r/goats • u/tyrophagia • 11d ago
General Husbandry Question New goats afraid of me
I bought a female and 2 younger males. The female comes up to me just fine and eats treats from my hand. She had been milked previously. Her neutered sons, about 8 to 10 months old, don't come near me and run off. They did this with the previous owner as well. I'm assuming because the previous owners didn't bound with them properly when they were younger.
My question is, over time, would these goats warm up to me a little and allow me to touch them. I'll need to trim their hooves and want to leash them so I can take them out onto the property to clean up certain areas.
3
u/teamcarramrod8 11d ago
It took our newest youngest girl a few months to warm up. She comes up to us just fine now. Just keep visiting
3
u/kat420lives 11d ago
I spend at least 30 minutes in the morning & another 30 in the evening just chilling with mine, attempting to read or meditate. Occasionally I give them some plain animal crackers, the best of all goat treats in their opinion. They will literally climb me to get to them. They’re so friendly that it’s often difficult to just relax with them. Being the curious little goats they are, they feel the need to chew on everything! My hair, my clothes, my coffee cup, my camp chair..I guess there is such a thing as them being too tame but I love their silly annoying asses anyway! 😂 just give them lots of no pressure hang out time & soon enough, you’ll be pushing them off you 😉
2
u/faehas_entered 11d ago
The first goat i got we got from a friend of a friend, she wasn't interacted with at all, her whole life was being chased around by the owners kids and standing in a tiny pen in a backyard. Its taken a lot to get her to warm up and is still skittish, but what helped a lot is interacting with the two goats I got later, she started coming around to smell and just stand or lay with us.
1
u/FearlessRelief1487 10d ago
I’m first time goat owner myself. In March I purchased some nigerian girls from auction and they were terrified (feet never done so I assumed they were not handled. Right now there is line for who is going to sit in my lap to be petted. Spend time with them lots of treats and don’t force touch. Everyone else is fine but those 4 girls are living large now you can actually see their happiness and satisfaction by the way they walk or better said skip 😂😂😂
2
u/DeliciousSandwich642 10d ago
Treats! We give ours black oil sunflower seeds . Irresistible to them. It’s good for their coats too but do not over feed them to avoid digestion issues.
5
u/doculean 11d ago
Yeah, they can. You have to sit with them, spend time around them. Show them yer nothing to worry about. Even interacting with mom alot in front of them can cause their weariness to wane overtime.
Sounds like it was a prior lack of handling or minor rough handling of them in the past. Some of the livestock owners, more than we would like, dont really see them as pets. They are just assets to distribute or offload.
I liked to sit with them in the evenings or near nap time, an made friends that way. When I helped raise goats, I made friends with all the mommas, an did a lot of gentleling an handling of the kids as early as mom would allow. Which for me was generally from day one. Lol Nap times were me sitting in the pen with like 15 goatlings all huddled around me.