A goat! A goat! A goat! Yippee!!!!

[MissPrissy]

I love my goats. Everyone should have a couple or three.

 

[Chatychick]

I raise goat and Nigerians make good milkers and so do Alpine, Alpines are a bigger goat and Nigerians are smaller. I would make sure that if you get 1 for milking that it has been trained to let you milk it or that it is tame. Some havent had human intervention and are wild. IF you get a baby then you have to wait to breed it and then 5 mths till it has it. Get a loder doe that has been milked and tame and has freshened( had babies), then you will have your milk sourse. You will need to supply it with alfafa hay and some grain, or alfafa pellets. If not you wont get much milk and can have some problems. Its basically the alfafa that helps them to make more milk and it is a job cause you will have to milk it 2 times a day. They are cute and fun but are still alot of work and commitment also. You will need a milk stand or a place to milk each day and feed while you are milking it. I have some I milk and believe me its not fun when the weather is really cold out. Good Luck in your decision. If you want a pet get a wether, bucks dont make good pets.

 

[Nick]

My goat Cocoa was a buck, but since you could smell his "aroma" from far away, we had him castrated by the vet. Now he his just as nice looking, very, very friendly, he does not urinate on his legs or face, and best of all he does not "stink".

But now since we just got a buddy, Dundee (he is 19 years old), for our mini Pumpkin (she is 2 years old),
we probably will get a companion for Cocoa.

Be careful, this is a very bad disease, and like the Mafia, once you are in, it's very hard to get out.

 

[lacyloo]

aww i so want a mini horse

 

[gritsar]

This lil buck (and yes he is a buck) is too old to be banded now and DD has to take him to the vet to be neutered before she brings him up here. Her Dad's terms and conditions.
However, this is not my first time at this rodeo. I had a standard size mixed breed buck (also named Cocoa) back in the early 90s. I know every experience is different, BUT my Cocoa was not neutered and we really never had much problem. Yes, he was very rambunctious, but I was younger then too and could handle it, as could my daughter. He loved to pretend like he was going to butt, but never actually did. I never found any of his behavior outrageous and unacceptable. I don't know, maybe because I had bottle raised him from 3 wks. old? As for his smell, again maybe I'm more tolerant? but he smelled like a farm animal and that odor didn't really bother me. Which is really kind of strange since I am odor sensitive on everything else. I DO live around a dozen chicken houses without going off my feed too often.
Anyhow, this one will be neutered. A doe is sure to follow at some time in the near future...we have to work these things in on the SO slowly so he doesn't catch on.

Thanks for all the great advice and the link.

It's about time this farm started looking like a farm!

 

[gritsar]

Since someone mentioned alfalfa, I just had to tell this lil story, although I've prob'ly told it before.
Back when we had our goat Cocoa, I was working full-time and had a hard time getting to the feed store before they closed. My parents were visiting, so I asked my Dad, the proverbial city boy, to please go to the feed store for me and get hay for Cocoa's pen. Dad goes and asks the old-timer working there for hay for a goat. Old-timer asks Dad what kind of hay? Now Dad doesn't know hay, but he does know that I love my goat. Says give her the best. Dear Dad even spread it in Cocoa's pen for me, to save me some work. That's how it came to be that I came home and found Cocoa still did not have any fresh bedding in his pen, but he was laying on his side too bloated to worry about it after eating all the alfalfa!

 

[lacyloo]

is this how he died?

 

[Queen of the Lilliputians]

Hmmm..

interesting info about bucks.. not sure I completely agree with some of it, though.

We had one named Fudgical when I was a little girl.. Loved that goat! He was FULL of mischief and personality, but never butted us at all (and we were little kids.. I do remember our nannies knocking us down a lot, though). I don't really think they are hard.. just require a different kind of care.

As for the smell... that is a different story. They really do have a 'goat'-y odor about them, don't they? We went to a farm last fall to pick up -surprise!- chicks, and their buck was there. I patted him a bit, he was very friendly. And all I could smell was sickly-sweet male goat, all the way home. I threw my coat over the box of chicks just so I could crack the window for some fresh air!

Meghan

 

[helmstead]

I don't agree entirely with some views on bucks, either. All of our goats are pets...even our bucks. They DO stink...but beyond that they're no different than our does. Even in rut, our boy Henry is as respectful towards us as any other time.

 

[samuels]

I am sort of a city slicker but now live in the country. Along with the 8 chickens, 6 rabbits---this summer we bought 3 pygmy goats. We LOVE the little guys and they love us. Good luck-you'll be happy to have the little guy around.