Horns vs. No horns. What do you like best?

Hens and Roos said:

not to big- kind of like a bump- I have to check and see what is allowed maybe she would be showable

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Maybe you could post a pic? I bet the others can tell you if it would be ok

No horns here. In fact I have been doing a lot of disbudding for local breeders around here too.

GLENMAR said:

No horns here. In fact I have been doing a lot of disbudding for local breeders around here too.

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Me too
I still hate doing it but the "dread" has eased up some
We've gotten much better at it
Disbudded some for someone else last year
Not going to get into the details but swore we would never do that again
Didn't want to do it then kind of feared how how it would turn out and it exceeded my expectations
But we ended up "helping" someone this year
They go their own iron and we coached them

No horns here either. I did leave them on my boers but they have to have them to show and I was planning on them going to show homes. No more boers so no more horns. Horns get stuck in feeders and stock panels. Seen some dead goats because of that. They also use them as deadly weapons on each other and what is simply a hard butt with a hard head can be oh so much more when horns are involved. They can rip open udders and stomachs with even trying; simply toss their head to scratch their own back and they can injure anything in their path.

I have done the disbudding, I stink at it. I have friends that do a for me and a vet when I forget. Even the best people doing the disbudding will get scurs now and then, be diligent and have them reburned when small. Bucks almost always have scurs; my alpine buck was done 3x to get them all.

I have goats with and without. I hate them both for different reasons. I WILL NOT dehorn. I will own ir breed polled, horned or dehorned goats, but i will not do it to my stock. My buck has scurrs and they are awful, dreadful things. Next year when we take him in to be castrated, we will consider having the scurrs removed as they grow over his eyes.

My girls with horns get stuck on a semi regular basis -- the polled ones dont. BUT my polled ones get inti EVERYTHING. They have no horns to restrict movement and wriggling through things and they do at every opportunity.

Catching horned goats is easier.

My horned goats do better with the extreme hot and cold weather we have where as the polled and dehorned do better in mild weather. I believe this relates back to horns being a heat regulating.

I understand why people do and dont. You MUST do what is right for you and your family, everyone else be damned.

No horns for us.

We show dairy animals so they can't have horns. With little kids and such I think it's wise.

We do have one horned ND that was given to us. No problems so far. I'd re home before I'd dehorn her.

I have a disbudded Lamancha that would be horrible with horns. She's too smart for her own good, big, and quite the diva. She opens doors, latches, and jumps.

Straw Hat Kikos said:

I will always leave my goats with horns on. I have Kiko meat goats. They're known for those horns!! I feel that if a goat is born with horns then leave them on. Goats are just as easily handled with horns as without and goats don't just go around hitting you or people or each other as people make them out to do. All my goats are very aware of their horns are are just fine with them. They don't hurt me or each other.

Also, please do not ever disbud meat goats. It's like a sin. Diary goats, ok sure you do that. Your choice. But please not meat goats. Meat goats SHOULD have horns.

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I am new to all this...why should meat goat have horns? For predators? That makes sense to me but then shouldn't all goats? Like I said- a newbie so sorry for the obvious questions!

I disbud dairy animals and any Boers that are for breeding and not show. Dairy animals must be disbudded for show. Scurs are acceptable. if you have a largish scur that is pliable you can cut it of with a set of wire cutters or a scur nipper. Oncr you have done a lot of disbudding you learn not to leave scurs. We never had a scur and must have disbudded 500 kids or more.
We used to show disbudded Boer doe kids when they first started showing Boers and it was ok. The rules must have changed. I don;tdisbud or castrate bucklings I send to auctionbecause ethnic buyers want their bucklings entire and with horns. Some sort of macho thing.

Horns are dangerous not because the goats use them to injure you, but just tossing their heads can catch a small child in the eye and blind them accidently. I got a 4" gash in my leg feeding Pygmies for a friend. Her goat wanted some attention and tossed his head at me. The horn caught me in the thigh. He didn't mean to hurt me, but if he could do that accidentally, think about the danger to your children. I wouldn't let my samall kids play in the street or near a pool unattended so why take a chance with a goat's horns. It only takes one time and there is no going back.

Everyone has to make up their own minds as to what they are comfortable with.

Thanks Ridgetop! Important point...one time and there is no going back...

What do you guys think about putting tennis balls on the goats' horns? Are there downsides to that approach besides looking silly?

If I got 2x4" no climb fencing, then it seems like goat heads couldn't get through and get stuck. And it seems like with the tennis balls, nobody could get gouged. Is there anything I'm overlooking?

I don't have goats yet but would like to have dairy goats in the future, and am trying to figure out what I will do when the time comes. I have no interest in showing my goats or any other livestock for that matter, so that would not be an issue for me.