Goat-Raising Expenses

[VolailleAmant]

Hello!
I am looking into getting a couple goats, and need some help with a pretty common question-
From your own experience, would you say that you can make profit off of about 2 producing Does, or will raising them and putting money into them not pay off?
I don't like to own an animal that can't produce profitable products, you know?
Estimated, how much would you say that a goat would be to keep/raise? Feed, Hay, Minerals, etc.
Also, what is absolutely necessary when feeding goats? I hear that people will spoil their goats, (which I might ) but with just the necessary feed, how much would that be [estimated] and what IS necessary?
Thank you!!!
-VA

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

You probably won't make any profit off of 2 goats. I believe you need a herd to milk in order to even start to think about a profit.

Goats require good quality hay, minerals, rations if you are milking and producing, wormers, vaccinations, and a good vet. In my experiences goats are as expensive as keeping dogs. They have a sensitive digestion system, and are easygoing if fed incorrectly.

 

[VolailleAmant]

You probably won't make any profit off of 2 goats. I believe you need a herd to milk in order to even start to think about a profit.

Goats require good quality hay, minerals, rations if you are milking and producing, wormers, vaccinations, and a good vet. In my experiences goats are as expensive as keeping dogs. They have a sensitive digestion system, and are easygoing if fed incorrectly.

i

Thank you for your advice! I actually have some friends that have 2 to 3 producing Does that they breed regularly and sell off the kids. They also milk them and sell the milk and they do make a bit if profit.
It may be my stubborness as to not accepting the truth of raising goats if they don't make profit

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

i

Thank you for your advice! I actually have some friends that have 2 to 3 producing Does that they breed regularly and sell off the kids. They also milk them and sell the milk and they do make a bit if profit.
It may be my stubborness as to not accepting the truth of raising goats if they don't make profit

Maybe if you high quality stock and buyers for milk lined up it may be profitable. I've never tried. @cassie I believe used to milk goats, she may have a better opinion on the subject.

 

[Bunnylady]

i

Thank you for your advice! I actually have some friends that have 2 to 3 producing Does that they breed regularly and sell off the kids. They also milk them and sell the milk and they do make a bit if profit.
It may be my stubborness as to not accepting the truth of raising goats if they don't make profit

What are the laws in your area regarding selling milk? A lot of folks do things "under the table" on a small scale that would not be profitable if all the legal hoops had been jumped through. In my area, non-edibles (like goat's milk soap) are OK, but anything that is intended for human consumption has to pass the health department regulations, which require commercial grade equipment and sanitation practices. "They gotta catch me first" can work for years, sure, but one disgruntled customer can not only get you shut down, it can get you a hefty fine, as well.

 

[cassie]

Maybe if you high quality stock and buyers for milk lined up it may be profitable. I've never tried. @cassie I believe used to milk goats, she may have a better opinion on the subject.

Some people can make money. Most don't. When I had my dairy, I made expenses plus a little extra. I had the dairy because I thought it was fun. I did not do a lot of things I could have done to have increased my income. If I had gone on test, showed more than I did, had my goats appraised, and advertised breeding stock, it would have made a difference. I met one woman in New England who made a decent living from her small farm. She milked a few goats, maybe twenty, and made cheese from the milk. She sold the cheese and the produce from her garden at the local farmers' markets. She raised and sold one litter of purebred puppies a year. Her goats were top quality purebred Nubians that were competitive in the show ring and produced very well. She was on milk test, had her herd tested regularly for CAE, Johnes, and CL and her goats were appraised so she had good records on her stock. She had no trouble selling her excess kids at good prices. She lived in an area where she did not have to have an expensive dairy plant in order to legally sell her milk and cheese.

 

[VolailleAmant]

What are the laws in your area regarding selling milk? A lot of folks do things "under the table" on a small scale that would not be profitable if all the legal hoops had been jumped through. In my area, non-edibles (like goat's milk soap) are OK, but anything that is intended for human consumption has to pass the health department regulations, which require commercial grade equipment and sanitation practices. "They gotta catch me first" can work for years, sure, but one disgruntled customer can not only get you shut down, it can get you a hefty fine, as well.

Thank you for your advice! Yeesh, getting in trouble with teachers and parents is enough...The law or government is another story. Don't worry though- I have with the law (I'm not the Duke Boys ) I would like to try and make goats milk soap...I know that that is a popular enough product to sell, but I could give it a shot!
I am going to look into my County laws and Reg.s about milk sales and such. Would it be so terrible to sell to a friend, and not broadcast to all the wild blue yonder? Thank you!!!

 

[VolailleAmant]

Some people can make money. Most don't. When I had my dairy, I made expenses plus a little extra. I had the dairy because I thought it was fun. I did not do a lot of things I could have done to have increased my income. If I had gone on test, showed more than I did, had my goats appraised, and advertised breeding stock, it would have made a difference. I met one woman in New England who made a decent living from her small farm. She milked a few goats, maybe twenty, and made cheese from the milk. She sold the cheese and the produce from her garden at the local farmers' markets. She raised and sold one litter of purebred puppies a year. Her goats were top quality purebred Nubians that were competitive in the show ring and produced very well. She was on milk test, had her herd tested regularly for CAE, Johnes, and CL and her goats were appraised so she had good records on her stock. She had no trouble selling her excess kids at good prices. She lived in an area where she did not have to have an expensive dairy plant in order to legally sell her milk and cheese.

Thank you for letting me know all of this!
it would be my dream to have a life like your New England friend. If I could make just enough profit to pay for the goats' feed and supplies...Maybe even some extra, I would be happy. Do you still have goats? If you do, how many and what breed? Thanks again!

 

[cassie]

Thank you for letting me know all of this!
it would be my dream to have a life like your New England friend. If I could make just enough profit to pay for the goats' feed and supplies...Maybe even some extra, I would be happy. Do you still have goats? If you do, how many and what breed? Thanks again!

I had goats for over 40 years, but I don't have any now. I do miss them but this point in my life the thought of going out in sub zero weather to care for livestock does not make my little heart go pittypat with glee. I bred Alpines, Nubians, LaManchas, and Toggenburgs. The woman in New England I mentioned could do what she did because of her location. In California, for instance, she couldn't because of the expense of meeting the legal requirements for selling milk and cheese.

When I didn't have a dairy, I made money to help defray expenses by raising calves and/or pigs on the milk. Some people make soap and you don't have to have an expensive milk handling facility to make and sell soap. I knew someone in Ohio who developed a market for milk fed Thanksgiving turkeys. I believe he sold the turkeys on the hoof, so to speak. If you have certain ethnic groups in your area, you can get a good price for fat milk fed kids, particularly at Easter. That is where my buck kids went.

Requirements for selling milk vary wildly from one state to another. Here in Missouri, I THINK you can sell milk to people if they come to your farm and bring their own containers but you cannot deliver it. Some places you can sell milk for pet or livestock feed but not for human consumption. It is my understanding that in California you cannot sell or give away raw milk from the farm for any purpose.

 

[res]

Feeding goats to get maximum gain, either in milk or meat, is much more expensive than feeding "pet" goats.

My children have a herd of Boers that they show. All year round, we are either feeding pregnant or lactating does, or feeding kids for maximum weight gain. We have won Rate of Gain awards with our kids. Our show "circuit" is incredibly competitive and we actually feed "cheaper" than most of the other families.

We feed show feed year round, and add in supplements for the 9 mths of the year that we are kidding, lactating and showing.

My children have to turn in Record Books for their Breeding and Market projects, and our average herd is 15 animals (fluctuates due to kids that are sold at end of show season) and they cost us >$300 per month in bagged feed and supplements. We do have pasture, but the show kids can't be on pasture... The does are on pasture year round, I do not pull them off to get them in show condition. My buck(s) is on pasture, too, but he eats 3x what the does do, mainly due to his testosterone affecting his metabolism and the fact that he is ALWAYS on the move trying to impress the girls (who are in a separate field and completely ignore him!).

Hay costs are minimal. Kids get hay while they are with us, everybody gets hay during the winter. I have great suppliers for native grass round bales ($35 for 600lbs, more expensive than I would like, but MUCH cheaper than most other local suppliers) and small squares of premium timothy ($240 per ton). All hay is fed in feeders made with 2x4 or 4x4 panels, to minimize waste and keep hay off the ground.

Do we make a profit. ABSOLUTELY NOT. But the experience and responsibility that we are giving our children is PRICELESS. They are responsible for 100% of the herd's care, even kidding out the does (if they kid while the human kids are home from school!).