Unofficial Poll: Do you dehorn/disbud your goats?

[azure_]

Do you dehorn your goats? Do you buy them already disbudded? Why or why not?

 

[AltonaAcres]

Yes. We disbud all kids (goat) born on our farm. We only buy disbudded adults. I show my goats, and horns aren't allowed. Horns also make everything more dangerous for the goat, other goats, and people.

 

[Cinnamon Roll]

I have horned goats and the horns can be a pain, literally, but I prefer that to dehorning. Most people here don’t use any pain medications when dehorning and that seems pretty cruel to me. If there were a breed of goats that were naturally polled I would buy a bunch of those, but the horns aren’t too big of a hassle most of the time.

 

[impr3]

Too many predators around us. We do what we can to predator proof their lives, but it's not perfect. The goats and the donkey protect the sheep. Horns are in the job description.

 

[alwaystj9]

I have mostly horned goats and a few naturally polled. My current buck is a naturally polled Nigerian. I prefer the horns, it helps them fend off predators. It does mean I have to get one unstuck from the fence occasionally.
I have had 2 disbudded, that was at the request of a buyer.

 

[Weeg]

I keep the horns. Sounds kinda cruel to me to dehorn them. I know its different, but it kinda sounds like declaring a cat. Plus, they have much better defense, and I think it makes it hard for them to escape through small spaces if they have horns.

 

[cassie]

I have horned goats and the horns can be a pain, literally, but I prefer that to dehorning. Most people here don’t use any pain medications when dehorning and that seems pretty cruel to me. If there were a breed of goats that were naturally polled I would buy a bunch of those, but the horns aren’t too big of a hassle most of the time.

If you disbud baby goats, pain is minimal and in any case it is over in a few seconds. When we dehorned mature goats we did not use anesthesia for a very good reason. Goats do not tolerate anesthesia very well. The dehorning, while painful, won't kill the goat but the anesthesia very well might. There are polled goats to be found in every breed of dairy goats, but if you breed polled to polled you can end up with hermaphrodites.

 

[cassie]

I keep the horns. Sounds kinda cruel to me to dehorn them. I know its different, but it kinda sounds like declaring a cat. Plus, they have much better defense, and I think it makes it hard for them to escape through small spaces if they have horns.

They can also get their horned heads caught in the fence. If that happens on a hot summer day the goat may die of heat stroke or heat exhaustion before anyone finds it.

 

[alwaystj9]

How my persistent head /fence stickers get treated. This is a 4 year old doe named Pinky Whitehead who got her head stuck in the fence 3 times in 2 days....

 

[Weeg]

How my persistent head /fence stickers get treated. This is a 4 year old doe named Pinky Whitehead who got her head stuck in the fence 3 times in 2 days....

OMG! I love that goat! I have heard of putting tennis balls on the horns but never a pool noodle! That is fantastic!