Why did you choose your sheep, goats, cows, etc.

[EllieMay]

I researched livestock that would be profitable and not require a whole lot of time, management and expensive feed. I ended up buying some hair sheep.

I have registered sheep for breeding/selling, and I *LOVE* lamb chops so I'll be keeping the freezer full.

I chose to raise Katahdin sheep because:
- of the many colors available (eye candy)
- no shearing or tail docking necessary
- no horns to worry about
- parasite resistance
- easy lambing
- docile breed
- no need for expensive feed
- the meat tastes good!

I enjoy feeling like a shepherdess in the pasture with my sheep following close behind.

 

[Southern by choice]

This is a two part question:

A) Why did you choose to raise sheep, goats, cows, etc.

We purchased our goats for the purpose of milk. I'd love a cow but that's a lot of animal and I don't have the acreage. Cows aren't as easy as goats(so I've been told).

B) Why did you choose your particular breed(s)?
I wanted a smaller goat to start with, more pet like. Not having any experience with goats and goats being portrayed as head butting monsters (just like roosters being portrayed as just a mean animal) the Nigerian Dwarfs seemed the right fit for me. I now have added a LaMancha (7 months old). My farm partner has big goats (Kiko's) that have their own place on the farm. I can honestly say I LOVE MY NIGERIANS!!! They are soooo much easier than the big goats in every way. They eat far less, and I mean FAR LESS, than the big goats. Since the big goats have been here it seems every time I turned around I hear "we need more feed". ND's are definitely more pet like, the lamancha is really sweet but is harder to handle and eats way more and very naughty! I have learned that the way goats are portrayed is a crock! (Just like roosters). Obviuosly not true in all cases, but it seems when all the big goats came onto the farms the work exploded! The big girls always having to be moved because they will clear an area(tree forage) in no time at all and if we don't move them quick enough they will kill the trees, strip 'em by eating the bark right off. Never had a nigerian do that. BUT, I do love the big girls too! It could be that one is a dairy breed and the other is a meat breed. BTW- My Lamancha is the prettiest one I've ever seen!

 

[aggieterpkatie]

1)Why did I choose goats/sheep?
Because I love sheep. I use the wool in my crafts (knitting, felting, etc). I love lamb meat. Sheep are incredibly easy to own, and they're easy on the land. I wanted dairy animals, and though I've worked on several cow dairies, I just don't have the space for a cow. The goats are also easy to keep, get along well with the sheep, are easy for the kids to handle, etc.

2) Why did I choose my particular breeds?

I thought long and hard before I purchased my current breeds. I grew up raising Hampshire/Suffolk and some Southdowns for club lambs in 4-H. I'll always love Hamps, but I knew I wanted a slightly smaller, easier keeper to raise. I wanted sheep that would do better on grass, had decent wool for craft use, and were easy keepers and calm. I got a Romney ewe to fit that bill. Then I got a Southdown ewe because I wanted a sheep more fitting for meat production as well. Southdowns are easy keepers, great looking, nice sized, with good carcass quality. I couldn't have been happier with my choices. I ended up having to place my Romney ewe in a pet home after a bad lambing. I used my Romney ram on my Southdown ewe, and now have 2 natural colored Romney/Southdown yearling ewes as well as my purebred Southdown ewe. They're all three being bred to a Southdown ram this year, so I'm excited to see the results of this breeding.

For my goats, I really wanted something that was quiet and calm. I've raised different breeds before (Alpine, Nubian, crosses, and a few Toggs). I researched Oberhaslis because I"d read their milk is very close to cow's milk. Plus, they're known as one of the calmest breeds. I am in love with the breed, and will now probably never raise anything else. My goats are the sweetest, quietest, calmest goats I've ever owned. They're gorgeous too...how can you resist their beautiful colors?

 

[20kidsonhill]

We picked goats for our 6 acres, because it was badly overgrown and we didn't have equipement nor quite enough space for beef cattle. We wanted to go with something that we could sell the offspring and have a dependable market, so we could use our farm as a tax write-off. Meat goats are very popular in our area. We do not care to milk, so a meat animal makes more sense for us. Our children are in 4H and already showing lambs, so when more and more fairs in our area started meat goat shows and market shows for goats it only made sense for us to continue improving our percentage herd. So we have been raising them for 15 years. We no longer have an overgrown, briar filled field, but we continue to raise them as a hobby, tax write off for farm improvements and for our children to show them and to sell to other kids in the area. We produce between 40 and 50 kids a year.
We chose Boer goats over other breeds, because we wanted a meat breed that was gentle since we had young children at the time. We looked into Kiko, but didn't care for the large horns or the wilder side of them for just our 6 acres. I would for sure consider kiko or kiko cross or spanish cross if I had a lot more land. Our choice of Boer had worked out great, since they are the preferred breed for 4H.

 

[Shayanna]

Our animals we got because they were free. A couple free goats, and a couple free meat rabbits if I bought the cage. Breed them, sell enough of the offspring to pay for feed/care/processing if you must, and keep the parents/ leftover offspring for personal use. We will be using our breeding goats for some of their milk, selling the doe kids, and raising the bucklings for meat. We will probably sell about half of the meat by word of mouth, which will pay for us to use the other half. The rabbits, we sell half to 2/3 of the litters to pay for feed that lasts 2-3 months until its time for the next litter. We only sell 1/2-2/3 of the litters, that way we can keep the rest for personal/family meat use. Did this make sense? Essentially, there is not profit, just self sustaining.

Also, our animals are mutts. As far as the goats go, the does are dairy mutts (Alpines/nubians/saanens), and the buck is a Myotonic/Spanish something mutt. Our rabbits are checkered/flemish/rex/californian mutts. Simply because we aren't commercial--these breeds work for us. We started small and are keeping it small.

 

[SheepGirl]

I didn't really have a choice My neighbor had gone on vacation/business trips and he needed someone to watch his flock. Well in spring 2006, he called my mom and said that I can have a ewe lamb for watching the flock (well it was my dad and I that took care of them because my mom didn't want me to go down by myself). So in late July, I went out and picked my ewe lamb out, #44. I only picked her because she was the first one we could catch

My neighbor was the one who would make all the breeding decisions, ie what type of ram, when, etc. so I just bred my ewe (and later, my ewes) to whatever ram my neighbor had. This year, I bought a Texel ram (with the money I got from selling my ram and wether) because I really liked Katy Perry's butt and I wanted to emphasize that trait, so I got the breed of sheep that almost always wins carcass competitions. My Hank is thin, but he is still pretty well muscled for how thin he is (you should've seen his sire--that ram is a powerhouse). I can't wait to see his muscles after I get him to gain some weight!

After I'm done using Hank (I think I will keep him for two seasons, depending on how I like his first set of lambs) I will probably get a maternal sire and just keep rotating--terminal sire this year and maybe next, then maternal sire for a year or two, a terminal sire, etc.

Eventually I would like to get some Katahdins because of their maternal traits and I like all the colors they come in

 

[CocoNUT]

A) Why did you choose to raise sheep, goats, cows, etc.

Hmmm...probably because I'm a NUT! Growing up, going to my aunts and uncles ranches was ALWAYS the BEST part of my summers. I'd spend all day (& I do mean ALL DAY) out in the corrals with the horses and cattle. Now that I'm a "grown up" and realizing my dream...we got the heck out of the HOA community and got a couple acres. "Being self-sufficient" was the excuse...but I just LOVE all the animals. The goats were a simple progression from the chickens...

B) Why did you choose your particular breed(s)?

I will openly admit I was originally wanting Nigerians...but they weren't really being offered in our area. Mostly pygmies (not my cup of tea). We had gone to a Chickenstock and a woman was there selling her dairy kids (alreay weaned). After speaking with her at great length, I was able to puppy eyes my husband into agreeing to getting TWO does. They were boer/dairy crosses (I think one is a nigerian x) and all white. MY fell MADLY in love with their floppy ears! Other then those two, I've "lucked" into 3 nubians and I LOVE their personalities AND their ears!

My nigerian/boer doe is the NAUGHTIEST thing ever! And talkative! But she's pretty bomb-proof! They're all sweet and follow me around (like sheep) when I'm doing chores. I love those goats...they're so funny!

My husband wants a fainter - for "stress relief" he says!

I'm wanting some sheep now...to supply my 'fiber' habbit (& I happen to LOVE lamb...)! All in good time though.....

 

[Southdown]

We decided to try sheep because a year or two after buying this farm (an apple orchard) we realized we could not be push mowing under seven acres of trees every weekend! (Great for a weight loss plan, but not for my sanity.) Goats would have been cool, but they eat trees and bark, so that wasn't going to work in an orchard. We couldn't have tall animals either that would eat the upper branches. Although I would really love an alpaca, sigh. So we researched and discovered the Old English Babydoll Southdown. Miniature sheep, mellow temperament, and super cute. They worked out so great, that now we breed our own. I believe that used to be a rare/heritage breed, but much more popular now. There's really no profit as far as meat or milk (we don't do either), but they earn their keep by keeping our orchard clean and being great pets! I enjoy them more than dogs and cats.

 

[Cornish Heritage]

We ended up choosing the St. Croix due to them being hardy, more parasite resistant, good mothering instincts etc. It all came about when we traded a boar (pig) for a St. Croix ram. We had been looking for a rare sheep breed but hadn't chosen one & when this trade happened we had never even heard of a St. Croix! Once we researched them we knew they were the ones for us. We were then able to purchase a conservation herd from California. We specialize in quality breeding stock, selling the culls off or eating them. We wanted a herd that thrived on grass/hay & that required very little input from us. Yes we are out with them every day but they are very low maintenance.

As for our pigs, we LOVE the Large Blacks. Yet again, a heritage breed that thrives on pasture. Yes they need some grain input but not as much as most. They are extremely docile, very good paternal instincts & hardy. Oh & did I mention that they taste REALLY good. As with the sheep we sell quality breeding stock & sell off as feeders/ eat the rest.

Our milk cows are just for us & we purchased the first one when we bought the farm. She had a heifer calf who has since calved & is now being milked. We just recently added a Jersey cow to the mix so that we can have cream to make good butter.

Liz

 

[Fiberfling]

Finn and CVM/Romedale sheep in the later time of my life. Finns due to their temperament, kindness, gentleness and nice soft fleeces and their coloration. I recently bought the CVM's for the same reason but I believe they give more fiber than the Finns. I don't like pushy, beligerant animals and want them to be controllable. These have worked well for me. I do not eat red meat, once in a while chicken and fish, sometimes cheese, but surely eggs so I do not butcher nor sell lambs for butcher. I have their fleeces made into yarn every year and make sweaters, hats, scarves, gloves, socks, you name it out of my own wool. It can't be beat. I do not breed to make a profit, nor deal in any kind of profit making concern with my animals. They are more like friends and I couldn't do that to a friend.