Animals Don't Know What They Need, Science Does...or So They Say

Animal nutrition science has come a long way, but I would like to suggest it has yet a long way to go still. One of the most formative factors in my own decision to go with mineral buffet came from reading Kathy Winters' story. She had severe losses from copper toxicosis when feeding goat formulated products. As in, her goats died from copper toxicosis while being fed "goat minerals." If you search her Facebook page for "toxicosis," you'll see many posts that outline her story, one of heartache and loss, by feeding what the "science" said she should. Just consider some of the many variables that impact a goat's mineral status and ask yourself if it's possible that a single blended mineral solution can accurately, scientifically provide for every goat's needs: geographic region forage mineral status goat's life stage pregnancy breeding lactation seasonal forage changes seasonal environment stresses grain mineral content goat's health status These are just a few of the factors that affect the mineral status of each individual goat and as we can see in the consumption section, this changes drastically from month to month. I'm no scientist or nutritionist, but I've been raising goats for 15 years and I can see by my own data collection that the system we've collectively been using, one of blended, one size fits all minerals, is not possibly adequate to address all of these factors. It is for this reason I am convinced I will not go back to a blended solution for my herd.

GRASSFED Mineral Buffet Refill – Pure Minerals & Salt

$14.70 USD

Mineral

2 Pounds
4 Pounds
8 Pounds
25 Pounds

The Non GMO, GRASSFED mineral buffet system, repackaged in smaller sizes for smaller herds!

The GRASSFED line differs from the original Free Choice Mineral system in that it contains no rice hulls. As a result, these minerals will cake and harden. If caking is a concern, go with the original mineral buffet system instead.

Why choose the grassfed line? This product is for you if:

you are pursuing organic certification - you can use this option to maintain organic status
you are concerned with the inclusion of rice hull in your minerals
you meet either of those conditions AND you want the very best mineral system you can get for your animals

Important note: While the original FCE mineral buffet system is safe for all species, including pigs, the FCE Grassfed line is NOT SAFE for pigs because of its higher salt content. Use it with: goats, sheep, llamas, alpacas, horses, cattle, rabbits, poultry, even reindeer!

Click here for the labels so you can see ingredients.

Choose from two-pound, five-pound and 25-pound sizes and reorder only the minerals your herd consumes.

Thanks to our awesome warehouse team, we now provide SAME-DAY shipping Monday-Friday on in-stock orders placed by 12p Pacific Time. During a storewide sale, due to higher than normal sales volume, orders should be shipped within 1-2 business days.

Mineral Buffet Starter Kits and orders for small items will ship via USPS; mineral reorders and large orders (25lb minerals, 40 and 50lb kelp, etc) will ship via UPS for the most part.

Store Availability

✓ Available for pickup

Chewelah Warehouse

703-B N 7th St E, 99109, Chewelah, United States

+15099369016

Usually ready in 24 hours

Order within the next 23 hours 11 minutes to receive it. Estimated delivery is between Monday, 07 Apr and Monday, 14 Apr.

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Total price: $86.19

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Unlock Optimal Goat Health withMineral Buffet

Discover the revolutionary Mineral Buffet system, a game-changing approach that allows your goats and other livestock to choose the minerals they need to thrive. Unlike traditional blended mineral mixes, Mineral Buffet offers each essential mineral separately, giving animals the freedom to self-select based on their individual requirements.

Backed by proven results and real-world experience, this system takes the guesswork out of mineral balance, ensuring your herd stays healthy, balanced, and productive through every life stage and season. Join the movement and experience the difference with Mineral Buffet

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With a deep commitment to quality and sustainability, GoatCare is your trusted partner in nurturing a thriving, healthy herd. From everyday essentials to specialized care, we have everything you need to give your goats the best

Have you ever had a craving for salty chips, gotten your fill and found the smell or taste of those same chips is suddenly off putting?

Another example is consuming human cell salts and that's the closest parallel I can find to explain how it is with animals. If your body needs a particular cell salt, it will taste sweet and desirable to you.

My naturopath instructs her patients to consume a cell salt until it no longer tastes sweet - that's your body telling you it has enough of that particular cell salt.

It works identically in livestock. When they are deficient in a certain mineral, that mineral will taste good to them. When they've had enough, it no longer tastes good.

This concept is sound with the Free Choice mineral system because there are no taste enhancers or additional ingredients they might want to consume purely for taste.

Again, looking at my own herd's consumption, you can clearly see that they will consume a particular mineral for a time, then stop for a period before often picking up that same one again in another month.

We're approaching two years on this system with consistent results. There is simply nothing "tasty" to drive over-consumption in this system, though I have heard reports of consumption concerns with other buffet style minerals.

My discussion here is based solely on my experience and research into the Free Choice system, which is unique among the buffets.

(As a fun aside, I am working on personal mineral deficiencies and the ones I know I'm deficient in are the minerals that smell appealing to me when I'm filling bags.)

Mineral buffet is ideal for sheep and is the solution for running mixed species herds/flocks because each animal consumes only what it individually needs and nothing more.

Sheep actually need copper, just not as much as goats, for example. That's what makes this system so perfect, because there is no risk of over-consumption in regular feeding conditions.

This image shows one of my Katahdin/Blackbelly ewes, the last in the line of them to arrive at the feeder after I refilled copper.

Because in this system they are never forced to consume any mineral, their taste buds will keep them in balance.

Not having to worry about whether or not each animal is getting enough of each mineral is one of the things I love most about this system, because it takes all of the guesswork out of mineral balance, which brings me to the next point: who really does know what they need?

Animal nutrition science has come a long way, but I would like to suggest it has yet a long way to go still.

One of the most formative factors in my own decision to go with mineral buffet came from reading Kathy Winters' story. She had severe losses from copper toxicosis when feeding goat formulated products. As in, her goats died from copper toxicosis while being fed "goat minerals."

If you search her Facebook page for "toxicosis," you'll see many posts that outline her story, one of heartache and loss, by feeding what the "science" said she should.

Just consider some of the many variables that impact a goat's mineral status and ask yourself if it's possible that a single blended mineral solution can accurately, scientifically provide for every goat's needs:

geographic region
forage mineral status
goat's life stage
pregnancy
breeding
lactation
seasonal forage changes
seasonal environment stresses
grain mineral content
goat's health status

These are just a few of the factors that affect the mineral status of each individual goat and as we can see in the consumption section, this changes drastically from month to month.

I'm no scientist or nutritionist, but I've been raising goats for 15 years and I can see by my own data collection that the system we've collectively been using, one of blended, one size fits all minerals, is not possibly adequate to address all of these factors.

It is for this reason I am convinced I will not go back to a blended solution for my herd.

When I was first looking into this system, it caused me endless frustration that no one could answer one simple question for me: How much will my goats consume on this system?

I just wanted a rough ballpark so I could budget somewhat, but I couldn't even get a ballpark. What?!

Still, I'd heard so many positive things about long term gains that I decided to go with it anyway.

Now, I understand the difficulty based on my own consumption levels and the widely varying consumption of herds I sell to all across the country.

The factors I listed above play a huge role in consumption and since those are so different in every single herd, it's not possible to even guess at how much each herd will consume of mineral buffet.

With that said, I decided that I could at least track and publish my own consumption and I've been doing so since April of 2022. My initial blind guess was that my herd, which consumed about 20 pounds of loose mineral mix per goat per year previously, would consume about half that in buffet and in February of 2023 as I write this, it looks like that estimate will be pretty close, though perhaps a touch low.

To see exact numbers, take a look at:

The logistics of getting started are a bit of an obstacle but there are a lot of options for setting up a feeder in small or large spaces or herds.

I have the equivalent of about 40 Nigerians and use these feeders. They are strong enough to withstand a northern winter (and a heaping pile of goats) but small enough to be dragged around the pasture.

We put one in the buck pen and one in the doe pen and I store small containers beneath for easier refilling.

Those are overkill for very small herds though, so I worked to design a couple of smaller ones that utilize rabbit cage feeders and work great for a couple goats, rabbits or other small animals/numbers.

I didn't intend for this to be a sales page, but folks have been asking how to find the product pages, so I will include them here. You can order all 20 minerals, plus plain white salt in a "starter kit" that contains one pound of most minerals, and two pounds of the most popular ones. You can also order two, five, or twenty-five pound refills.

Note: my rebagging service is intended to help small herds gain access to this system. If you have a larger herd or are able to deal in larger quantities, I encourage you to go straight to Free Choice to purchase a pallet.

I hope this has helped answer some of your questions about mineral buffet for your animals. If not, don't hesitate to get in touch or, better still, join our goat group where this kind of thing is talked about regularly.

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I live in Az and couldn't find a colbalt block anywhere. I came here and order some from you guys. The shipping was fast. And now my milk taste 10x better then before. I will come back to order more .

My goats love it!

I had a vet that told me goats aren't smart enough to eat which mineral they are lacking... well...my goats must be aliens because they hammered the copper, selenium, and zinc when I first got the mineral buffet compared to others.
Since then, I have seen such an improvement in their coat, no scratching, and overall temperament improvement!
This is also pretty awesome...those three minerals are the ones my area in Montana are lacking in the soil!

Thank you for making such wonderful products and improving my goats' lives! 😊

GRASSFED Mineral Buffet Refill – Pure Minerals & Salt

$14.70

Perfection!

When I first set up a buffet for my goats last summer, I marked each little cup with a Sharpie. To my dismay, the markings wore off, and soon I had no idea where anything went. The cups I had installed turned out to be too fragile for goats, so I recently ordered something that, hopefully, will withstand the Caprine Crew. I also ordered the stainless mineral identification tags. We attached them yesterday, and may I say, they look mighty classy. I am thrilled with the quality, and it's good to know that I will never again have to guess which mineral goes where. My veterinarian will be coming soon to do annual exams and give vaccinations, and I bet she will be impressed to see our new feeders and marvelous tags.

Love Minerals

My goats absolutely love it! They look better and are healthier. Love that they can get exactly what each one needs and not just a generic mineral!

Hard to find item!

So glad you had the Antitoxin, I prefer it to the other Tetanus vaccine for my calves for castration. Fast and cold shipping. THANK YOU!

A real game changer!

We could not believe how much of certain minerals that our goats have consumed already! We had no idea just how deficient they were in certain minerals even though we manage their diets very closely! Can’t wait to see how their overall health improves on this system.

Amazing

This orange oil really works to handle parasites. We have had such good results from using it. (Fecals before and after...and then ongoing health in my herd.)

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GRASSFED Mineral Buffet Refill – Pure Minerals & Salt

Size: 2 Pounds

Store Availability

Chewelah Warehouse

Pairs Well With

GRASSFED Mineral Buffet Refill – Pure Minerals & Salt (This item)

Stainless Steel Mineral Identification Tags

E-Z Crock Plastic Feeders in 7 Colors

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