This Craigs List ad is too funny

[OneFineAcre]

This was posted on the owners farm FB page on April 6, 2016
"Huge buck and doe for Party (and a little brother mummy). She's a trouper, spat them out with very little trouble."

Like I said
She's a hard working girl
You don't "retire" a doe whose kids sell for $1000 each

 

[NH homesteader]

This is why I will never "make it" in the goat world. I'll retire my does when it's best for them regardless. Of course I would never have the kind of doe that has kids worth that much but still!

I have no idea what all these Es and Vs and numbers mean, but she looks gorgeous to me! Haha

 

[OneFineAcre]

This is why I will never "make it" in the goat world. I'll retire my does when it's best for them regardless. Of course I would never have the kind of doe that has kids worth that much but still!

I have no idea what all these Es and Vs and numbers mean, but she looks gorgeous to me! Haha

I kind of understand what you are saying .
So when will you retire them that's best for them?
If you have read online that a doe will live longer if you retire them at a certain age that's not true
If she doesn't have difficulty
Kidding then there's is no reason not to breed them
Some people use a standard of if they have difficulty twice then you don't breed
I know of a Nigerian doe who was quite valuable who freshend 20
times
The breeder dried her off and bred her twice a year
She didn't settle at 12 years old and passed in her sleep at 15 years old

E is Excellent
V is Very Good
Overall 90 and above is excellent

 

[NH homesteader]

Thanks for the explanation! No, OK here is my crazy moment... I actually really struggle with the idea of breeding, as there are so many animals that are neglected on a day to day basis and I hate to add animals to the world that I can't personally keep or add to the freezer. I breed because that's how milk happens. So if my doe isn't worth breeding for milking's sake I won't breed her. I don't have an exact age, still kind of new to this. But I also, despite recommendations from many farmers, will not breed my sows more than once a year even though I take a giant financial hit by only having one litter per year.

OK sorry for rambling!

ETA: that's not to say I won't ever sell animals bred here, just that I feel uncomfortable with it.

 

[OneFineAcre]

Thanks for the explanation! No, OK here is my crazy moment... I actually really struggle with the idea of breeding, as there are so many animals that are neglected on a day to day basis and I hate to add animals to the world that I can't personally keep or add to the freezer. I breed because that's how milk happens. So if my doe isn't worth breeding for milking's sake I won't breed her. I don't have an exact age, still kind of new to this. But I also, despite recommendations from many farmers, will not breed my sows more than once a year even though I take a giant financial hit by only having one litter per year.

OK sorry for rambling!

You are 100 percent correct in your approach
If you are just breeding for your own meat and milk
But a doe like Party is special
And the doe I mentioned her name was Cowgirl she was very special too
A breeder owes it to the breed to use them to their full potential and create as much of their DNA as possible
Of course as long as the animal is healthy and capable
I have a doe Ginger who is 7
She is the mother of many beautiful does
We will absolutely breed her this fall
She has freshened 6 times
Squirted them out until this year
And had a kid with a bad presentation
If she has another problem then we may not again next year and she will always have a home here in retirement
We aren't exactly making it in the goat world either

 

[Ferguson K]

Is that a Nigerian Pincher? Must be worth millions.

I'll buy one of those, too.

Saw this, LOL[/QUOTE


Seriously though, this doe is one of the reasons I fell in love with the ND. Hopefully one day I have a doe as beautiful as her. She's simply amazing.

OF A your girls are, too, I especially love Zamia. Don't get me wrong. I just kept going back to her when researching the v breed. Even before I knew why I liked her.

 

[babsbag]

I have a 10 year old doe that was one of my first 3 goats. Her name is Moonpie. First three freshenings went fine, the fourth and fifth we had problems with hypocalcemia. The vet saved her both times and told me that we could "manage" this the next time. I chose to not have a next time as she is my special girl and I have others to make milk for me. So she just hangs out and bosses everyone around and she will be here until she dies. She still comes into milk each summer, but this year I am not even milking her as she has a hard time getting on the stand. I am hoping that next year when I have the dairy she will have a ramp to walk on and that she will be part of the string. After all, it is her dairy.

But facing this on a commercial side is different and not every goat can be my special girl so where do old goats go when they don't make in the dairy string anymore? Do I sell them before they are past their prime and keep cycling in the young ones? I can't become a home for retired goats.

 

[Mike CHS]

You will make better decisions than some of us because you are planning on being a for profit dairy. We were talking to a family of Katahdin breeders at a sheep show this weekend about getting one of his lamb rams. They had just downsized the flock but still had 20 or 30 "pets"

 

[NH homesteader]

@babsbag that is really difficult, I imagine. Having a large volume of goats multiplies the "retirement" issue for sure. It seems like a lot of dairies do just that. I've seen a lot of does in milk for sale that are being retired and sold as family milkers. Or as pets. Although that works better with Nigerians, not as many people who want a pet full size goat.

 

[babsbag]

I think I will move this conversation to my dairy journal. This has been on my mind for a while now and I would like to here ideas and thoughts.

http://www.backyardherds.com/threads/the-building-of-jumping-the-moon-dairy.31123/page-26