A few questions about goats...

[BabyandCotton]

Ok thank you. I am going to be on a budget of about $100 for the run, because I have to buy it all myself. I could probably find plenty of free pallets though.
-Liv

 

[BabyandCotton]

@henny1129 (or anybody) How much would be the average cost for two doelings, run in shelter supplies, and feed/medical/ basic supplies? My budget will be about $450-$500
-Liv

 

[henny1129]

@henny1129 (or anybody) How much would be the average cost for two doelings, run in shelter supplies, and feed/medical/ basic supplies? My budget will be about $450-$500
-Liv

Well, I'm going to be honest with you, in the goat world you get what you pay for. A cheaper goat might not be as healthy as a more expensive goat. However, I'm into Boer goats and I know you are more interested in Nigerians, I'm not sure if there's any price difference between the two. I'm thinking that if you go cheaper with all the supplies and if you can find lots of free pallets you'll probably be able to squeeze into about $500. Don't be completley confident in that answer though because I can't be certain......

 

[waddles99]

In my area a good boer doe will go for $200-300ish. Some of the exhibition or brood does will be $1500+. I bought my nigerians for $400 each, but i think thats a bit expensive for them. I think you'll be looking at around $250 per goat with vaccinations up to date and healthy and weaned. So already you're at $500 just for the goats. Then, you'll need hay, feed, feeders and buckets, and all that stuff. You may be able to do it all for $700ish if the shelter is free.

 

[cassie]

Oh, my bad. These are the numbers I am familiar with in the world of show goats. I wasn't really thinking about the fact that a regular old goat would be lower(obviously). I show meat goats and you can expect to pay those prices commonly for a nice boer sire with a lot of ennoblements on his pedigree.

I am not at all familiar with prices asked for stud service for fancy Boers. I bred dairy goats for many years but since I have not done so for some time I had no idea what the current stud fees are. I just got off the phone from talking to several breeders of dairy goats. The usual range of prices for their bucks is $50 to $75. The most is $100. Some buck owners require that any does brought to their place for breeding have a negative CAE test.These breeders are all well known, their animals are on test and they show at the national level. A hobby breeder would charge a lot less. One person I talked to has a Boer and she charges just $25 for him. He is a decent enough buck but the people who use him are only interested in producing meat kids and have no intention of registering the offspring or showing.

 

[waddles99]

I am not at all familiar with prices asked for stud service for fancy Boers. I bred dairy goats for many years but since I have not done so for some time I had no idea what the current stud fees are. I just got off the phone from talking to several breeders of dairy goats. The usual range of prices for their bucks is $50 to $75. The most is $100. Some buck owners require that any does brought to their place for breeding have a negative CAE test.These breeders are all well known, their animals are on test and they show at the national level. A hobby breeder would charge a lot less. One person I talked to has a Boer and she charges just $25 for him. He is a decent enough buck but the people who use him are only interested in producing meat kids and have no intention of registering the offspring or showing.

The boers i am referring to have many ABGA points under their belt. It is surprising how expensive they are, but they take their goats seriously. If you have a nice doe, it might be worth it to pay $500 or so to get it serviced by a buck that nice.

 

[BabyandCotton]

I am not at all familiar with prices asked for stud service for fancy Boers. I bred dairy goats for many years but since I have not done so for some time I had no idea what the current stud fees are.  I just got off the phone from talking to several breeders of dairy goats. The usual range of prices for their bucks is $50 to $75. The most is $100. Some buck owners require that any does brought to their place for breeding have a negative CAE test.These breeders are all well known, their animals are on test and they show at the national level. A hobby breeder would charge a lot less.  One person I talked to has a Boer and she charges just $25 for him.  He is a decent enough buck but the people who use him are  only interested in producing meat kids and have no intention of registering the offspring or showing.

Thank you sooooooo much cassie! I feel like I can afford that. Then I could get two does and have twice as much milk... Is there a such thing as goat math? XD Thank you again !!

-Liv

 

[cassie]

The boers i am referring to have many ABGA points under their belt. It is surprising how expensive they are, but they take their goats seriously. If you have a nice doe, it might be worth it to pay $500 or so to get it serviced by a buck that nice.

I knew what you meant. I had a few registered Boers many years ago and even belonged to one of the breed associations. I didn't stay with the Boers and evidently I should have. The stud fees you quoted surprised me because I personally cannot fathom why a meat animal would be considered so much more valuable than a dairy animal. Evidently, a lot people seem to think they are. Anything is worth exactly what someone will pay for it. Personally, if I were interested in that caliber of genetics I would be looking for semen and not live service, but that's me. I am curious though. Are the prices for semen the same as what you quoted for live service? The thought of paying several hundred dollars per straw for semen boggles what is left of my mind. At one time I had several straws of dairy goat semen that sold for well over $100 per straw but I didn't pay anything near that for it. I acquired the semen when the buck was young and unproven.

 

[cassie]

I just got through googling some Boer catalogs for semen. I am boggled. You never know what you can learn by being on BYC.

I know you have to breed and test and show to acquire animals that can command those prices, but I know how to do that. Or did. I definitely should have stayed with the Boers. That said, I saw a number of bucks in the catalog that looked like Nubians as far as color is concerned. They were big red spotted bucks. Are those colors now acceptable for Boers or were they something else?

 

[waddles99]

I just got through googling some Boer catalogs for semen. I am boggled. You never know what you can learn by being on BYC.

I know you have to breed and test and show to acquire animals that can command those prices, but I know how to do that. Or did. I definitely should have stayed with the Boers. That said, I saw a number of bucks in the catalog that looked like Nubians as far as color is concerned. They were big red spotted bucks. Are those colors now acceptable for Boers or were they something else?

Yes, dapple boers are becoming increasingly popular in the boer goat world. I believe it is now a recognized color for them as there are registered 100% ABGA dapples. If you want your jaw to drop, check out these guys: http://www.maxboergoats.com They have amazing stock. Talk about expensive though!