New to bucks

[mzgarden]

We will be adding a buck(ling) and wether to our little herd.
I want to make sure I'm clear about feeding because I know they are different from our dairy girls.
These are Nubians and the guys will be 10 weeks old when we bring them home, dam raised and then weaned.  one intact the other wethered.

As background, our year old girls get 1 cup Noble Goat morning and evening, free choice alfalfa hay and grass hay (separately baled), Manna Pro goat minerals and baking soda free choice.  They also have about 3 acres of fenced paddocks to browse in, where we rotate them into different areas.  They are housed in a converted horse stall in the barn overnight and then when the weather is good, pastured during the day.  When the weather is snowy, rainy, etc. they tend to hang out in the barn (all winter).

They boys will have a separate converted horse stall for nights.

Questions:
can we feed the boys like we feed the girls excluding the Noble Goat until closer to breeding?  Is the alfalfa hay good or bad for bucks?  I've seen it said both ways due to the calcium, so I'm a little confused on alfalfa. 

Are we totally naive to think we'll be able to get the boys into their barn stall every night?  The girls walk in as it gets dusk and basically settle themselves.  We just add hay, check their water and lock the stall gate. 

I'm wondering if we should we be prepared to build a safe but separate buck house outside the barn for the boys.  We do not have any type of livestock guard animal - we only have the two does now and are not intending to expand the herd beyond now the boys. 

Thanks.

[mzgarden]

Redfish, thanks. Lots of good perspective. At this point, our hope is to run the boys with the girls. As Nubians are seasonable breeders (generally) we would expect breeding to be late Summer/Fall. We are planning to get a breeding harness so we have at least some idea of breeding attempts. As we have only the 4 goats and no plans to expand the herd, we are trying to keep things co-located. It may not work out, and in that case, we have the space and resources to separate them pretty quickly.

Thanks again. All perspective is helpful when you're a newbie like us.

[mzgarden]

It is definitely something we're thinking about (but always appreciate the suggestion) and that may be the reason we end up separating the boys from the girls before Summer. We're hoping not to, but you're right, babies born in the most frigid, unforgiving part of the year can be a recipe for heartbreak. Thanks again.