Draft goats?

I would use them for pack animals, but they really can't pull much weight -- they're not built for it. Not like a horse or ox can. They do make REALLY good pack animals. Nothing spooks a well trained pack goat, they can carry about a quarter to a third of their body weight, and they will follow you far better than a dog will and do it over country that no other pack animal can manage -- with or without a pack on.

The only real issue with using them as pack animals is that goats hate water. They get pretty upset when it rains, and they are NOT fond of crossing creeks. They'll do it, but they don't like it, and it takes some convincing (usually at the end of a lead rope) to get them into the water the first few times. There have been times I wished for a winch to get them into the water that first time.

"Hating water" sure beats the llama habit of pooping in water, though ... always fun to get to a remote spring and find someone else's llama has left a steaming pile of poo in the middle of the only water for miles.

As far as using them as lead-line riding animals for kids? Under controlled circumstances, I can see it. I have seen goat packers use goats for packing small children around, and it makes me nervous. All it takes is one loose hiker's dog and the kiddo's going to hit the ground. Dogs ALWAYS go for goats. (My packers would react to the inevitable loose dogs by standing up on their hind legs and threatening to whack the dogs flat ... I never had a goat hurt on the trail, but any kid on the goat's back would have gone flying.)

If you work with them as kids, they do fine in water. None of mine ever had a real issue, but I worked with them from birth. Best was to bottle feed them in a pool, ditch or some kind of water. At one place I lived I had a large irrigation ditch that I made them swim across if they wanted to eat. Worked well.

As for children riding them, the kids all have to be pretty little and I, personally, would never have kids that young riding any animal without me having direct control of it. It sure is nice when you want to go for a hike with little kids, though. Little ones don't walk very far, very fast and this way I can actually get a hike in once in a while.


Why is this saying that every single word I've typed is misspelled?

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They should be able to pull more than they pack? I mean they're not strong enough to pull a plow, and you'd probably want a pair or a very large specimen to pull and adult, but he should be able to pull a bale or two of hay around in a well balanced lightweight cart? Sounds useful enough if you've got more than one or two trips to do.

I've done some drafting with my dogs, they're great for repetitive tasks like moving a large pile of things in small batches. My dane will off lead come streaking across the field and line her back end up with the load to get a chance to pull when I tell her I'm ready to go.

Granted, packing is where goats come into their own, as carts (or even most other traditional pack animals) can't handle the terrain that goats can. I've tried a couple times to convince a disabled friend he needs a pack goat, but he keeps thinking I'm joking. He loves to hike and camp but has trouble carrying things.

A goat that is in shape should be able to pull 2-3 times it's weight, depending on circumstance. Pulling something that drags on the ground adds a lot of 'weight' through friction, same with uphill. Something on wheels is much easier. Same as with us or any other animal, really.

The key, though, is being in shape. If they are pasture ornaments, you just can't expect as much out of them as if you work them regularly. My old, out of shape alpine wether can still pull 100 lbs pretty easy if there's not a lot of drag.

__________________
There are more things in heaven and earth,
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
Hamlet


My attempt at a blog. Hopefully entertaining and useful.
http://senselesslyrandom.blogspot.com/

I used one of my larger bucks as a draft goat a few times, but he was the most laid-back goat I've ever owned. He was happy to stand around and be harnessed up and follow me anywhere. I put a horse halter on him upside-down for a harness, and used him to drag some corral gates about 200 yards from the barn to their destination. I tried the same with one of his wether sons but he was having none of it, even when bribes were offered. So I know it is possible, but I think it very much depends on the goat being willing or not.

-Sonja

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Wingnut Farms
Nubian Dairy Goats
New Market, Alabama

And willingness is related to acclimation. A more high strung goat may require a much more gradual introduction to the task. With dogs we start by dragging a milk jug or lightweight branch, so they get use to the noise and the feeling of it occasionally snagging on something and tugging at the harness.

On reasonably flat terrain where your cart won't turn over or be destroyed by rocks and such I can see how using a goat to pull a cart would be great. They can pull a lot more than they can carry, depending on the terrain. But where they really shine is as packgoats. I raised 3 from babies and have done a lot of rough country hiking and camping with them.

ok so ya i think this will work, is there anything i need to know about training a goat or is it pretty strait forwarded

Goats have different motivations than dogs. If you have experience training goats to do other things you should be fine. Some tips here: http://workinggoats.com/?id=80