There is nothing more important than being able to know your goats’ weights. Truly, you cannot perform important tasks like dosing medications, or even simple daily tasks, without knowing a goat’s weight. There are certain situations where a weight can be estimated, such as when dosing herbal supplements. However, if you are ever faced with giving a conventional medicine, and you cannot get your goat’s weight, you risk failed treatments, negative side effects, and more. If there is one thing I can address today for all goat owners, it’s having a technique to weigh your goats that works!
If you don’t have a plan for weighing, I encourage you to start planning one by the time you’re done reading this post, and then implement it! Some methods are more involved than others, but I guarantee you will never regret having a good weighing method. I also recommend having baseline weights on all goats, at least once or twice a year (more frequently if the goat is still growing), so if there is an emergency (and you are unable to get the goat to a scale before something needs to be dosed) you can use the most recently recorded weight. See the end of this post for a FREE downloadable weight tracker!
Here are your options for weighing goats…
Pick ‘Em Up!
If you can lift your goats, my favorite way to get weights is to stand on a scale and weigh yourself (clothes, boots, and all!), and record the number. Then pick up the goat and record the new total. Subtract your initial weight from the total, and voila, you have the goat’s weight! For really small kids or really big goats, though, keep on reading for more options.
Weight Tape Measurements
Using a weight tape method isn’t ideal, and can result in incorrect numbers. However, it is entirely better than nothing! But first, some considerations for this technique: it is usually intended for standard sized dairy or meat goats, not dwarf goats. Additionally, very overweight or underweight animals aren’t factored into to the equation. For these reasons, you’ll only get an estimated weight from measurements. You will need a soft fabric tape for this method. I adore THIS link that explains weight tape calculations, with photos and further details. But the weight calculation I recommend is:
Heart Girth (inches) X Heart Girth (inches) X Shoulder to Pin Distance (inches) / 300
*Yes, ALL divided by 300!
If dosing something with a wide safety margin, I like to add 10lbs to all weight tape measurements.
Use A Large Scale
A livestock scale, or even a large dog scale for smaller goats, will be your best friend as a goat owner! Even though it can be an investment, you will never regret having an easy way to weigh your goats (that doesn’t hurt your back or require a struggle). Livestock-specific scales are more expensive than large dog scales. Large dog scales can be purchased for $60-$100 from certain sources, but usually not more than $200.
Simply walk your goats onto the scale, or place it on your milk stand when the goats hop up if the dimensions allow. A few scales to look into are:
Livestock Scale With Cage/Chute Style
Use a Hanging Scale With Sling
A calf sling with a scale attached (see THIS link) can be an affordable (more DIY) option for weighing goats, but will require a bit of tinkering to create an adequate pulley/lift system. If that’s the kind of thing that you’re up for, you could even create a makeshift sling with home materials and just get the hanging scale piece by itself! Nonetheless, this certainly requires some more infrastructure within a barn, unless you’re weighing tiny kids (in which a hanging fish scale is probably the simplest method for getting a weight).
A Kitchen Scale (for Littles!)
For small kids, a kitchen scale can be used with a tub on top that you can place the kid in. This is a simple, easy way to get the weight of a small kid, especially if they’re too light to really register with technique #1 (holding the kid while standing on a human scale).
No matter the technique you choose, don’t wait until you need a weight to implement a strategy. Do it now…there’s your homework, folks! What comes with homework? A worksheet? You bet! Click below to download a FREE weight record chart! If you take picture of it filled out and post it and tag me on any of my social media accounts, I’ll make sure to give you the recognition you deserve for being a responsible goat parent!
DOWNLOAD – CLICK HERE, OR ON THE IMAGE BELOW
DISCLAIMER: I am not a vet, nor am I a licensed professional. I am in no way a “goat expert” and my opinions are only that of personal experiences, and my insights shared are not medical treatment suggestions, care suggestions, or any directions for raising goats at all. I am simply sharing my own personal opinions. Any and all changes to your goats’ health regimen, care, etc. should be approved by a veterinary professional or licensed professional. I also believe that every goat owner has their own way of doing things, so just as my opinions are my own, and cannot apply to anyone else, your opinions are also regarding your individual goats, and I welcome you to share them in a kind, constructive manner.
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