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Sheep or goats?

4K views 44 replies 16 participants last post by  Willowdale 
#1 ·
We recently moved to our little homestead out here in the foothills. So our debate is if we want to raise sheep or goats.

The property is quite steep and overgrown. There's about 1/4-1/2 acre of hillside that's fenced with 4' agriculture fence. We appropiated the former owner's barn area for a glorified shed, so we'll be needing to build a structure. When we purchased the property, I fully intended on starting with goats, but now I'm wondering if sheep would be a better fit. My intention is to do dairy and make cheese, but if we had sheep we'd plan on eating the lambs. It's hot here, so if we did get sheep we're thinking the shearless kind. We have a lot of steep hills and lots of weeds so I'm planning on either tethering or doing temporary fencing around the property for weed control. But I guess my biggest concern about doing sheep instead of goats is the milking aspect.

Any insight?
 
#3 ·
Sheep are grazers meaning they like to eat low grasses & plants. Goats are foragers meaning they like to eat higher up. Depends upon the vegetation you have. If it's steep but mostly grass, get sheep (you can get dairy sheep for more milk). if it's more weeds and brush you should get goats...(dairy goats if you want milk). If you get rams or bucks (males) expect them to raise havoc with your fencing. the females are less aggressive with fencing, but goats will probably lean and rub on the fencing more than sheep will. If your fencing is not strong, old, or posts are degraded in some way, sheep will challenge it less.
 
#5 ·
If you have only girls, you won't have milk. Those girls got to have babies in order for you to get milk, so unless you have a neighbor or friend who has a "boy" to help you out with getting your girls pregnant, you'll need to have one yourself.

Regarding your terrain- I think either would be fine with what I see in the pic.
 
#7 ·
Unless, is there a huge difference in temperament for male goat vs. Sheep? I heard full grown males in heat can be difficult to handle. Also, everything I've read said if you're doing dairy goats you should house your male separate because the odor goes in the milk. I was assuming the same for sheep?
 
#9 ·
I've had sheep rams we raised for meat. I've not dealt with rams when there is a female in heat so I can't give you advice on that. We have dealt with Bucks (goats) and they can get pretty surly when there's a female in heat around, but it also depends upon the overall temperament of the buck too. If he's not very socialized with you (which happens if you isolate him away), he will be more aggressive towards you when females are in heat. They make buck aprons that you can use to prevent unwanted breeding and diminish urine marking and urine scald, but also allows you to keep them with the herd and more socialized. I have no advice on the smell of urine tainting the milk as I have no experience with that. I will tell you that the bucks only mark with the urine to bring the does into heat, if the does are pregnant, or nursing they are not going into heat. So winter and spring into mid summer there's not much urine marking going on.
 
#16 ·
Oh yeah, love lamb. Well, cool! I'm thinking I'll go the sheep route.

Probably gonna be cheaper in the long run to breed my own lambs, but I think I'll skip that drama, at least starting out.

Of course, I said I wasn't gonna get a rooster either but that changed right quick haha!!!
I agree with you. It's smart to start out slower until you learn the ropes of what you are doing. You can always add a ram later. One last point I want to bring up which is a hard learned lesson for us. Look up and learn about deworming and stick to the suggested schedules. Nothing worse than dealing with a sick animal from worms- it's a long road back to health for them if you let it slip and the worms take them down (especially for a lactating female as that's hard on the body/health to begin with). What I've learned recently, The newest recommendation is to Buy 2 different dewormers from 2 different classes and use both. Keep using this combo until it doesn't work, and then add a different one in. The theory is that what the one class of dewormer doesn't kill the second class will kill, keeping your worm load very low thus your animals healthier. Happy farming!
 
#12 ·
I'm thinking Sheep but as far as tethering after you lose a few I think you will rethink your fencing.

big rockpile
 
#17 ·
I believe that most dairy breeds are wool sheep and will need to be sheared. Maybe a dairy breed crossed with a meat breed that sheds their fleece? No guarantee what the resulting offspring will do as far as fleece, but you should be able to increase frame size although you will sacrifice some milk production. Rams don't stink like bucks, never trust an intact male whatever breed you decide on, especially during breeding season. If you are going to borrow a male at breeding time, check and see what is available locally, you may not have one available that fits your program. Some people tether animals and have no problem. Many people tether them and end up with dead livestock. Make sure you have a local supply of good hay for when your field is played out. Get fecals done on your animals before you worm, then use the appropriate wormer for the parasite you are dealing with. I'm exited for you! Can't wait to see what you decide on.
 
#20 ·
I'm not completely against wool or hair sheep, except concern about the heat. I'm not worried so much about the shearing aspect, but we have a lot of stickers so the quality would just be out the window until the field gets in better condition grass wise. But I've heard some people just shear and use for compost?

Thank you so much for the excellent advice! I'm still doing research on breeds, luckily a gal I work with raises sheep and she's a great connection so I should be able to get my hands on some quality stock. I'm very excited for this venture!!
 
#21 ·
I have heard that people use junk fleece as mulch or compost it. It takes forever to break down, so I don't think I would use it anywhere you may be weed whacking in the future...what tangled mess that could be :) Lots of stickers are pretty awful to deal with, even when you are shearing them. Once your field improves, there are lots of people that are thrilled with a cheap/free fleece (around here at least) if you are not planning on using them yourself. Best of luck to you!
 
#22 ·
I have never gotten the chance to play with sheep but I do love my goats!! So much personality. I don't have many problems with predators except for bobcats and coyotes. I leave the horns on for just in case things happening. I have had a couple dogs find weak spots in the fence and the adult goats were able to put some fear in those dogs. Goats are tough and can survive in most climates and terrains. Milk taste good too and can be used in making cheese and soap. Sheep's milk does make some good cheese too though. . . Manchego aged 6 mo if a favorite. Havent had a chance to actually taste sheep's milk. Sheep just don't do well in south TX. My uncle in CO did say that it was hard for him to keep sheep. He had to be out when the babe dropped or it would die. This was coming from mom so didn't get to question him on the why's. We had 13 goats born this season. All moms did fine except one. Her babe got stuck half way so got pulled the rest f the way. We have a small farm.
 
#23 ·
Tethering usually ends poorly. That has been my experience. Possible outcomes can include, tangled on the tiniest weed stem, wrapped around legs, broken legs, hanged animals, and predator meal on a rope. Anchoring so that it doesn't come loose or tangle up and so that they can reach water is always a challenge. Sheep and goats are both herd animals, so they like each others company, try tying two out and having one pull up his stake if you want to see a real tangle.

As far as fencing, if it has overhanging trees or brush, goats can be hard on it, they will stand up on it and eventually ride it down. Sheep aren't as bad for that, but will reach through it. They can end up pulling steeples out, and eventually breaking wire here and there and popping through it like water going through a sieve. Sheep and goats with horns, as well as wool sheep can get stuck in woven wire, possibly dying there.

Electric fence can be a good option, electro net is easily portable for unlimited grazing configurations. Electric can be less effective on sheep with heavy wool. Some goats can jump. Nigerians and any of the swiss breeds particularly. There are goats out there that can stay in three strands of electric wire.

Male sheep or goats can be aggressive. In my experience sheep a little more so. Rams generally back up and ram, bucks will rear up and hit down. They both indicate their intentions with posturing if you are cued in, but a sheep is more likely to get a cheap shot below your field of vision. Horns can be dangerous on either, but most rams curl tightly with blunt ends, goat horns can be like daggers and sweep out. With proper handling not really an issue with the aggressive males, but something to think about. Many breeds of sheep don't have horns, the majority of goats will need to be dehorned if you don't want horns. Male sheep smell a little more funky,all sheep tend to have some odor. Male goats in rut usually smell horrible, female goats tend to not smell much at all.

With grazers versus browsers, you are likely to start with good goat pasture and end up with good sheep pasture. If you ever decide to do both, remember that they can impregnate each other but these pregnancies don't advance to full term, usually not lasting anywhere near long enough to even stimulate lactation. Such pregnancies with their associated abortions can cause infection.

Goats can have a tiny bit more "personality", they tend to be a little more independent and interact a little more with humans, while sheep tend to be more herd oriented and single faceted, with less individuality. Generally. Either one can be wild and crazy or in your pocket tame depending on handling.

Neither is particularly resilient when managed improperly, some people tend to think that goats are "tougher" but that is not really the case. Sheep with wool can take cold wet weather without shelter, but would need shade and shearing in hot weather. Goats don't like rain at all and will seek and use shade in hot weather.

It is probably easier to find good goat hay in most places than good sheep hay, sheep will waste a lot of stems, but while goats love hay with some stemmy weeds, neither is particularly fond of the real strawlike grass you will find in first cutting hay. Second or third cutting is better for both, but is usually snatched up at highly inflated prices by horse owners, whose animals absolutely don't need it if they aren't being bred or worked hard.

At one time, finding a vet that knew the subtle differences between sheep and goats was hard, they had plenty of information on sheep, but little on goats. This has changed with the increased popularity of the boers in 4-h show circuits. Before that, goat owners were either very savvy dairy oriented people that did their own vetting, or they didn't view their goats as worth giving veterinary attention. If there is much commercial sheep production in your area, it might still be a tiny bit easier to find a capable vet should you need one, and there has been a ton of study done on sheep compared to goats in this country, historically, so even a vet that is not into large animals as much might be of more help if you have sheep.
 
#24 ·
Goats definitely edge out sheep when it comes to pet quality personality and friendliness during milking. I don't think you could begin to compare goat milk to sheep for cheese making. Sheep wins. I'm about as far from an expert on dairy sheep as you can get but I've often lamented the lack of a solid dairy hair sheep breed around here. It would be pretty interesting to find some katahdin or st croix with good udders and give it a go. You could always do a one-time introduction of some friesian into their line.
 
#26 ·
If you've never milked before I suggest finding a sheep breeder and a goat breeder that will let you come and milk their animals.

I don't have much experience with dairy sheep but I have had to milk sheep for feeding babies and there is a world of difference between the udder quality and the "on-stand" temperament of goats and sheep.

Because you are wanting to dairy I would put an emphasis on the animals that will dairy to your liking.
 
#27 ·
I'm planning on getting 2 pregnant ewes who have already been milked so they know the drill. It'll be more expensive but I'm thinking more time efficient also.

I'm also considering getting my feet wet with a couple spring lambs for meat. I'm not sure if that's cost smart rather than birthing my own. But I have no idea how much it will cost to winter two sheep.
 
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