I have a few Boer Goat ?s

Cannon_Farms · #1 01/12/09, 05:52 AM

Im looking to invest in several boer does from this one breeder, I have four picked out, but can only afford two possibly three. All does are 2 years old and they are registered.
I had found a high 98% doe on her site that I liked via picture, she had a nice level back and good width, but when I seen her in person yesterday she was saggin in the back, didnt even look like the same doe. could that be because she had two sets of trips?

The second doe, man she was a pretty thing, shes everything I could ask for in my price range, the problem, shes two and never has been bred, she was put with a buck this last season, but there are about 40 or so does there too and not all where bred, the owner didnt breed the season before that because of some health problems the she was having. My fear is Ill buy her and she wont breed, shes show quality but has a damaged ear.

The other two I dont have questions on, I know Im going to get one of the other two, however one of those had 2 babies die from this last season so thats even iffy, she said she believed it was floppy kid syndrom???

All these does are out of good showstock, from one of the best breeders in Ga and if I play my cards well I can get what Im after, which hine site I probably should just buy her a show wether it would be cheaper.

chris30523 · #2 01/12/09, 06:09 AM

Give a link so we can look. Also I can reccomend 2 other breeders that have good show lines and lots of wins if that is what you are looking for. Sunshine boers in covington and Cochran goat farm in Dahlonega(this is where Mick came from).The won't sell non breeding does or ones that have been sick.These have been culled from their herds.They only sell healthy animals guaranteed to breed. Now from past experience these are show animals and they are not raised to be hardy pasture animals.They are barn raised and treated like royality.

hoofinitnorth · #3 01/12/09, 11:29 AM

I don't know much about Boers yet, but I don't think I'd be worried about a two-year-old that hasn't birthed yet. Besides, you run *some* risk of *any* doe not breeding and delivering, really.

If that two-year-old doe is the quality you want and she is in your price range, I say go for it.

copperpennykids · #4 01/12/09, 12:51 PM

The two year old that hasn't been bred yet should be fine, but make sure you get a written guarantee that if she in a non-breeder, that you get your money back or a replacement doe of comparable quality.

I do have to say that the whole set of goats you are looking at makes me nervous. Each one has a "story". These kind of sound like the bottom of their herd.

The sagging doe - how long since she kidded? Animals that receive excellent care bounce back from kidding etc. pretty quickly. Some goat raisers just try to get the most meat for the least amount of money input from their animals. Good for the bottom line as a commercial operation, not so good for you if you are trying to buy quality breeding stock.

Perhaps you can take a few more weeks and do as Chris suggests - go see some more herds and some more goats. Then you will be making a more balanced and educated decision. Better to buy two excellent does (maybe even one that is bred) than to buy 3 does of questionable breeding status (this is all about the kids, after all) that may cost you some headache, heartache, and feed for a year while you figure out if they are OK or not.

hoofinitnorth · #5 01/13/09, 12:13 PM

copperpennykids raises a good point. Although this is often the case when we shop with tight budgets - we find ourselves giving up quality here or there to afford the things we want. Of the ones you mentioned, I think the two-year-old FF would be the best, assuming we have enough information here to decide at all.