# Why won't my goats sleep in barn?



## jtdl (Jun 14, 2006)

Ugghhh, I'm getting frustrated here! My goats all slept in the barn together all summer but now that it is cold and, last night, very windy and raining/sleeting three of them slept all cuddled up outside. These are a momma and two 8-month-old babies. I have a big fat dominant wether who does sleep inside. They are all pygmies but he is much bigger than the others. 

My goat area consists of a small barn with half divided for them to "live" in - there is a good bed of straw/leftover hay on top of the cement floor. There are two "goat doors" like dog doors with flaps, leading into covered outside areas (large fenced pens with roof) and then at the back is a fenced in yard. I close off the fenced in yard at night because of coyotes. So now they are sleeping in one of the covered outside areas. Last week, about the time this started, we found a possum in the barn eating the cat food (needless to say, we take the cat food away after supper now). I don't know if the big one is not letting them in at night - but he did all summer - or if the possum or something else is going in there that they are scared of it. Any ideas???? 

My big one is our first goat and although he is a complete PITA, I can't see how we can get rid of him - I'm certainly not going to kill him and because he is so dominant, I can't see anyone else wanting him. I'm thinking if we make a separate area in the barn and lock him in at night, that he will get more ornery and take it out on the others - or me! Or if I close all the doors and lock them in the barn, I'm worried that he will bash the others (they all have horns). I'm at a complete loss as to what to do here - anyone want a 7-year-old, huge, very dominant pygmy - lol?


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Do they appear unhappy? It's you who want them to sleep in a specific spot. They are goats, and they may just have decided they like sleeping outside right now.:grin:


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## nehimama (Jun 18, 2005)

Like Alice said. OR.. . . . . it could be that the dominant goat will not allow the others inside?


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

If the situation occurred here, I would simply hang around until all had settled in to see what was happening.


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

> or if the possum or something else is going in there that they are scared of it. *Any ideas*????


Go in the barn with all the doors closed, get down near the floor level, and see if there is an* ammonia *smell.

If there is , you can put down some pelletized lime to neutralize it
Do NOT us "hydrated" lime.
Make sure to get *Calcium Carbonate*


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## jtdl (Jun 14, 2006)

Bearfootfarm said:


> Go in the barn with all the doors closed, get down near the floor level, and see if there is an* ammonia *smell.
> 
> If there is , you can put down some pelletized lime to neutralize it
> Do NOT us "hydrated" lime.
> Make sure to get *Calcium Carbonate*


That's what my DH is thinking - that the possum has "used" the straw. We are going to clean it out tomorrow as it needs a last clean out before winter anyway and hopefully that is the problem.

It was really bad weather last night - high winds, sleet and COLD - so I don't think they slept out there because they wanted to! That was the first bad night, previously I had thought that maybe they just enjoyed the fresh air out there!


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## coso (Feb 24, 2004)

Mine do this a lot this time of year. They sleep in the barn in the summer and then sleep around the outside hay feeder when it starts getting colder.:stars::baby04:


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## jill.costello (Aug 18, 2004)

This happened to me! One day, the wether just "decided" he was boss, and kicked everyone out of the barn! I had to offer THREE separate sleeping areas, with THREE different doors, so they could work it out on their own. He could run back and forth guarding TWO sections, but gave up trying to guard three, lol......


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

I would put pallets or a stall mat down on the cement before the straw & wasted hay. I'm thinking the cement may be too cold.
I also agree with Alice that if they all slept in there together in the summer time they probly just prefer to sleep outside right now.

Mine will sometimes lay outside on one of there spools, etc. at night too. They are getting there winter coats & can really handle the cold more than we think.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

With my goats I would seriously think something was wrong with the shelter if they stayed out in that kind of weather. They HATE getting rained on. They will put up with a little snow..but no rain


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

I had a similar problem as jill one year where one goat was trying to control the entire barn. We simply locked that goat out of the barn 2 nights in a row. That stopped that!


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## jtdl (Jun 14, 2006)

Well, we cleaned out the barn yesterday. They slept, or at least laid, in there during the afternoon cause I could see the indents in the straw, but come last night - all four of them slept outside! The three cats are still sleeping in their "condo" in the barn. I guess I'll just leave them be and see what happens. I'm reluctant to lock them inside in case it is the big wether and he ends up bashing the others all night! There is small spot that I can lock him - it's like a "hallway" to the one outside pen and I locked him in there one night and the other three still slept outside - so I'm stumped. Maybe their winter coats came on too fast and they are too hot in the barn????


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