LaManchas

[tome]

There is a guy in my area that has four nannys and a buck for sale, he is wanting $250 for them, is that a good price? Also do you have to milk lamachas or can you let them dry up?

Thanks,
Tom

[SherrieC]

If you are just looking for homestead animals for milk and meat that's a very good price if they are healthy. Look at them to make sure they aren't covered in Lumps, or oozing lumps (CL) Pass on that! They shouldn't have pink eye, or really oozy buggery snot. (my goats are bright eyed, and dry nosed.) Don't worry if the buck stinks they're supposed too! If you are going to eventually want to show in 4-h for your children, you may want to inlist the help of an experienced goat breeder to make sure you don't bring home cooties! Also check their hooves they shouldn't be oozing any nasty foot rot.

LaMancha's are probably the very best choice you can make for an all purpose homestead goat. They are excellent milk and meat animals. You can dry them up at this time if you want to, but after they kid in the spring they are after all milk animals, and they will need milked. If you leave the kids with them they still usually need milked in the afternoon, or morning if thats more convient for you. Then after you wean/eat/sell the kids contuine milking once a day for dairy cheese soap making, or feed the extra milk to calves/ pigs /chickens. Goat milk is Liquid gold!

[Goat Freak]

I agree with all that SherrieC said, and just outo f curiosity, is that $250 apeice, or is it $250 for the whole herd. Good Luck, bye.

[suzyhomemaker09]

I love our LaManchas...they were never the 1st goats on our want to have list but after getting one it's like Crashy says..."you know you need more".

[crazygoatgirl]

I have LaManchas and love their attitude, their milk, their cutie earless babies.......um..everything about them!!!
$250 is a good price for a LaMancha doe...if she has good bloodlines and a decent udder it is a steal!! I would suggest that you consider testing them for CAE and CL before bringing them home.
Keep in mind that this time of year is when ALOT of folks test for CAE and CL and that they could be for sale as a result of a "bad test". Not trying to scare you but one of those buyer beware type things.

[dok]

Originally Posted by crazygoatgirl

I would suggest that you consider testing them for CAE and CL before bringing them home.

How much would you expect to pay for something like this at the vet? Is there a kit you can test yourself? Or perhaps culture any abscesses yourself to bring to the vet? If someone wouldn't mind briefly going over any options of testing for CAE and CL that would be great. I don't mean to hijack the thread but it is certainly relative to purchasing a goat! -dok

[Jillis]

dok, there are some "stickeys" at the top of the thread list that should help answer your questions. If you culture your own abcesses be sure to use sterile technique as humans can get CL as well. If your vet will take a culture obtained by yourself, that is.

I also want to know if that is $250 per goat or for all 5? If it is per goat, they should be registered and have papers and tatoos, as well as be proven milkers. How old are they? That has a bearing on their future worth to you as well. In my part of the country a price such as $250.00 per goat is only justified if they are registered, purebred goats with an excellent milking record. HTH! I'm a newbie too, but I've learned a lot in the past 6 months!

[homebirtha]

I think we paid $15 per goat for a CAE and CL blood test. That was in addition to the cost of the visit. I don't think there is any kit you can use yourself, although you might be able to draw the blood and send it off yourself, rather then paying the vet to do the draw.

Originally Posted by dok

How much would you expect to pay for something like this at the vet? Is there a kit you can test yourself? Or perhaps culture any abscesses yourself to bring to the vet? If someone wouldn't mind briefly going over any options of testing for CAE and CL that would be great. I don't mean to hijack the thread but it is certainly relative to purchasing a goat! -dok

[tome]

Thanks guys for all the information, yes the price was 250 for all five not individually. I may go take a look at them and see what I think.

[crazygoatgirl]

I pull my own blood and send it in to WSU for testing. It will cost alot more if drawn and sent off by the vet. Of course I test about 15-20 head a year. This year I will be testing 23.

[Rachel K.]

$250.00 for Five Goats is a very, very good deal! As long as they are healthy and strong I would snatch them up. A adult mixed breed Doe can bring in at least $100.00 by herself. Four Does total at least $400.00 worth. A adult Buck is also worth about as much as a Doe so you would be getting at least $500.00 worth for only half the price. I'm going to go ahead and say that the four Does are also probably pregnant so you will be getting some bonus kids later this spring. A very, very good deal indeed!

[goatkid]

This sounds like a good deal if the goats are healthy. If you have a friend who is experienced with goats, take that person along when you go to see them. I also ask why a person is selling the goats. As in the case of my Nigerian and her kid, the seller's daughter had outgrown 4H and the family was moving so they only wanted to keep a couple goats. My beautiful La Mancha, Blossom was actually brought home from an auction by a friend of mine. The friend knew the seller and that she had a clean herd. She needed to reduce her herd size, so sold the dam to a dairy and took Blossom at a week old to the auction along with other kids. Blossom was registered native on appearance and is a healthy permanant champion recorded grade. She the nicest udder of all the goats in my herd and went best udder in show. She is a very loving goat who must be milked once a day with kids on her and twice a day when I wean them.