Goat Wise | Meat Goats, Feeding Goats, Goat Fencing, Livestock Management

Today we're talking about how goats actually see the world. Horizontal pupils, panoramic field of view, a reflective layer in the eye that makes them glow at night, and color vision that runs closer to red-green colorblind than to anything like ours. We'll also get into what all of it explains about behavior in the pasture and in the working facility, including a few things that used to look like stubbornness and now just look like physics. Let's get to it.   Leave a review on Apple Podcasts + grab your free Kidding Due Date Chart: https://www.goatwise.com/kidding-chart   Join the insider email list: https://www.goatwise.com/join Email: [email protected] Instagram: @drycreekpastures More from the ranch: https://www.drycreekpastures.com   This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for veterinary advice.

Today we're talking about electric netting in winter. Why we use it, which fence types we use and why, the setup details that actually matter when the ground is frozen, and whether virtual fence is going to replace it. The short answer on that last one: not entirely, and I'll explain why. Let's get to it.   Episode Mentions: 109 | Electric Netting in Freeze Country: The Afternoon Teardown Fix 124 | Virtual Fence in Action: A NoFence Progress Report from the Sagebrush 125 | Why Goats Eat Brush: The Biology Behind What We're Seeing in the Sagebrush 126 | Wintering Goats on Brush: The Feed Cost Strategy We're About to Test   NoFence affiliate code: BradshawGraze10 (capitalization matters) for 10% off your NoFence order. Here’s the link.*   Leave a review on Apple Podcasts + grab your free Kidding Due Date Chart: https://www.goatwise.com/kidding-chart   Join the insider email list: https://www.goatwise.com/join Email: [email protected] Instagram: @drycreekpastures More from the ranch: https://www.drycreekpastures.com   This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for veterinary advice. *Some links and codes in these notes are affiliate — I earn a small commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting Goat Wise.

Today I'm giving you the 2026 commercial meat goat kidding report. We'll go through the numbers, how they're calculated, how they compare to previous years and to industry benchmarks, what the death loss stories are, and what eight years of culling toward a self-sufficient, low-input herd looks like when it all comes together in one season. I’ve been sitting on these numbers for a little while because I’m still amazed at where the numbers settled. Let's get to it.   Episode Mentions: 16 | The Results Are In! Our 2024 Kidding Season Numbers for the Meat Goat Herd, and What You Should Be Keeping Track of in Your Herd 72 | Did We Reach Our Goal? 2025 Kidding Season Report Is Here! 113 | Kidding Season Week One: Forty Does, No Assists 127 | Iodine, Navel Dipping, Goiter, and Mineral: What Happened When I Didn't Follow My Own Advice   Leave a review on Apple Podcasts + grab your free Kidding Due Date Chart: https://www.goatwise.com/kidding-chart   Join the insider email list: https://www.goatwise.com/join Email: [email protected] Instagram: @drycreekpastures More from the ranch: https://www.drycreekpastures.com   This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for veterinary advice.

This year we stopped routine iodine navel dipping on newborn kids, something we'd been testing for a couple seasons and finally committed to fully. And then at about five to six weeks of age, some of the kids showed up with goiters. My first thought was that we'd possibly caused it by stopping the iodine on the navels. I went and looked it up. What I found was more interesting than I expected, and the actual cause turned out to be something I already knew and just didn't do. Let's get to it.   Related Episodes: 17 | Do My Goats Need Mineral? How to Meet Their Micronutrient Needs and Keep the Herd Healthy 65 | We Made It Through Kidding, Now What? The 6 Biggest Health Risks to Your Goat Kids Until Weaning Time   Leave a review on Apple Podcasts + grab your free Kidding Due Date Chart: https://www.goatwise.com/kidding-chart   Join the insider email list: https://www.goatwise.com/join Email: [email protected] Instagram: @drycreekpastures More from the ranch: https://www.drycreekpastures.com   This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for veterinary advice.

Two weeks ago, I gave you the field report on what we're seeing in the sagebrush with the virtual fence. Last week I covered the biology, why goats eat brush, how the MFO enzyme system builds tolerance, what Cedar Eater genetics tells us about browse as a heritable trait. Today I want to talk about what all of it means for winter feeding strategy, land improvement, and why reducing purchased feed costs might be the single most important thing any livestock producer can do for their operation's long-term profitability. Let's get to it.   Mentions: 124 | Virtual Fence in Action: A NoFence Progress Report from the Sagebrush 125 | Why Goats Eat Brush: The Biology Behind What We're Seeing in the Sagebrush NoFence affiliate code: BradshawGraze10 (capitalization matters) for 10% off your NoFence order. Here’s the link.*   Leave a review on Apple Podcasts + grab your free Kidding Due Date Chart: https://www.goatwise.com/kidding-chart   Join the insider email list: https://www.goatwise.com/join Email: [email protected] Instagram: @drycreekpastures More from the ranch: https://www.drycreekpastures.com   This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for veterinary advice. *Some links and codes in these notes are affiliate — I earn a small commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting Goat Wise.