Chat
11-13-2021, 08:20 AM
The best way to teach goats to stand quietly while tied is to tie them up regularly and leave them there while you do other things. The goat has to learn to be patient. I always keep an eye on tied goat in case he gets himself in trouble with the rope, but I try not to rescue them while they're figuring it out unless I really have to. Once they get bored they will usually try fighting the rope, getting up and down, rearing on their hind legs, and getting their front legs over the rope. Unless the goat is actually strangling itself I leave it alone to figure out how to undo these little entanglements. Once they learn that fighting the rope doesn't make it go away, they usually resign themselves to it and either stand quietly or lay down.
When trimming hooves on a large, strong goat such as a buck (or any goat with horns), I always tie with a halter so I have more control and so they can't swing around and hit me with a horn. I tie them up short but at a comfortable height. I push them up against the fence with my body so they don't feel like they can escape. It also gives me a leverage advantage if they start to struggle since I can lean in and use my body weight to control their movement. Once I pick up a foot I try not to let go no matter what. I've had some instances where I've had to drop my trimmers and hold onto a foot with both hands until the goat settles. Once I'm done trimming, I always try to wait until a moment when the goat is relaxed so I can place the foot down gently. If he's resisting and I just let go, the foot slams down and the goat may feel that resistance is key to getting his foot back. I always give a treat after each successful hoof trim. I also do a lot of verbal communication with my goats during hoof trimming. Fighting gets a verbal reprimand while relaxing and behaving get a lot of reassuring praise followed immediately by a treat.
When trimming hooves on a large, strong goat such as a buck (or any goat with horns), I always tie with a halter so I have more control and so they can't swing around and hit me with a horn. I tie them up short but at a comfortable height. I push them up against the fence with my body so they don't feel like they can escape. It also gives me a leverage advantage if they start to struggle since I can lean in and use my body weight to control their movement. Once I pick up a foot I try not to let go no matter what. I've had some instances where I've had to drop my trimmers and hold onto a foot with both hands until the goat settles. Once I'm done trimming, I always try to wait until a moment when the goat is relaxed so I can place the foot down gently. If he's resisting and I just let go, the foot slams down and the goat may feel that resistance is key to getting his foot back. I always give a treat after each successful hoof trim. I also do a lot of verbal communication with my goats during hoof trimming. Fighting gets a verbal reprimand while relaxing and behaving get a lot of reassuring praise followed immediately by a treat.