whats best breds to start with?

[crisco41]

Hi., I am beginning to do research on breeds of goats. I have a little experience in the past. Ideally I think maybe a couple milk goats and breed them to a meat goat..like boer? Is this a good idea or not? Also as much as I say grow goats to eat them..I am not sure I can actually eat something I raised. I suppose I oculd sell off the babies. I actually gave away rabbits one time because I could not bring myslef to eat somethng raised on my lil farm. Everything must have a purpose or I will not do it. So for cheese and such for a family of 8 how many goats? thanks lori

[Madfarmer]

Breed is almost entirely a matter of preference or prejudice. Nubians are the most popular, give excellent, rich milk, but can be noisier than some other breeds. Saanans are more like Holstein cows--higher production, lower butterfat. La Manchas are good, both production & butterfat, but funny-looking. If you ARE going to eat surplus buck kids, Nubians are bigger. It will likely also be easier to sell kids you don't want. Crossing with a meat breed is not strictly necessary, you'll get an adequate carcass with purebreds. And if you expect to sell kids for decent prices, raise ONLY the best purebred stock you can possibly find. It's just as costly to feed a poor goat as a productive one. Before you buy anything, familiarize yourself with feed & mineral requirements, immunizations, disease prevention--all the stuff most people ignore till it's an emergency. It'll save you money & heartache. Good Luck!

Madfarmer

[manygoatsnmore]

I'm putting in my vote for LaManchas for both milk and meat. They tend to be meatier-framed than Alpines, Saanens, etc. Pretty comparable to Nubians if you have good bloodlines. I personally don't like the noisiness or stubborness of the Nubians. LaManchas tend to be very sweet tempered and quiet, and fantastic milkers with good butterfat and tasty milk. I've owned just about every breed over the years, and have finally settled on LMs as my primary breed, and Oberhaslis as my 2nd favorites. For milk production, my LMs beat my Obers, hands-down. Of course, the LMs do look a little funny to the uninitiated, but you don't milk the ears (or lack of), and they sure do grow on you!

You'll find that every breed has its supporters - you need to think about why you want them, and go visit farms raising the different breeds to get an idea of what appeals to you while still meeting your needs.

I also second Madfarmer's advice - buy good stock, and educate yourself. Find a good local vet that knows goats - preferably one who has actually raised goats! And check out the Yahoo groups such as LaMancha Talk, etc. Lots of good info there, and contact with good reputable breeders.

[Alice In TX/MO]

We started with mini's. Got rid of those and acquired one Alpine, one Lamancha, one Nubian. The Nubian is our LEAST favorite. She's noisy, shovey, pushy, and irritating. She's always the one stepping on toes or getting into a place she's not supposed to be.

We've just acquired another Alpine in milk.

We have a LaMancha and a Nuboar (Nubian/Boar cross) from last year's kid crop that will be first fresheners this spring.

We are very much in the first rookie years of dairy goats. My recommendation is that you move slowly and visit lots of goat farms to learn what you like before you buy. Do HANDS ON with the goats. Milk before you buy.

This is one thing that I like about this board. We have rookies like me who still remember what it's like to struggle and get started and make mistakes. And, we are willing to share what we have read and what we have learned. Plus, there's a couple of experts who tell us where we screwed up.

[hoofinitnorth]

I like the Nigerians, but again, I am biased. Check the archives here for more of this discussion as we've had it a lot lately!

One thing you can do if you don't want to eat the ones you raise, get together with a friend. You butcher & eat each other's goats so it's not so personable. Works for some. Others want to do a big group so they don't know who's goat they're eating.

[copperpennykids]

We are biased toward Saanens - 2 of those girls can easily provide your family with milk year-round, when they average 1 gallon/day (at least) for 10 months. You can stagger their breedings so that one is still milking while the other is dried up prior to kidding.

First priority should be HEALTH. Get healthy goats - CAE negative and CL Free (if you don't know what those are, go to the stickys at the top of this forum or check out DairyGoatInfo and then go to GoatKeeping 101 - lots of good info there). DO NOT buy goats with the idea that you will be improving their life or saving them from a bad situation. You will spend a lot of $$ trying to fix them, and they still may end up breaking your heart. Very easy to fall in love with healthy beautiful goats!

If you don't think that you can eat your kids (and not eating your rabbits is a good indicator!) then perhaps just breed with a buck of the same breed. The buck/wether kids you will be giving away, but the does will be worth money and help to buy your hay for next year.

Try to find a good breeder. If they have a buck that you can breed your does to, that would be icing on the cake. If they don't, at least try to find a good quality HEALTHY buck to breed your does to - even if it is a Boer.

Keep reading. Visit lots of goat folks - just for shelter/penning/management ideas. You will also start to realize from whom you would like to buy your goats. Have fun!

[crisco41]

Thanks for all your posts.Many years ago I had a few brush goats, Before that over a span of years(maybe 20 yrs ago) I had a LM, a nubian, an alpine, several angora, and a few pygmy. I did it like so many: a haphazard short lived experience. This time I plan on doing it right. What I learned with my previous experience was that I do like milking, but need to learn to make cheese. That excellent fencing and housing will come before any goat feet hit my land,that i like nubians and think LM are adorable. I am not fond of angora's nor pygmy's(no ofense intended). Also that I will research tons of health issues first and goat care and baby care as The year that I sold every last goat was the year I lost several kids..why I still don't know but it was heartbreaking and awful, and this time I will do it educated or not at all.
Again I thank you. I especially like the idea of "trading meat" I wish I could be more a hard core homesteader and eat what I grow but truly it bothers me terribly. Somehow when it comes packed from the grocery it doesnt seem like an animal....
anyway thansk again and I will check outhte refernce places you have given me.

[cjb]

As is always said, its very worth buying CL and CAE tested animals. No reason to start new WITH a nightmare.

I have Obers, a Saanen cross, a Nubian cross and a nigerian. I love them all but am not sure I could deal with multiple pure Nubes. Clementine is a doll but she is large and a handful! Her milks is the best, however. The Saanen cross and the ND are the sweetest by a mile.

You will love what ever you get. Welcome and good luck!
Cliff

[ACountryMomma]

We have 5 cross breeds:

2 Nubian/Boer
2 Lamancha/Boer
1 Alpine/Boer

And we have one full blood Nubian doe in milk.

Of them all the Alpine/Boer is the meatiest, but she is also the worst behaved towards the rest of the herd and people alike. After laying her down when she challenged me a couple of times as a youngster, she is very respectful to me. But anyone else appears to be fair game to her. I can't let the kids around her unless I've got her on lead or otherwise tied.

The Nubian and her cross kids are so sweet and gentle. But they are ear splitters! If you have any neighbors you don't want to alienate OR if you like a peaceful barnyard - they may not be the breed for you. If it weren't for their noise, they would be my absolute favorites with the great milk and the sweet hearts. But weaning her kids so I could milk her just about caused permanent damage to my ears while I had her on the stand... And the nights had me worried that the neighbors down the road might show up looking to BBQ a few goats! Even now feeding time morning & evening leaves my ears ringing.

The La Manchas crosses behave more like puppy dogs and they are much MUCH quieter. They are very curious, more eager to investigate new surroundings, less skittish, quicker to tame and love to be handled/groomed. They haven't freshened yet so I can't vouch for their milk, but I've heard good things. The only thing I don't love about them is their appearance... I know some folks think the little ears are cute - but I prefer the Nubian look. The La Mancha ears also get really waxy

Edited to add: With the La Mancha/Boer cross you are just about as likely to get Boer ears as you are to get the little nubs, so if the ears are a problem for you, you may find a LM cross with big droopy ones. AND each goat has their own personality, so my experience with the Alpine may be abnormal. I'm sure there are sweet ones out there somewhere - and they are pretty!