Читать книгу Raising Goats For Dummies - Cheryl K. Smith - Страница 113

One essential item for goat owners is a milk stand, sometimes referred to as a stanchion. This device enables you to secure your goat not only for milking, but also for doing all the routine care and important tasks that I tell you about in Chapter 10.

You can purchase a metal milk stand at a livestock supply store or make a wood milk stand yourself, if you have the skills and equipment. Caprine Supply and other online livestock product suppliers sell the headpiece (technically, the headpiece itself is the stanchion) separately. For bigger goats, there is one that the head rests on instead of having a locking mechanism.

The simple, wooden milk stand in Figure 4-2, is for miniature goats and is easy to make. If you want to make one for a larger breed, you can lengthen the plywood and the side boards and make the legs longer. A similar milk stand can also be found online for only about $100.

FIGURE 4-2: A milk stand.

Before you dive into hammering, gather your materials and equipment. You’ll need the following from your local lumberyard:

 One 2 x 4 measuring 8 feet in length

 One 1 x 6 measuring 10 feet in length

 Two 1 x 4s measuring 10 feet in length

 One 2 x 2 measuring 8 feet in length

 One sheet of 5⁄8-inch plywood measuring 36 x 21½ inches

Pick up the following hardware:

 One box of 100 1-inch deck screws

 One box of 50 2-inch deck screws

 One ¼-20 2½-inch bolt

 One ¼-20 lock nut

 One 4-inch hook-and-eye latch

Finally, make sure you have the following tools handy:

 Drill

 Drill bits: 1⁄8 inch and inch

 Saw

 Sandpaper (and a sander, if you have one)

 Pencil

 Square

 Tape measure

 Screwdriver

 Clamp

The following sections cover all the steps for building.