Short answer: A goat house in Ghana has to stay dry underfoot, let air move through it at night, keep rain from driving in and keep dogs and thieves out. A raised slatted floor, walls open above shoulder height and a roof that overhangs the walls meet most needs. Allow at least about one square metre per adult goat as a working minimum, and build the kidding pen apart from the main house.
Key takeaways
- Raise the floor so the bedding stays dry and the manure can fall clear, because wet bedding is where worms and foot problems take hold.
- Keep the walls open above shoulder height and let air pass through in both the harmattan and the rains.
- Plan for about one square metre per adult goat as a minimum, and add room for kids and for the wet months.
- Build a kidding pen and a quarantine pen before you need them, not after the first doe goes into labour.
- Lock the house every night and walk the perimeter after dark with a torch.
The two ways a goat house fails in Ghana
A goat house in this country usually fails in one of two ways. Either it is an oven at midday in the dry season, or it turns into a swamp by June. Both failures start with the same design error: a closed box built to keep animals in, with no thought given to heat, moisture or the smell of wet dung.
In the dry months the trapped heat makes the animals pant, stop eating and lose condition. In the rains, damp air and wet bedding raise the ammonia level inside the pen, and the animals start to cough, rot in the feet and pick up worms. The harmattan adds a third problem. Nights turn cold and dusty, and a house with no airflow at all leaves the animals breathing stale air through the coldest hours.
The fix is not complicated. A house that breathes, drains and keeps the floor clear will carry goats through every season Ghana throws at it. The rest of this article works through the decisions that make that happen.
Choosing the spot and draining it
Pick the highest dry patch of ground you have that still sits close enough to a water source and a path for daily work. Standing water around a pen is the most common reason a house that looked fine in the dry season becomes unusable in the rains. Look at the slope after a heavy shower, not in the sunny weeks when you choose the site.
Keep the house well away from the poultry house, the drinking water and the place where you store feed. Keep it out from under the drip line of large trees that might drop branches, and check that the trees you keep nearby are not plants that goats are known to be poisoned by. Your extension officer can name the local ones. Plant shade trees at a distance, and let them give shade without shedding into the pen.
Leave room around the house for a manure heap, a cleaning route and a second building later. Many keepers build too close to the boundary and then cannot get a wheelbarrow between the house and the fence. Give yourself a clear strip of ground on at least two sides. If you are still deciding whether goats belong on the site at all, our goat farming overview sets out the business side first.
Why a raised floor beats bare earth
A raised slatted floor lets droppings and wet bedding fall through, so the animals rest on a surface that stays drier than the ground. The gaps must be narrow enough that a kid cannot get a leg or head through them, and the slats need to be strong enough to carry an adult doe that jumps on and off. Timber and bamboo both work, and the choice depends on what you can source and how often you can replace the worn parts.
The height matters as much as the gaps. The space under the slats should be high enough for you to reach in with a shovel and a broom, and for air to pass underneath. Some keepers combine the two by fixing a solid resting area at one end and leaving the rest slatted, so the animals can lie dry while the dung drops through the open part.
Solid concrete floors are common in the towns, but they are cold, hard on the feet and slippery when wet. If you use concrete, cover it with dry bedding and add a slope so urine runs to a drain rather than pooling. Whatever floor you choose, the test is simple: on a wet morning, the sleeping area should be dry to the touch.
How much room each goat needs
Crowding causes most of the fights, bullying and trampled kids that keepers blame on the animals. The table gives working minimums for planning. Treat them as a floor rather than a target, and check them with your extension officer for your herd size and your local conditions.
| Group | Working minimum floor space | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Adult doe | About 1 square metre | Add space in the wet season, when animals spend more time indoors |
| Weaned kid | About half a square metre | Keep kids from older animals that may push them off the feed |
| Buck | A separate pen, larger than a doe's space | Bucks fight, so keep them out of sight and reach of the does |
| Doe at kidding | An individual pen, roughly 1.5 to 2 square metres | Clean, dry and separate from the main herd |
Our West African Dwarf guide explains how big the local breed grows, and that changes these figures for a herd of smaller animals. Feeding space matters as much as sleeping space. Every goat needs a place at the trough or the rack without having to push past another animal. If the feed space is shared by too many animals at once, the weaker ones eat last, and that shows in the weight scale within a month.
Roof height, overhangs and moving air
The roof should be high enough at the eaves for you to walk upright inside and see every animal without stooping. Two metres at the eave is a useful working height, and it lets warm air rise above the animals. A roof that overhangs the walls by about sixty centimetres keeps rain out of the openings and gives shade over the wall line in the afternoon sun.
Open the walls above shoulder height, so air moves across the animals while they lie down. Fit a windbreak on the side that faces the harmattan, which blows from the north-east, and keep the main openings on the sheltered side. A sealed sheet of plastic over the walls looks tidy but traps moisture and smell, and it causes more trouble than it saves in the cold months.
A ridge vent or a gap under the eaves lets hot, humid air escape from the top of the house. Check the gap after the first big storm, because a roof that was tight in the dry season can start to leak at the joins once the timber has swollen.
Materials you can source locally and how they last
Materials decide the cost, the lifespan and the repair bill. Choose with the season in mind, because a material that suits the dry months may fail in the rains. Get current prices from your local timber yard, bamboo sellers and hardware shops before you draw up the budget.
| Material | Good for | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Bamboo | Walls, slats and light frames, quick to work | Splits and attracts borers if untreated; replace worn lengths |
| Palm midribs and raffia | Temporary walls and cheap ceilings | Short lifespan and fire risk; patch often |
| Timber | Frames, posts and slatted floors | Termites and rot; choose durable species or treated wood |
| Galvanised or aluminium roofing sheets | Durable roofs that shed heavy rain | Hot underneath; add ceiling material or raise the eaves |
| Wire mesh | Keeping animals in and small predators out | Sharp edges and loose joints; check the gauge for kids |
| Concrete | Solid resting areas and drains | Cold, hard and slippery; cover with dry bedding |
A mixed build is common and sensible. Many keepers use timber for the frame and posts, bamboo for the slats and walls, and roofing sheets for the top. The frame holds the weight, the slats handle the wear and the roof takes the rain.
Night-time threats: dogs, snakes, rats and thieves
Most goat losses in a village compound happen after dark. Dogs chase kids through gaps in the walls, snakes slide in under a loose board and rats eat feed and carry disease. Thieves go for the easiest animal, which is usually the one tied outside the house or left behind an unlatched gate.
- Fit a bolt and a padlock on the house door, and check that the latch cannot be lifted by a hand through a gap.
- Walk the perimeter at dusk and close every hole you find, including gaps under gates.
- Cut the grass short for a metre or two around the house, so snakes have less cover to hide in.
- Store feed in sealed bins on raised racks, away from the walls where rats run.
- Keep a torch by the door and check the animals before you go to bed.
Keep the animals inside at night, even in the dry season when the house is warm and the goats look happy outside. An open night is the most common reason a good doe disappears. For the perimeter itself, our farm fencing guide goes into more depth, and our feed storage guide explains how to keep the store itself dry and rat-free.
The kidding pen and the quarantine pen
Two separate pens are worth building early. The kidding pen is an individual space for a doe close to her due date, and it should be clean, dry, draught-free and within sight of your sleeping quarters. The quarantine pen holds new arrivals for two to three weeks before they join the herd, and it should sit far enough from the main house that disease does not travel on your boots or your hands.
Neither pen needs to be large, but both need a firm floor that drains and a way to clean them thoroughly between uses. Use a disinfectant your vet recommends, let the pen dry in the sun and fit fresh bedding before the next animal goes in. Keep the poultry house at a distance from both, and do not use the same tools or footwear in both places without washing them first.
The kidding pen is also the place to keep the basic kit, which is covered in more detail in our goat breeding and kidding guide.
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Cleaning the pen without spreading disease
A clean pen is mostly a matter of routine. Pick out wet bedding and droppings every day, and deep clean every few weeks, or sooner after any illness. The aim is to keep the animals off soaked, sour ground, and to stop flies from building up around the manure heap.
Bedding choice matters. Dry sawdust, rice husks and chopped crop residue all work well if you can keep them dry. Replace bedding that has gone soggy, rather than adding fresh straw on top of it and hoping the bottom layer will dry out. Move the manure heap well away from the house and cover it, because a heap beside the pen draws flies into the animals' feed and water.
Clean drinkers and feeders separately from the floor. A trough that sits in dung will carry worm eggs and bacteria back to the animals every time they drink, and that is a cost you pay in health rather than in cash.
Keeping goat housing away from the chicken house
Goats and chickens can share a compound, but they should not share a house, a feed store or a drinker. Rats and flies move freely between the two, and so do the boots and buckets that pass through both. Set a rule that you walk from the cleaner area to the dirtier one, and wash your hands or change footwear when you cross between them.
If your poultry house is already built, look at its layout before you place the goat pen. The goats should sit on the side that receives the prevailing wind and drainage away from the chicken run, not upwind of it. Our poultry housing designs guide and our climate-smart housing article cover the poultry side of that layout, so you can plan both houses on the same site. Stocking the poultry house is the next decision, and the birds we hatch are listed on the day-old chicks page.
Working out the build without guessing prices
A housing budget is only useful if it uses current prices from your own area. Start with a materials list for the frame, the floor, the walls, the roof and the doors. Then take that list to two or three suppliers and ask for prices on the same day, because timber and roofing rates can move a lot within a single season.
Build in stages. The sleeping house and the feed store come first, because the animals need them immediately. The kidding pen and the quarantine pen can follow once the herd is established. Reuse what you already own, such as old roofing sheets, sound timber from a dismantled structure or bamboo from your own plot, and plan the big build for the dry months, when the ground is firm and the rains will not wash out your foundations.
A business plan helps you decide how much to spend on the house compared with the animals. Our poultry business plan guide sets out a simple way to cost the buildings, equipment and running costs, and the same layout works for a goat enterprise.
Housing checklist before the first goat moves in
Walk through the list below on the morning you intend to bring the animals in. Anything you cannot tick should be fixed before the animals arrive, not after.
- The floor is raised or slatted, drains well, and the sleeping area is dry after a heavy shower.
- The walls are open above shoulder height, and a windbreak covers the harmattan side.
- The roof overhangs the walls and does not leak at the joins.
- There is at least about one square metre of floor per adult goat, and the feeding space is long enough for all of them.
- A separate kidding pen and quarantine pen are ready, with clean bedding and a drinker.
- The door has a bolt and a padlock, and the perimeter has been walked and closed at every gap.
- Feed is stored in sealed bins on raised racks, away from walls and rats.
- The manure heap sits well away from the house and is covered.
- The poultry house is downwind of the goat pen, with drainage running away from the chicken run.
- A torch, a shovel, a broom and a clean bucket are kept by the door.
Questions farmers ask
What is the minimum floor space per goat in Ghana?
A working minimum for an adult doe is about one square metre, and kids need less. Treat that as the floor, not the target. Animals that are kept in wet weather, or that share their space with a buck, need more room. Check the figure with your extension officer for your herd size and local conditions.
Should I use a raised floor or bare earth?
A raised slatted floor is the better choice in most of Ghana because it keeps the bedding drier and lets manure fall clear. Bare earth gets wet quickly in the rains and holds worm eggs. If you cannot raise the whole floor, build a solid raised resting area and keep the rest of the pen well drained.
How high should the roof be?
Around two metres at the eaves is a comfortable working height, so you can walk upright and see every animal. The roof should overhang the walls by about sixty centimetres to keep rain out of the openings. Higher is cooler, but a very high roof costs more timber and roofing than most small keepers need.
Can I use plastic sheeting to close the walls for the harmattan?
It is tempting, but a fully sealed wall traps moisture, smell and ammonia, and it causes respiratory problems in the rains. Use a windbreak on the harmattan side and keep the rest of the walls open above shoulder height, so air keeps moving through the house.
How do I keep dogs and rats out of the goat house?
Close every gap in the walls and under the gate, and fit a door that bolts from the outside. Store feed in sealed bins on raised racks, and keep the grass short around the house. Walk the perimeter at dusk. A dog that can get under a gap will eventually find it, so check after every storm.
Do kidding does need a separate pen?
Yes. A separate pen lets a doe kid in peace, lets you watch the birth closely and protects the newborn from being trampled by the herd. The pen should be clean, dry and draught-free, with fresh bedding and a drinker. Clean and dry it between uses, using a disinfectant your vet approves.
Can goats and chickens share one building?
Not safely. Goats and chickens need different floors, feed systems and drinkers, and they carry different parasites and diseases. Rats and flies move between the two, so keep the buildings apart, separate the feed stores and wash your hands and footwear when you move from one to the other.
