John Kliewer's List: Raising Goats

• Mortality and goats go together. Any species that has early sexual maturity, short gestation, and multiple births is going to have deaths -- despite your efforts. Do your best and learn from your mistakes.
• Confined goats become unhealthy or dead goats.
• A goat with a big rumen is not necessarily fat. A big rumen is indicative of a good digestive factory
• Goats are NOT "little cattle." Goats and cattle are ruminants and there the similarity ends. Think of goats as *first cousins* to deer in terms of how they live, roam, and forage for food.
• oats are linear thinkers. The shortest distance between two points to a goat is a straight line. If you place a gate at the north end of the pasture and the home pens are south, goats are going to stand at the south end of the pasture until you have the sense to cut a gate there. If water is on the immediate other side of the fence, goats will not walk down and around the fence to get to the water. It's 'right over there,' so they'll stand in one place until you show them how to access the water or until they die of thirst. Cut a gate for easy access and save yourself some grief. Learn to think like a goat.
• A male goat has only one purpose in life -- to reproduce his species in general and his lineage in particular. A buck in rut is a dangerous animal. He may have been cute when you were bottle-feeding him, but he is a male on a mission when does are in heat -- and you are in his way. Be careful around and always respect the danger potential of breeding bucks.
• Goats are creatures of habit. If you have a goat that repeatedly hangs its horns in fencing, that goat will stick its head in the same place time after time until you fit the horns with a PVC pipe secured by duct tape. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.

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• To avoid that problem, you must be prepared to sell or butcher some of your home-raised goats. Actually, any female offspring are relatively easy to deal with. One of your best doelings can be saved to replace its momma on the milk line when the old gal reaches five or six years of age ... and you'll generally find a good market for your other young does.
• When you decide to purchase a herd-starting doe (or two), you'll immediately be faced with the decision of what breed to invest in. In the U.S., the five most popular purebred goats are Toggenburg, French Alpine, Saanen, La Mancha, and Nubian. (The last two varieties could be called the "Jersey cows" of goats: Although they give slightly less milk than do their three "cousins," their product is high in butterfat.) Any of the five breeds can be successfully raised in all parts of North America, but in most cases the best breed for you will be the one that is most common in your area ... since their offspring will be the easiest to sell to other folks.

• As with all types of livestock, it’s important to consider your needs when selecting a breed – think about, for example, whether you want to raise goats to make cheese or sausage. With goats, you also might want to reflect on your own character and farm situation. For example, if you have Nubians, non-farming neighbors might complain during weaning and breeding season. (I’ve heard of a rural SPCA officer who was called more than once about people “torturing goats” only to find Nubians in heat.) They are beautiful animals that produce rich milk, but they are also very vocal.

  On the other hand, if you have low or even moderately high fences, Alpines might not be the breed for you. Their ability to jump may exceed your patience. That said, many wonderful breeds of goats are available and, within each breed, the productivity, appearance and character of individuals vary considerably.

• Flair for fiber

  Two of the softest natural fibers available are produced by goats – mohair and cashmere. Mohair is from Angora goats – not to be confused with the Angora fiber, which comes from Angora rabbits. Angora goats are covered with long, lustrous ringlets of mohair. Bucks have the coarsest fleece, but wethers (castrated males) produce fine fleece year after year. Kid mohair is particularly soft.

• Getting your goat
• It’s best to buy goats from an environment similar to yours. This will make the transition easier (e.g., less of a shock than going from a flock of 200 to a flock of two, or vice versa).
• f you want to raise a goat organically, try to find one that has been raised using natural health care. A goat that has been given commercial dewormers and antibiotics regularly will be less likely to thrive in an organic setting
• Breeds
• For a high volume, consider Saanens. These calm white goats are the Holsteins of the goat world, each day producing a gallon of milk that is relatively low in milk protein.

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• arrangements for shots, vaccinations,and tagging or tattooing
• Feed it at the same time every day, and play with it
• hey're very smart. Your goat will likely be able to open the latch on your fence. Be prepared to change your fencing as necessary once you get used to your specific herd's abilities.
• Goats prefer bushes and trees to weeds and grass
• ay goodbye to any lower tree branches in their area.
• Start with females (aka does or nannies) or wethers (neutered males)
• ever name an animal you are raising for meat
• oat manure is not "hot" like chicken manure and does not burn plants as easily.
• Goats by nature will waste a certain amount of hay. Once you learn how much they actually consume, do not overfeed more than necessary
• Goats can be aggressive, so act bold around them, even if you don't feel like it
• Do not get a male goat (aka buck or billy goat) as your first goat
• owever, it's fine to start with a wether (neutered male goat).
• Never get a horned goat as your first goat. You must have knowledge on how to handle them or you could easily get hurt.
• Beware of neighborhood dogs running lose. If your goat is attacked by a dog or coyote, be sure to check the neck for hidden injuries. Do not get fooled by thinking they "just" have a broken leg.
• They must have a place to be dry and out of the wind
• Supplements: salt and/or baking soda, others as needed
• MINERALS

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