To goat or not To goat...that is the question...

[TriWinkle]

Should I or shouldn't I?

I'm ignorant, but enthusiastic. I'm an animal lover, but still ignorant. Looked over the breeds and really like Nigerians...Seem to be a manageable size, it appears that they have a good temperament, and whatdoyaknow, they produce milk! If they'd only eat the brush around my place they'd be perfect!

So what should I know?
Where should I read?
Who should I consult?
Babies or adults? (guilty confession is babies seem really cute and I'd like my family and I to grow into them, but willing to listen to those who know more)

If babies, then bottle babies or those weaned?

Registered or not? Why does either make a difference?

What should I have to start with?

(I have a bit over two acres, totally fenced in and cross fenced.)

I can't build to save my life, but the local Tractor Supply has a "calf hutch" that looks like it would work...Your thoughts on these?

Pros?
Cons?
Yays?
Nays?

I'm open to any and all feedback.

Thanks for your help.

[Shygal]

Don't expect any cons or nays here, this forum is enabling

[Ranger]

Welcome to the wonderful world of goats!!!!!!!! No matter what breed you decide on you'll need at least two. Goats don't do well alone. I would suggest reading everything that you can get your hands on first. Also, if there is a dairy goat person nearby get to know them and pick their brains. ALWAYS get goats that have documented proof of testing negative for diseases, CAE is a big one.

If you plan to milk be sure that the does have been milked before. Learning to milk on a doe who doesn't have a clue of what's going on would be awful. lol

The calf hut should be good for them, depending, of course, on what kind you end up with.

[nehimama]

Calf hutches make ideal goat housing - for small goats. As you've practically already decided on Nigerians, a calf hutch or two would work well. Be aware, though, that some goats can be quite dominant. I used to have an old, very dominant doe who'd stand at the entrance to the barn / goat shelter and not allow any of the others in! Even in crummy weather!

I agree with Ranger, to read, read, READ. Many discussions here are helpful, and there are other goat sites to peruse:

http://www.dairygoatjournal.com/

http://dairygoatforum.com/index.php

http://www.dairygoatinfo.com/index.p...3jeuhnlsfo7pd0

Happy reading!

[HappyFarmer]

Decide what you want to do with your goats, decide what you will do with unwanted kids, how large you can grow, and start reading the threads. hint: topics repeated often or in a sticky are important topics. I'd start there. It seems this forum is geared more towards milk goats so if you are looking to milk it will be a great resource to get started.

HF

[NataliaTwoDoes]

Nigies are great if you dont mind just getting a few cups of milk per milking. If I could do it over again I would purchase an already bred doe that is CL and CAE free makes things a lot easier and gives you more piece of mind to have that out of the way.

[Backfourty,MI.]

Good advice given already but wanted to add that I have Nigierians & they love all the brush & wooded sections around my place. They will clean it right up over time.
Good luck on deciding on a breed! They are all adorable & each one has something different to offer if you ask all the different breeds of goat owners here!

Yep, were just all enablers. Be sure when you decide on a breed to get at least 2. They don't like to be alone.

[Oat Bucket Farm]

Lots of good advice already. Of course you should get goats, that's not even a real question.

With Nigies, you want to make sure you buy from good milking lines. There are quite a few people out there that still breed them mainly for pets. A good breeder, breeding for milk, will have bred for health, production and the all important teat size.

Once you settled on a breeder (make sure you check for disease testing and the breeder is willing to show you test results), you need to decide where you will get your does bred, and what you will do with any unwanted babies.

[mekasmom]

have a good fence
teach the goats to love you-- bring them treats often
handle and pet them daily

But get them. You will love them. Oberhaslis (Swiss Alpines) are my favorite. They have wonderful, docile personalities, and give a decent amount of milk. Nubians give a lot of milk, but are louder and a bit more pushy. The French Alpines are petite, sweet goats, friendly, give a good amount of milk, but aren't as friendly and loving as the obers. I personally think Nigis are a waste of time because they don't give a lot of milk, but they are cute and very sweet. You just have to keep more of them to get a decent amount of milk. Sanaans are nice goats that give a high yield of milk, but not as pretty as the others to my aesthetic. And of course the Lamanchas are beautiful and sweet. But the upstart of stock costs more, so I wouldn't choose those for a first time goat owner either. The same with Togs. They are beautiful goats, but less popular, so stock runs higher. That would be a downside for a first time goat owner. These breeds are the most common milking breeds you see.
Meat breeds are lead by Boers. They are huge goats. I've had a few, but they aren't my cup of tea. I milked a boer one winter because she kidded early, and was the only milker we had at that point. She gave about a pint a day. I get that much from the pygmy! And she weighed at least twice as much as the Obers. They are a good breed for meat though. Pygmys are escape artists. I would avoid them for the first time goat owner. Kikos are becoming more popular in this nation too. But they are also harder to find like Lamancha and Togs. That means they cost more when you look for starting stock.

[Oat Bucket Farm]

I haven't found LaManchas to be any more expensive than any other. Could be my location. And the OP may have trouble finding certain breeds in her area.

I love my LaManchas with their wonderful milk, great quiet personalities, and adorable tiny ears.

Nubians are beautiful and give plenty wonderful milk. They can be noisy though.

[Minelson]

Of course you should get goats! I don't know how anyone can live without them!!

I learned a lot on www.fiascofarm.com when I got my first goat.
I would get a friendly, healthy pregnant doe (that is what I did) or do the bottle babies
Registered is not important to me or my area. Some think it's important some don't

You need food, shelter and water. You need to learn what dewormer works best in your area. You need a vet that will run fecal tests for you.
I would also get some good grass hay, hoof trimmer, well stocked first aide kit and medicine cabinet and some good loose minerals high in copper (Right Now Onyx by Cargill is good). Get a few boxes of baking soda to offer free choice.
If you live in a cold climate you need to figure out how you are going to keep their water from freezing.
You also need to make sure they are protected from predators...I wouldn't be happy with just calf huts for shelter. I like using a barn or large shed so they have lots of room to move around and lounge when the weather is bad. Also that they can be locked up in at night to keep them protected from stray dogs and coyotes.
You need a digital camera so you can take lots of pictures and post them here

[Wags]

Niggies are a good choice - but I'm a bit biased. As some one else said make sure you buy from milking lines AND from people who milk and can actually tell you how much a doe/dam is producing.

http://nigeriandwarfgoats.ning.com/ Is a forum dedicated to Nigerians, lots of good info to be had there and connections for finding breeders in your area. A mentor that is close is worth their weight in gold! I am blessed that my mentor lives just 3 miles down the road from us.

For shelter - calf hutches or large dog houses works fine for Niggies but isn't ideal. I started off with all of my Niggies in dog houses and milked under a nearby carport. If it only rained, hailed, snowed straight down it wouldn't have been so bad, but when the wind starts blowing..... plus walking the goats to and from the milk stand was no fun for them or me. I now have a small barn (12x24) that is divided up into 12x12 general area, two 2x6 kidding stalls and the balance (8x12) is milking space and feed storage. (You can easily store a half ton of alfalfa pellets in a 4x4 space.) Being able to milk out of the weather is such a wonderful luxury! Oh and before we used my kids play house for kidding - the ceiling was only 5ft at the peak, so the kidding stalls are a wonderful luxury too.

Now only my bucks are housed in dog houses, and as soon as I can scrape up the money they will be getting a shed set up with a way to feed them that doesn't involve entering their pen so we can feed them without ending up smelling like them.

[Wags]

Originally Posted by mekasmom

I personally think Nigis are a waste of time because they don't give a lot of milk, but they are cute and very sweet. You just have to keep more of them to get a decent amount of milk.

I guess that all depends on what you consider to be a "decent amount" of milk. I have first fresheners that are peaking at 4lbs and more mature does in the 5-6lb range. And the butterfat content is the highest of all dairy breeds - mine have been averaging about 8% but they can go as high as 10% (which is equal to half-n-half) Not bad for a goat that stands less than 2ft tall!

Roughly speaking, 2 Niggies eat and take up the space of 1 Nubian. They come into season year round so you can stagger breedings to keep your family in milk year round. And the higher butter fat means a higher yield of cheese per lb of milk, and that you can make butter just by shaking a half filled quart jar of whole milk.

Since goats are herd animals that means you can have 4 Niggie does in the space of 2 Nubians. So if, God forbid, one of your Niggies dies you are only out 1/4 of your herd, but if one of those two Nubians dies you are out 1/2 of your herd.

And we all know that goats are like potato chips - you can't have just two (unless that is all the law allows) so with Niggies you can indulge that "need" for more much more economically and on smaller properties.

[gracie88]

Ha! Obviously you want goats, if you are asking on here whether you should have them. Of course you should, everyone should Nigies are cute, make sure you touch/milk some (adults) and some standard size (also adults) before you commit, though. I love my LM's, can't imagine having anything else, so obviously I'm biased, but I can't imagine crawling under anything smaller to milk, or milking smaller teats, and when it's something you do every day, maybe twice, you want to make sure you really have what works best, for you and the goat.

Of course they will eat your brush, it's what goats do best, except for eating gardens.

Fiasco Farm has all kinds of info, read there. Ask lots of questions of whoever you buy your goats from. Good goat owners are usually overflowing with advice. They usually like to talk about goats. The most help I've gotten was probably from the folks down the road from me with dairy goats, proximity counts for a lot when you are learning hands-on stuff like dehorning, etc.

My first two goats were a pair of bottle babies. It worked fine. You have to wait a while for milk, you don't get to taste the milk beforehand, and it's best if you have someone knowledgeable to hold your hand, but in my personal experience, it was great, I would get those two again in a heartbeat. Be warned though, it's hard to apply common sense when picking out baby goats, their cuteness is devastating. It's what keeps their rotten little selves alive. No one should ever make a decision while looking at a baby goat. Do all your deciding while looking at adult does. Also, have a look at a buck in rut, the smell helps cancel out baby cuteness.

My unregistered goats milk great, however, my unregistered babies sell for much less than those with papers. They still cost as much to keep as papered goats. Some people raising unregistered goats will breed their does to anything that stinks like a buck. Some with registered goats do as well, but they may be easier to spot if you know a little about good and bad bloodlines in your chosen breed. I am not willing to invest in goats with papers because I have an excellent (unpapered) buck, so am not losing in quality, and I am not sure if I will be keeping goats long-term (commitment-phobe? Yes), but if I'm still doing this in, say 5 years, I will most likely transition to pedigreed critters.

Start with two. I started with two does, you could do one doe and one wether, but if you think you might do cheese, do two does. You go through more milk than you think when it's free and in your yard. Also, if something happens to one, your supply is not gone.

As for calf hutches, if the shelter is dry and you can clean it relatively easily, goats aren't terribly picky, but you will want shelter for handling them in and you probably won't fit in a calf hutch comfortably with them.

So, post pics when you get them, now that you've posted in here, it's just a matter of time

[LFRJ]

Can I just say?
For us, a big part of the decision over breed was the breeder we were working with. Ours was TOPS. She allowed us to purchase a pre-bred doe, then kept her through the kidding and all summer (we contributed a bale of hay and a bag of feed now and then) and let us visit every weekend while she taught us goat care etc. We also have a source to whom we can return our doelings for breeding. Our breeder also hosts an all breed CAE testing clinic every year, a big plus considering the cost of blood draws.

As always, a tested herd is imperative, but establishing a support/mentor system is extremely helpful.

[TriWinkle]

Thank you all for your help!!

Rotten, evil enablers!!

I shall do y'all proud and goat!!


I just hope I can keep enough tin cans around for them, 'cause y'know I've heard they like those...(kidding...just kidding...I promise...waitaminute...kidding means something different to y'all...ok, joking...just joking)

[Oat Bucket Farm]

Originally Posted by TriWinkle

Thank you all for your help!!


I just hope I can keep enough tin cans around for them, 'cause y'know I've heard they like those...(kidding...just kidding...I promise...waitaminute...kidding means something different to y'all...ok, joking...just joking)

Don't forget that plug of tobacco they need once every couple of years to take care worms!

[thaiblue12]

Babies or adults? (guilty confession is babies seem really cute and I'd like my family and I to grow into them, but willing to listen to those who know more)

Welll you can buy a doe with babies. She would be in milk and the kids can kee her in milk while everyone gets use to each other. You would just have to make sure that you soent time with the kids each day so they do not grow up wild. Sometimes I think I spend too much time with the dam raised kids as some you cannot tell apart from the bottle kids as they as just as pushy, oops I mean friendly


If babies, then bottle babies or those weaned?

For your first goats I would not start with bottle kids. They are not always first time owner proof and maybe become bloated, have cocci and etc. If you get weaned kids make sure they are friendly kids. Nothing to make your time time of owning goats miserable then a bunch of wild ones running from you.


Registered or not? Why does either make a difference?

The difference is in price whether you are buyng or selling. Also if you plan on showing. I have no time or desire to show so I have both registered and non-reg. Now I find some people want the lower cost goats for pets/personal home milk use/etc so they would rather buy unregistered.



Take all info you read with a grain of salt. We each do things differently. I would never use herbal wormer or yeast as suggested on say Fiasco Farm.


I do love my Nigies and they are pretty good producers, fun and the babies pretty much sell themselves.


What are are you in? Maybe some of us can steer you to a healthy herd you can look at, visit, buy from.

[beccachow]

To goat or not to goat? Phppt. To goat, question answered.

Just kidding (as in the joking sense of the word, lol). Goats are wonderful, don't expect any one here to talk you out of it.

[NataliaTwoDoes]

I agree, goats sell themselves. I took our new doeling starry night to show at the school for my daughter when she was student of the week. Lots of people were expressing interest in our not-yet-born april and may babies for meat (we have two unregistered nigie does that look like pygmies in body style, not very dairy in character) and 4-H. We somehow ended up with 6 goats within 9 months of starting up with only two, I still find myself cruising craigslist for healthy does though. I do not regret it at all though. I love all of my goats.