# Goat Shed? Pictures please!



## Evergreen160 (Mar 31, 2012)

Hi all!
We are planning a goat shed for our (soon to be) 2 nubian goats and I would love to see what others have created! We live in a cold environment so it needs to have 4 walls and a place for hand milking. We've never built something like this before so we need help! Any pictures or advice would be really appreciated


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## IndyGardenGal (Apr 5, 2009)

There are pics of a goat shed we built out of recycled lumber on our blog. We do milk the girls in the barn though.


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## oberhaslikid (May 13, 2002)

Ours is 16x16 it has an 8x8 milk room that is seperated by the hay bin and the other wall is wire and a 3 ft gate.
You can see the gate attached to the wall when closed makes a birthing stall. There is one on the other wall that makes and 8x8 stall.The milk room has pavers on the foor.
Otherwise the dogs and girls have an L shape room to lounge in.
We put fiberglass panels in the roof for light .I do not have electric in there we rigged up RV lights. I can run off a battery jumper box.
It maybe to much for your two, but I also started with just two. lol


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## Donna1982 (Jun 14, 2011)

Our "barn" is a 10 x 10 dog kennel we have tarps covering it. The boys have a calf hut. The milk barn is like 11 x 12 old shed that was there when we bought the farm. It was my boyfriends tool shed but I have slowly moved the goat stuff in. Hehehe.


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## prairiedog (Jan 18, 2007)

We have a tarp and cattle panel hoop shelters in the pens for the goats. We also have a 10x12 shed that we use for milking and kidding.


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## mpete (Mar 4, 2008)

I made the feeder outside of my goat barn... because the goats pee where they eat, and ammonia builds up and then pneumonia can quickly happen. You DO NEED TO HAVE WATER IN THE BARN THOUGH!!!! Goats will go out to eat, but not to drink water. They really love warm water on the cold days.


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## Squeaky McMurdo (Apr 19, 2012)

These threads are so helpful! I would love to see more sheds too. My husband is an electrician so I'm sure our future goats will be spoiled with heat, air conditioning, and light.


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## Goldenfarm (Sep 8, 2011)

Me too!!!! I would love to see what people have! 

We are in the planing stage right now. We are thinking maybe a 10x14.... we are thinking 2-3 goats at this point. What ever I can talk my husband into!!


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## TriWinkle (Oct 2, 2011)

I'm using a calf-hutch for my two...If the weather permits, I'll get some pics and post tomorrow.

I recently added flooring by using a sheet of plywood on top of three railroad. I placed the railroad ties on top of a landscaping timber to give it a slight slope so that wastes will run off into the holes I drilled into the floor.

Calf-hutch was a lifesaver because I can't build to save my life.


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## wolffeathers (Dec 20, 2010)

Evergreen160 said:


> Hi all!
> We are planning a goat shed for our (soon to be) 2 nubian goats and I would love to see what others have created! We live in a cold environment so it needs to have 4 walls and a place for hand milking. We've never built something like this before so we need help! Any pictures or advice would be really appreciated


Welcome! How cold is cold? It will help with the ideas, as cold can be relative.


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## Evergreen160 (Mar 31, 2012)

COLD!  I'm in the foothills of Colorado and live at 8,100 ft. Really we don't have sustained below zero temps (VT would be colder) but we can go a couple of weeks in the teens at night. During the day it is almost always sunny unless it is snowing and then we can easily get 4 ft of snow. It can get quite windy - 60 mph gusts are pretty normal hence why we need at 4-sided barn. The summer is warm but not hot - temps top out in the low 80's F.

Thanks for everyone's input!


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## Tallabred (May 23, 2008)

Welcome! This was my first forum that I came to when I got my first goats. You can learn a lot of good information here.

My son lives in Vail - I SO WANT to move to the Colorado mountains!!


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Here is what we did. If you look closely you can see part of the roofing lets sunshine in during winter months, the loft is open on one end and one complete side (with wire ventilation on both sides up directly under the rafters), the feeders are high enough so a "step" is needed to eat from them...no pooping gets inside...and all water buckets and mineral/baking soda feeders are hung on the walls to keep them clean. You cannot see the milking area well; however, it faces the south and is on part of a wooden floor. (I built a 2 ft wall along side it opposite where I would sit to milk so as to help me train milkers who were difficult initially.) Also, one of my most valued construction to this barn is the middle wall that can be closed or kept open. During bad weather I house my herd buck in one side and he cannot get thru to the does even if they are in heat! Neither can the does get to him!


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## Bambitski (Mar 16, 2012)

Nice!


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## Blue Run Farm (Feb 14, 2011)

Wow, motdaugrnds, that is really nice! My "barn" is a dog kennel. I made a 10x10 "stall" and a 10x6 "stall" with kennel panels. Then I bought a 10x20 canopy from TSC and put it up over top of the "stalls." I double tarped the sides to keep rain and wind out, so it is fairly weather tight, but not perfect.

Unfortunately, the stupid chickens keep wanting to sit on the edge of the roof, so it leaks a little. And it develops condensation along the top peak which drips into the stalls. My milkstand is in the 6x10 stall and doubles as a loafing shelf for the doe in there. I had a stand in each stall, but one broke and needs to be repaired. I would also really like to put in a raised floor. I have the floors matted, but some water still runs underneath when we have a heavy rain like last night. Our soil is mostly clay, so it doesn't exactly drain well. I have a dream that one day I will win the lottery and build a real barn.


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## Bambitski (Mar 16, 2012)

My goat barn (willbe buck barn soon) is 20x16. It has two stalls and an open area. Previously for milking. But we are cutting down.to 1 stall for the brooding box for chicks and such and an open area for the bucks. I am going to buy two of the $300 sheds from tractor supply for the doe pen. Open up the back sand connect them. Found out it was cheaper than buying all the stuff to make one. I plan on insulating and adding walls for them. Will figure out milking shed when spring comes. Then DH is going to build me a little shed and pen by the clothes line in back that I will use as a breedin gpen and then birthing shed and pen. He put in french doors in my frontroom for Mothers day, so I will be able to see and hear anything goin gon there. LOL Good thing he loves me. He has so much work cut out for him.  LOL


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## Blue Run Farm (Feb 14, 2011)

Bambitski said:


> I am going to buy two of the $300 sheds from tractor supply


That sounds very interesting! Is this a wood shed of some sort for that price or the ShelterLogic ones with the tubes and heavy duty tarp material? How big is it? I need another shelter for my goats and have been trying to come up with something we can afford...


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## prairiedog (Jan 18, 2007)

there are pics in this thread of our shelter http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/livestock-forums/goats/439799-oatbucketfarm.html


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## Bambitski (Mar 16, 2012)

Blue Run Farm said:


> That sounds very interesting! Is this a wood shed of some sort for that price or the ShelterLogic ones with the tubes and heavy duty tarp material? How big is it? I need another shelter for my goats and have been trying to come up with something we can afford...


They are the ones from lowes made from tin. Hence insulating and making walls inside. 6x8 or 8x10. Cant remember the size. But I plan on getting an extra one to put feed in too.


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## Blue Run Farm (Feb 14, 2011)

I was looking at the tin ones at Lowes and Home Depot and came across this

Shed-in-a-Box 6 ft. x 6 ft. x 6 ft. Peak Style Storage Shed - Grey-70401.0 at The Home Depot

What do you all think of that for a run-in shelter? This would be in addition to the calf hutch they already have. Or maybe for the kid pen. Also, maybe to put over my milkstand. Seems a bit small, but for the price I am tempted to get one or two to try...


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## Elsbet (Apr 2, 2009)

https://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.p...8374028.105956.411433222220044&type=1&theater

This is the picture of the shelter our goats have. This is the back. We have added plywood siding to it to keep drafts off, and to keep dogs from being able to bite through the sides if they should get into the pasture. We are also adding a second, longer stall off the left side of this, to form an L shaped structure. There will be a large square tin roof (or maybe a used carport, if we can find one cheap) covering the whole thing when when it is done, which will give us a loafing pen for a mini-donk or a pony when we can get one. This is fully secure from dog attacks, with a closing, secure door. It's big enough to comfortably house two small-medium goats, plus a water bucket and hay rack. 3 or 4 could easily get in at the same time if they wished, and probably be comfy, too. We are going to side the whole structure with cedar shingles when it is finished. It is built of pallets that we got from DH's work with a property pass, so it was, except for nails and the temporary tarp roof- free. Half the floor is decking, and half we filled up to nearly the deck level with sand, so that the goats have a choice of what they sleep on. When it is hot, we've noticed our Violet likes to burrow into the sand. If she's chilly, she curls up on the hay she's pulled out of the rack onto the decking.


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## "SPIKE" (Dec 7, 2011)

This is the 10' x 16' shelter I built this year for my 2 nubian does. I hope to not have more than 2 adult does, but wanted it to be big enough for them to raise kids in and not be too crowded. For now it will have to be the milking area also.

I told the chickens it was an upgrade to the area, and I told the goats to not worry about the chickens because they will help keep the area cleaned up.










I still need to change the fence. It originally had to contain chickens only.
The girls thought they would say HI.










SPIKE


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## "SPIKE" (Dec 7, 2011)

Forgot the inside pictures.

2 - 5' x 5' stalls in the back. The gates were made from an old bed head and foot boards.



















Milk stand in one front corner and a hay barrell in the other corner.
It is nice to have a bit of extra room.



















SPIKE


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## Bambitski (Mar 16, 2012)

you have a nice set up. That is kinda what I want to do, but I will have the milking area closed off to the central area when not in use. Thinking that they can come in through the barn area, and go out to the yard from there. 2 entrances into the yard. Plus the milking area will have the extra feed and some hay stored there too for convenience. I hate walking long areas carrying a bale, have done it, but hate it. LOL


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## PaulNKS (Jan 11, 2009)

SPIKE, as always, your projects are top-notch. I like what you did.

I had two separate little sheds I had built. I ran out of room. A few months back, we bought an older single car detached garage that was already braced and blocked up to move. We got it for $90. I set it on cinder blocks and an in the process of adding lean-to's on each side. I'll put two buck pens under one side, use the inside for a kidding shed and the other lean-to for the herd to get under-partially enclosed.

I think it's going to work great.


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