How to Keep Goats Warm in the Winter
Winter weather can be tough on livestock, and goats are no exception. These hardy animals typically adapt well to colder temperatures, but they still need proper care to stay healthy and productive during the cold months. If you’re wondering how to keep goats warm in the winter, you’ve come to the right place.
At BioZyme®, we focus on care that comes full circle, starting with providing quality education for all producers and animal enthusiasts. We aren’t just scientists producing supplements and animal nutritional products. We are producers, just like you, who have had many of the same challenges you have had along the way. Our DuraFerm® line of nutritional supplements for sheep and goats supports optimal digestion and nutrition, maximizing performance at every stage of production and throughout every season.
We care about you and your livestock, and in this blog, we offer 6 practical tips every producer should know about how to keep goats warm in the winter.
1. Provide Adequate Shelter
The first step to keeping goats warm is a dry, draft-free shelter. Goats don’t need a heated barn, but they do need protection from wind, rain, and snow. A three-sided shed or enclosed barn works well. Make sure the structure is well-ventilated to prevent moisture buildup, which can lead to respiratory issues. Insulation isn’t always necessary, but blocking drafts at ground level can make a big difference.
2. Use Deep Bedding
Deep bedding acts as natural insulation. Start with a thick layer of straw or wood shavings and keep adding fresh material throughout the season. As the bedding packs down, it creates warmth from composting underneath. This method, often called “deep litter,” is how to keep goats warm in the winter without cleaning and replacing bedding each week. Deep bedding helps maintain a comfortable environment for your goats. Before the initial bedding, be sure the bottom surface of your barn or shed is clean, and lay down a layer of lime. Lime helps control moisture and the ammonia odor of waste build up, therefore mitigating some respiratory challenges for your animals. Avoid deep bedding during the warmer months, as it creates a breeding ground for parasites.
3. Keep Goats Dry
Wet goats get cold quickly. Check the shelter regularly for leaks and ensure bedding stays dry. If goats come in wet from rain or snow, towel them off and keep them inside until they dry. Moisture combined with cold temperatures can lead to hypothermia, so prevention is key.
4. Feed for Warmth
We don’t often think of feeding as how to keep goats warm in the winter, but goats, and most ruminants, generate body heat through digestion. Offering high-quality hay and increasing feed slightly during cold spells helps them stay warm. Grain can provide extra energy, but introduce it gradually to avoid digestive upset. Learn more about what can goats eat.
Providing a high-quality vitamin and mineral supplement like DuraFerm, powered by AO-Biotics® Amaferm® will help increase your goats’ digestibility – keeping them warm from the inside out. Amaferm is a research-proven prebiotic that enhances digestibility and ensures your herd gets more nutrients from every bite. Not only does Amaferm help keep the herd warm, but it also stretches the value of your feedstuffs.
5. Hydration Matters
Water is the most important nutrient for all living things, and that is just as true in winter as in summer. Adequate hydration helps goats digest fiber-rich feeds, which, in turn, generate heat through rumen fermentation. If goats don’t drink enough, digestion slows down, reducing their natural heat production.
Cold weather often reduces thirst, and goats avoid icy water, so check buckets frequently and break ice as needed. Heated water buckets or offering slightly warm water during extreme cold encourages drinking. Proper hydration also supports nutrient absorption and energy metabolism—both critical for maintaining body warmth.
6. Monitor Health
Cold stress can weaken immunity. Watch for signs of illness, such as coughing, nasal discharge, or lethargy. A healthy goat will handle winter much better than one already compromised.
DuraFerm Provides Options
DuraFerm offers two formulas specifically for goats, making it an ideal mineral for any operation’s management goals. It contains Amaferm, a prebiotic research-proven to enhance digestibility and high levels of vitamin E for reproductive tract repair. Additionally, it supports embryo production and conception using organic trace minerals.
DuraFerm®Concept•Aid® Goat
Are you looking for a loose mineral best suited for your herd’s year-round nutrition needs? DuraFerm Concept•Aid Goat is a free-choice vitamin and mineral supplement for goats that supports reproductive success. This loose mineral comes in both 50- and 12-pound bags.
DuraFerm® Concept•Aid® Goat Protein Tub
Another product that can help with your flock’s nutrition: the DuraFerm Concept•Aid Goat Protein Tub. This protein tub, fortified with vitamins and minerals for goats, supports reproductive success.
The 50-pound tub contains the Concept•Aid goat mineral package in a 20% natural protein tub. It supports embryo production and conception using organic trace minerals and elevated levels of vitamin E. Like all DuraFerm products, it contains Amaferm to enhance digestibility.
“DuraFerm is formulated at 2.5 times the NRC requirements to ensure that your herd is getting the best nutritional supplement possible. Add that in with the Amaferm, Vitamin E and organic trace minerals, you are sure to have some of the healthiest, most reproductively sound females,” said Sam Silvers, Director of National Specialty Livestock.
The Final Thoughts
Knowing how to keep goats warm in the winter is essential for their comfort and your peace of mind. With proper shelter, dry bedding, good nutrition, hydration, and attentive care, your herd will thrive even in the chilliest months.
Hopefully, you have found this resource useful as we approach the coldest time of year. And now you know, in addition to shelter, bedding, water and feed, your goats can benefit from the inside out with a mineral like DuraFerm. Adding DuraFerm to your operation is easy.
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Want more information about DuraFerm or to use our goat gestation calculators? Visit us online.