate completely and some goats are far more affected by them than others. If I was starting all over, now knowing what I know, I would build a parasite resistant goat herd by only keeping and breeding those that naturally resist worms without having to be treated. Those goats are out there, but the problem is that most people blanket treat the herd and do not check individuals. 

The goats like to eat from the hay nets actually. It is more natural for them to eat through the net from the top down, while sheep will eat from bottom up or find the sweet spot and dig in. But goats have sharp sharp strong teeth and they have bitten holes in the nets. The little goats crawled right inside, after all that is the best place to eat. Lily, the horned Kiko, put her head in but a horn got caught on the way out. When I fed them, I noticed Lily at the net and did not think much of it, except she always comes to eat and she didn't. Then I noticed the two little ones inside the net, Stevie Wonder and Nix! They could not get out with Lily's big head stuck in there. I had to help both of them out. The hole was actually pretty tight! Once out they  were all fine. Then I fixed that hole and another smaller one and all was well in the goat pen - for a while that is. Goats always get into mischief.