5 Ways to Weigh a Goat
If you have small goat breeds like Nigerian Dwarf or are looking to weigh kids, then weighing your goat can be as easy as picking your goat up and stepping on a bathroom scale. But what if you have big goats? In our case, we raise Nubians. Our Nubian buck weighs 160 pounds and there's no way I could lift him. So how do we know how much he weighs? Below are 5 ways to weigh a goat without a livestock scale. I test a few common methods and show the benefits and drawbacks of each method.
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I am not a veterinarian, this is only an example of what we do with our animals. Please consult your vet before making any health decisions with your animals.
Check out my FREE printable chart below for keeping records of your goats weights!
Convenient gray-scale printables require no colored ink, and hand-drawn graphics by me (Jennifer Sartell) give them a cozy vintage look. These charts have been developed because of my need to keep records of our own herd and now I want to share them with you so that you can keep good records of your goats!
Click the image to the left to get the FREE PDF download!
Why is it important to know what your goat weighs?
So many health-related matters rely on knowing the weight of your goat. Feed amounts, medication dosage, wormers, also overall health. Is your goat losing weight because of disease? Is it gaining weight because of overfeeding or inactivity?
It can be challenging to spot weight differences with your goat just by looking at them. Their rumen will expand and contract. One day your goat might look fat, and the next, he might look thin. Weight changes are often gradual. When you're around your goats every day, it can be difficult to notice these gradual increases or decreases in weight. Fiber goats are especially difficult to determine weight gain/loss because their mohair (wool) hides their body shape.
The best, and easiest way to weigh a goat is with a livestock scale. However, livestock scales are very expensive. If you have a large operation then it would be worth the investment to purchase a livestock scale. However, for the backyard goat keeper, or small farmer, it doesn't make sense to spend thousands of dollars on a scale.
5 ways to weigh a goat
Below are 4 ways to weigh a goat without a livestock scale. Read on to find the benefits and drawbacks of each method.
1. The small-goat bathroom scale method for weighing a goat
If you are trying to weigh a kid goat, or if you raise a breed of goat that is small enough for you to pick up (Nigerian Dwarf), you can simply pick up the goat and step on the bathroom scale. Then set the goat down and weigh yourself without the goat. Then subtract the difference and you have the goat's weight.
Benefits: You probably already have a bathroom scale. The process is easy and fast.
Drawback: It only works for goats you can physically pick up.
But what if you raise large goat breeds, like full-grown Nubians or Alpines, or Boers? Our Nubians weigh between 140-160 pounds each. There's no way I could hold them on a bathroom scale!
2. Scale and sling method for weighing a goat
I wanted to get an actual weight on Baltus before recommending the measuring tape methods below. And in the process, I found that not only do I love the sling and scale method (because it's 100 percent accurate), but the sling also doubles as an amazingly easy way to trim your goat's feet without struggling or being kicked. For about $40 you can purchase this setup. I also plan on using it for our Golden Retriever Oliver who hates to get his nails trimmed.
Materials:
-Outmate Large Digital Crane Scale (660 lbs. / kg.)
-The Premier 1 Large Weigh Sling for goats and sheep
-a place to suspend the goat
-a stanchion or platform
There are a few different ways you could go about doing this method. We suspended Baltus from the rafter of our barn. But you could also use a sturdy tree branch, the lifted bucket of a tractor. You could also use a heavy-duty threaded "J" hook screwed into a cross beam in the ceiling of an outbuilding.
We looped the ratchet strap over the exposed beam in our barn and placed the stanchion underneath.
Baltus got up on the stanchion and we fitted the sling under his belly, then clipped the straps around his chest and around his hind end. He was a little nervous at first and kept trying to crouch down.
Then we attached the scale to the loops on the harness and the other end of the scale to the hooks on the rachet strap.
Zach slowly ratcheted Baltus up and we removed the stanchion from below so that he was suspended and we were able to get an accurate weight. Only lift the animal a safe distance off the ground.
The scale read 159.9, so we'll call it 160 lbs.
We then weighed the sling, it was right around 2 lbs. so we subtracted that. You can zero out the scale, before putting the goat in the sling, but the scale timed out before we could get Baltus strapped in.
So Baltus weighs 158 lbs.
Benefits:
You get an exact weight. As shown above, the measuring tape method can vary depending on how tight you pull the tape. We measured Baltus and believed we did it correctly, but after weighing him, we found that he was 21 pounds lighter than we had originally calculated. The sling can double as a harness for trimming hooves. (Check out my post Trimming Goat Hooves!)
Drawback:
While our buck seemed perfectly content to lie in his sling being hand-fed animal crackers all day, I would ask your veterinarian if this method is safe for pregnant does. It does put some pressure on the abdomen which might not be safe for does that are pregnant. This method also requires special equipment which costs around $40. In my opinion, that's a reasonable price for an accurate weight. But you have to decide for your herd.
3. The measuring tape + formula for weighing goats
When you google how to weigh goats without a scale, everyone recommends the measuring tape method. By doing a couple of measurements and a couple of calculations, you can estimate the weight of your goat. This formula is meant for large dairy breeds only. You will get mixed results with smaller breeds, meat breeds, and fiber breeds. Below are the steps to do the measuring tape method.
Materials:
-cloth measuring tape meant for sewing
-a stanchion to secure the goat (will make this process much easier)
-calculator
-scrap paper
-something to write with
-weight calculation formula: (heart girth) X (heart girth) X (length), divided by 300 = weight
Step 1: Measure the heart girth of the goat. This is the area behind the front leg up over the back and back around. You want to go all the way around your goat with the measuring tape and pull it somewhat taught. Record this measurement.
Step 2: Measure from the point of the pin bone which is located at the point of the back of their hip to the point of the shoulder bone. Record this measurement.
Step 3: Plug your measurements into the following formula:
(heart girth) X (heart girth) X (length), divided by 300 = weight
Here are our measurements for Baltus our buck:
heart girth: 41
length: 32
41 X 41 X 32 divided by 300 = 179.3 lbs.
Benefits: Easy to measure the goat, no special equipment, fast.
Drawbacks: We found that it's pretty easy to overestimate the weight of the goat using this method. If you don't pull the measuring tape correctly it can give you an inaccurate reading. In our case a difference of 20 plus pounds. (Around 10 pounds per inch of heart girth.) If we were administering medication according to this first measurement, we would have overdosed by 21 pounds.
Baltus weighs 158 lbs the formula gave us 179 lbs = a difference of 21 lbs.
This might not be a big deal depending on the medication, but it's something to be aware of.
4. Measuring tape and chart method for weighing a goat
There are also charts available(see below) that give a list of different heart girth lengths and what would be the approximate weight of the goat according to that single measurement. To do this method, you would take the heart girth measurement (see above) and then compare it to the chart below to get an approximate weight.
Baltus' heart girth measured at 41 inches. According to these charts, it put Baltus around 185 to 190 pounds. This is even more of an overestimate than the above method.
Benefits: Easy, fast, no special equipment required.
Drawbacks: Easy to overestimate the weight of the goat using this method.
5. Dog and cat Veterinarian scale method for weighing a goat
One way to weigh your goat is to ask your vet. Lots of goat owners don't have a local livestock vet, but our vet (where we take our Golden Retriever Oliver) has a scale in the lobby. I called and asked if they would have a problem with us bringing our goat in to be weighed on the lobby scale and they said that it would be fine. Some dog and cat vets might not allow livestock in their buildings but it might be worth a phone call to ask.
Benefits: You will get an exact weight.
Drawbacks: You have to find a vet willing to let you weigh your goat. You also have to pack up your goat in a vehicle and drive them to the vet.
I hope I've helped you to make a decision on what works for your herd and how to get an accurate weight for each goat on your homestead.
Be sure to print out my free weight chart to keep track of your goat's weight!
Check out my FREE printable chart below for keeping records of your goats weights!
Convenient gray-scale printables require no colored ink, and hand-drawn graphics by me (Jennifer Sartell) give them a cozy vintage look. These charts have been developed because of my need to keep records of our own herd and now I want to share them with you so that you can keep good records of your goats!
Click the image to the left to get the FREE PDF download!
Shop this post!
cloth measuring tape meant for sewing
Outmate Large Digital Crane Scale (660 lbs. / kg.)
The Premier 1 Large Weigh Sling for goats and sheep
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