Why Goats?

[Natermotor]

Another question: Do you think that since I don't want to really have to deal with all the requirements, mainly time, of kids, that some breeder near me would be willing to sell me some older does for a relatively low price? I also want opinions about wether I should by older goats of kids.

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You could purchase does in milk (although quality adults won't be any cheaper than kids) but eventually you'll have to rebreed them if you want to keep them in milk. That means you'll need to be prepared for kids at some point.

Thanks for all the help everybody!

I just wanted to say that I would rather start with a doe in milk so that I could get a feel on how to take care of goats and also set up a schedule.

Question: Will a doe raise all her kids by herself, or do I have to do it?

Thanks!

 

[jodief100]

Thanks for all the help everybody!

I just wanted to say that I would rather start with a doe in milk so that I could get a feel on how to take care of goats and also set up a schedule.

Question: Will a doe raise all her kids by herself, or do I have to do it?

Thanks!

Almost all does will raise kids themselves if you want them to. There are pros and cons to bottle raising the kids vs having the dam raise them. Everyone has their own opinion as to what is best. All of my meat goats are dam raised, no point in trying to milk a Boer. My one dairy doe I let raise her kids, I keep the kids with her during the day, separate them at night and milk her in the morning. I do it because I do not want to milk twice a day.

Some people bottle raise all their kids on pasteurized milk to guarantee the kids are CAE and CL free.


You will figure out what works best for you.

 

[Natermotor]

New question: What would the average vet bill be per year for 2 nigerian dwarfs? My mother is POSITIVELY SURE that goats are always sick....

It is driving me insane that she won't let me get these. All I asked for Christmas was the RIGHT to own nigerian dwarfs. I even offered to take up extra chores and I wrote out an excel spreadsheet of the expenses. I'm sad...

/Rant

 

[freemotion]

Natermotor.....who will be paying for the goats, the feed, the vet bills? I'm sad to say, with the state of the economy, often the mortgage, food, car payments, etc. have to come first in a family. Your parents are probably just being practical. You may need to wait until you can earn a little income outside of the family. Or switch your dream goats to dairy goats that can make an impact on the grocery bill. A mediocre producer can provide the family with 2-4 quarts a day for 9-10 months per year. And the kids can be sold to offset breeding fees and feed bills.

The excess milk can be made into yogurt and cheese. Did you say you are homeschooled? You can learn to make cheese yourself. It is fairly simple, just time consuming (I allow 6 hours for the more complex cheeses, although I set a timer several times during that time and go do other things.) The dairy products, raw and from your own pastured animals, are extremely healthy and healing foods....for more info/ammo, go to www.westonapricefoundation.org and www.realmilk.com.

 

[Natermotor]

Natermotor.....who will be paying for the goats, the feed, the vet bills? I'm sad to say, with the state of the economy, often the mortgage, food, car payments, etc. have to come first in a family. Your parents are probably just being practical. You may need to wait until you can earn a little income outside of the family. Or switch your dream goats to dairy goats that can make an impact on the grocery bill. A mediocre producer can provide the family with 2-4 quarts a day for 9-10 months per year. And the kids can be sold to offset breeding fees and feed bills.

The excess milk can be made into yogurt and cheese. Did you say you are homeschooled? You can learn to make cheese yourself. It is fairly simple, just time consuming (I allow 6 hours for the more complex cheeses, although I set a timer several times during that time and go do other things.) The dairy products, raw and from your own pastured animals, are extremely healthy and healing foods....for more info/ammo, go to www.westonapricefoundation.org and www.realmilk.com.

Thanks for the links, and I know you're probably right about the whole money thing. I'm going to try and build up my goat supplies, like fencing and housing, etc. and then over the summer I'll try to get a summer job so that I can afford to feed the goats and pay for vet bills etc.

And by the way: Do goats get sick often? How much would the average cost be of the vet bills anually(not including wormer and other preventatives)

Thanks

 

[theawesomefowl]

New question: What would the average vet bill be per year for 2 nigerian dwarfs? My mother is POSITIVELY SURE that goats are always sick....

It is driving me insane that she won't let me get these. All I asked for Christmas was the RIGHT to own nigerian dwarfs. I even offered to take up extra chores and I wrote out an excel spreadsheet of the expenses. I'm sad...

/Rant

I asked for that (permission to get goats or goats) for Christmas too....my dad is pretty against animals, other than our chickens and eggs-in-the -incubators. lol.....
He thinks I won't take care of them! I'm old enough to, and I really would like to get a job to pay for them, but......he doesn't like the idea. But they'd be MINE!!!! I really would LOVE a miniature cow, but can't afford them. So I guess goats or sheep would be better to start with. Sigh. I do love my dad, but I'm stubborn, he is stubborn (where I got it from)....

Well, you should pray about it. That your mom's heart will change. I am still praying!

 

[freemotion]

My last two goat-related vet crises cost me $330 and over $500. With the second one, the goat died after a battle lasting over a month. I saved a lot of money by doing most of the follow-up injections and bringing the goat into the vet's office, avoiding a farm call charge. My very last vet crisis....the vet couldn't get here, and I could not get another vet to come out (we have several vets in this town and in each of the surrounding towns....I think there are 10 in the next town over!), they all refused to treat goats. I ended up on this forum, getting instructions, and saved the goat(s) myself....my doe was trying to deliver a baby that was so badly presented that without help, they both would've died. I ended up turning and delivering the baby myself.

So.....you really need to be prepared for emergencies, sadly enough. It is just a reality of owning animals of any kind.

I'm not trying to discourage you, really, just a little dose of reality and to help you see your mom's point of view. Providing food, clothing and shelter for a family is costly and the top priority....so save your money, every little bit, and get creative about earning some extra cash, and when you have enough to cover all the expenses and an emergency fund in addition....then it is time to ask again.

 

[Natermotor]

My last two goat-related vet crises cost me $330 and over $500. With the second one, the goat died after a battle lasting over a month. I saved a lot of money by doing most of the follow-up injections and bringing the goat into the vet's office, avoiding a farm call charge. My very last vet crisis....the vet couldn't get here, and I could not get another vet to come out (we have several vets in this town and in each of the surrounding towns....I think there are 10 in the next town over!), they all refused to treat goats. I ended up on this forum, getting instructions, and saved the goat(s) myself....my doe was trying to deliver a baby that was so badly presented that without help, they both would've died. I ended up turning and delivering the baby myself.

So.....you really need to be prepared for emergencies, sadly enough. It is just a reality of owning animals of any kind.

I'm not trying to discourage you, really, just a little dose of reality and to help you see your mom's point of view. Providing food, clothing and shelter for a family is costly and the top priority....so save your money, every little bit, and get creative about earning some extra cash, and when you have enough to cover all the expenses and an emergency fund in addition....then it is time to ask again.

Ok, I know it hasn't been long, but I managed to save about $700 from Christmas and my birthday and my previous savings and selling some of my paintball equipment. I created an excel spreadsheet outlining the cost of everything, then broke it down into startup, monthly, and yearly costs. It seems that with the going rate for the Pygmies(I've decided on them, especially if I can find a decent miling line) in my area is extraordinarily low. I plan to completely refurbish my existing 8x10 chicken house, add a manger, etc., and put new fencing up. Would that 8x10 area combined with a 25' long by 20' wide excercise(sp?) yard be enough space for two pygmy goats? I plan to use some 5ft field fencing with those wooden posts and 2 strands of electric fence. Is this sufficient? I would also like to know if I could just get away with the field fencing.

Thanks for taking the time to read the posts and hopefully answer the questions.

Happy belated New Year!

 

[ksalvagno]

Yes, that should be enough for the 2. I use woven wire horse fencing for my goats. You want to be careful that they can't stick their head through the fencing and get caught. Depending on the goats, you probably could skip the electric. I don't have electric on my fencing and my goats haven't tried to get out.

 

[iamcuriositycat]

Chiming in really late here, but I just wanted to add that goats really are very hardy. Mine haven't been sick once in the year-and-a-half I've had them.

However, one of them did find a fishing hook and embed it in his lip. We weren't able to take it out ourselves (it was a really nasty triple-barbed deal) and had to take him to the vet--right after my husband lost his job. The large-animal vet is a 45-minute drive (think: gas money) plus the bill was $200.

Another developed diarrhea at one point that fortunately quickly resolved itself, but if it had continued for more than a day, I would have had another vet bill on my hand.

I also don't want to discourage you. We're homeschoolers too and I love for the kids to have their own projects, even if they're time-consuming and/or expensive. But it is good to be realistic. Generally speaking, the larger the animal, the larger the financial investment all around.

I do agree that milking the goat can offset some cost, but it is rare for any good animal project to yield more savings than cost. It's just the nature of taking good care of our livestock--it costs more to do it right.

Still, keep doing your homework, join a 4-H group, see about getting a part-time job to offset some cost, and maybe your mom will come around. And if you're going to pray about it, I highly recommend that you pray for "the best possible outcome--whatever that may be." Our strongest desires aren't always the best thing for us (I know this from sad--and happy--experience).

Good luck!