# Getting into Goats...Questions!



## ~KK~ (Feb 19, 2012)

My father told me the other day that he'd like to get into goat-keeping for brush-clearing purposes and as pets. Since we don't know anything about goats I was wondering:

a. what breed would be the best to keep that would double as an excellent/friendly pet breed (we have a special needs child in the house) that can do a little brush-clearing? The only breeds I've looked into so far are pygmies and fainting goats 

b. Is it best to start off with kids and raise them up or to start with adults? Or with a pregnant doe? I like my farm animals to have a lot of human interaction and tend to lean towards young kids...but I'd like to hear the pros and cons of each.

c. Where's a good place to look at goat pens and setups as well as basic information?

d. Where's a good place to look for goat breeders or goats that are for sale?

Thanks in advance! 

Here are some pics of part of our property. We're in the Pacific NW.


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## Queen Mum (Feb 19, 2012)

Goats can be kid friendly if they are raised well.  They need to be treated well and the property needs to be fenced carefully.  They do well in the Pacific NW as there is PLENTY of browse for them there.  If your child is special needs, I would start with a pair of young goats and have your child handle them from the start.  Make sure you train your child to train the goats so they bond together.

Do your research before buying the goats.  

Goats can be used for carting, and as pack animals so a larger goat can be used for that purpose and there are some GREAT pack and cart groups in the Pacific NW.  PM me and I will send info to you.  Great way to get a special needs child active and interested in the animals and its a wonderful group of friendly people.


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## ~KK~ (Feb 19, 2012)

Great! Thanks a lot. My special needs brother is 14 and LOVES animals so I think he'd do well with young goats. How old are they usually when you get them?

Any breeds that are particularly friendly? Nigerian Dwarves have caught my eye...I'd love to have a trio or quad of those!

We won't be getting the goats till at least early summer since we have a lot of research to do (that's my job...I get a little obsessive when it comes to researching new animals) so no worries there. I think the biggest thing for us will be fencing. We have 5 acres with only 2 cleared and a creek that snakes through. This whole thing is still in the very very early stages, but I'l have to talk to my dad some more to see what exactly he wants out of the goats and where he plans to put them on the property.


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## SmallFarmGirl (Feb 19, 2012)

I own nigerians and I love them! They are so friendly. I bought a pretty "WIld" one who has turned out to be a sweet heart! 
They are great for milk and pets.


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## SmallFarmGirl (Feb 19, 2012)

~KK~ said:
			
		

> My father told me the other day that he'd like to get into goat-keeping for brush-clearing purposes and as pets. Since we don't know anything about goats I was wondering:
> 
> a. what breed would be the best to keep that would double as an excellent/friendly pet breed (we have a special needs child in the house) that can do a little brush-clearing? The only breeds I've looked into so far are pygmies and fainting goats
> *The 2 breeds above and Nigerians are good.*
> ...


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## HankTheTank (Feb 19, 2012)

Wow, it seems like every new person on here is looking at Nigerian Dwarfs.....Good choice! I have ND's and they are a very good first time goat. They're small, so they are easy to handle and don't eat as much as a full size. They have wonderful personalities too. I would also recomend getting them young, so they are raised the way you want them to be, and they will bond with you more. A lot of people think goats are easier to train than dogs, personally I agree with them. They can be taught many basic commands like Don't jump on people (very important!) back up, come, and stay. There are also a lot of tricks they can learn, all very cute! As long as they're raised right they are friendly and well behaved with everyone, young or old. My goats are also pets/ brush clearers, though I'm moving in a very dairy direction lately...funny how that seems to happen with a lot of people!  Anyway, whatever breed you choose will make wonderful pets, and congratulations on getting into goats!




By the way, a good goat thingy is the Fiasco Farms website, the have a loooot of really good information


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## 20kidsonhill (Feb 19, 2012)

ARe you thinking you just want 2 to 4 goats, and not do any breeding, Or are you wanting to breed your goats and have you own babies?


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## SmallFarmGirl (Feb 19, 2012)

HankTheTank said:
			
		

> Wow, it seems like every new person on here is looking at Nigerian Dwarfs.....Good choice! I have ND's and they are a very good first time goat. They're small, so they are easy to handle and don't eat as much as a full size. They have wonderful personalities too. I would also recomend getting them young, so they are raised the way you want them to be, and they will bond with you more. A lot of people think goats are easier to train than dogs, personally I agree with them. They can be taught many basic commands like Don't jump on people (very important!) back up, come, and stay. There are also a lot of tricks they can learn, all very cute! As long as they're raised right they are friendly and well behaved with everyone, young or old. My goats are also pets/ brush clearers, though I'm moving in a very dairy direction lately...funny how that seems to happen with a lot of people!  Anyway, whatever breed you choose will make wonderful pets, and congratulations on getting into goats!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Totally right. My goats are potty trained. (almost)


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## HankTheTank (Feb 19, 2012)

SmallFarmGirl said:
			
		

> Totally right. My goats are potty trained. (almost)


One of mine is house trained, the other two almost are, still don't trust 'em though


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## SmallFarmGirl (Feb 19, 2012)

HankTheTank said:
			
		

> SmallFarmGirl said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Yah. Kisses is an angel about keeping her barn nice until it rains. She won't  move out of her stall! 
And guess what? It's rained straight for the past week.


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## ~KK~ (Feb 19, 2012)

Definitely not going to do the breeding thing unfortunately . I'd love to do it, but I'm about to graduate college so these will be my parents' goats to tend and they definitely won't do the research required to take care of a breeding herd.

I was looking on craigslist and it appears wethers are pretty inexpensive, is that a good way to go? I'd love love LOVE to bottle feed some babies! 

Once my exams are over I have a feeling I'll be spending some time with the search function on this site


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## 20kidsonhill (Feb 19, 2012)

that was were I was going with it. Wethers would be a good option for you, if you aren't interested in having any babies, Dairy wethers and small breed wethers are normally pretty cheap.  You do need to keep in mind, that a wether can be a little more aggressive than a doe, so they need to learn their manners, even if you buy some bottle babies. Dont let them jump on you and keep them in their boundaries so they learn the rules of the property, if you let them follow you into the house when they are bottle babies, they will expect it when they get bigger.  Don't play head pushing games with them.  Expect them to keep all 4 feet on the ground, even when they are little and harmless. 


Good luck on your search, 

I would get 2 to 4 wethers the same age, so they all get along and are used to each other. 

They will need shelter and good fencing. are your parents prepared to deal with fencing?  Fencing is important  not only to keep them in, but to keep preditors out,  stray dogs are a real concern.


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## ~KK~ (Feb 19, 2012)

We probably won't fence our whole property, but they'll have their own fenced in area. Our chicken coop is built like Fort Knox and I'm sure just as much effort will be put towards keeping the goats safe . We don't have stray dogs in our area but we definitely have coyotes, so we'll be looking at hot wires and other coyote proofing measures.


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## Mamaboid (Feb 19, 2012)

I would definitely recommend fainters.  They are gentle and easy to fence, and easy keepers as far as feed.  They are also parasite resistant as a general rule.  They don't climb and cannot jump after they get past the "kid" stage.  Love em.


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## ~KK~ (Feb 19, 2012)

Maybe I'll get more than one breed....hehe. 

I got on a breeder's list for future kids!


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## Missy (Feb 20, 2012)

4 goats minimum of a variety of breeds, that is my recommendation. lol.

I love nubians due to their long floppy ears and was set on getting all nubians. Then I was introduced to the world of all other goats 

Now I have a Saanen, Oberhasli, and a nubian. I am waiting on either a Togg or Oberhasli buckling, and a nubian doeling....Then of course I have 2 hopefully expecting momma does who are due with cross breed kids.... Oh and potentially a lamancha doe, I am just not sure yet

I am still pretty set on nubians, but lately I have been leaning towards Oberhaslis, they are just so sweet and friendly


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## SmallFarmGirl (Feb 20, 2012)

~KK~ said:
			
		

> Maybe I'll get more than one breed....hehe.
> 
> I got on a breeder's list for future kids!


GREAT! You could go with one of each! If they're youngsters when you get 'em they'll never know they aren't the same!


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## Queen Mum (Feb 20, 2012)

Pack goats are wethered AND they are bottle fed, trained to carry a pack and are very lovable.  They are especially people friendly.  PLUS, you can put them to work.  They are like guide dogs in that they are specially picked for their temperament and personality.  BREED doesn't matter in the pack goat world.  Size and temperament does.  BUT sometimes a small packgoat will be sold for a song because he is small.  So you can call around and get one for next to nothing because he didn't grow as much as was hoped.   So he would be PERFECT for a kid.  

I'm rooting for the packgoats because they are travel friendly, you can take them camping,  you can take them for walks, they are wethered and they are incredibly great companion animals.  They will follow you anywhere.   Packgoat breeders really care about their goats and will spend a LOT of time mentoring you and your family so you will have a good experience and so your animal will be healthy.  You will always get a CAE/CL and disease free animal.

You can get them disbudded (without horns) or with horns.   Check out this website for a little information on them in Washington.  This lady knows just about everything about them that you can imagine.


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## ~KK~ (Feb 20, 2012)

Queen Mum said:
			
		

> Pack goats are wethered AND they are bottle fed, trained to carry a pack and are very lovable.  They are especially people friendly.  PLUS, you can put them to work.  They are like guide dogs in that they are specially picked for their temperament and personality.  BREED doesn't matter in the pack goat world.  Size and temperament does.  BUT sometimes a small packgoat will be sold for a song because he is small.  So you can call around and get one for next to nothing because he didn't grow as much as was hoped.   So he would be PERFECT for a kid.
> 
> I'm rooting for the packgoats because they are travel friendly, you can take them camping,  you can take them for walks, they are wethered and they are incredibly great companion animals.  They will follow you anywhere.   Packgoat breeders really care about their goats and will spend a LOT of time mentoring you and your family so you will have a good experience and so your animal will be healthy.  You will always get a CAE/CL and disease free animal.
> 
> You can get them disbudded (without horns) or with horns.   Check out this website for a little information on them in Washington.  This lady knows just about everything about them that you can imagine.


I think having a pack goat would be awesome! My brother is in boyscouts and goes backpacking a lot. How cool would it be to bring a goat along? Haha

Last night I talked to my dad to see just how serious he is about getting goats. He tends to get ideas in his head without really thinking about the work that's required. Anyway for brush clearing he thought he'd just tether them up and have them eat away at the overgrowth...but wouldn't they get tangled up? I don't know how we'd contain the goats in the area he wants cleared as it's across a creek and it'd be hard to set up a fence anywhere. He also has to think about the fencing thing because he really doesn't want to do it. Are there places that install fencing and any idea about how much that would cost? How hard/expensive is it to build a goat pen?


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## Goatherd (Feb 20, 2012)

> Are there places that install fencing and any idea about how much that would cost?


Yes, there are companies or individuals that install goat fencing.  Regardless of who does the job, *PROPER AND ADEQUATE* goat fencing is rather expensive.  I use the term proper as if the fencing is not appropriate for goats, you will constantly be putting "band aids" on the fence to make it work.


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## mama24 (Feb 20, 2012)

I agree the fencing is expensive. We put up 5 ft tall 2x4 inch rectangle welded wire, and then had to add a line of electric wire along the top to keep them from climbing over! I have mixed breed dairy/meat goats and I love them! I only have 2. One is a Nubian/Boer/Kiko mix, and the other is Saanen/Boer. They are both perfectly safe with my kids. They aren't overly friendly, but the Saanen will come up and eat out of your hand if you bring treats and will stand still if you hold her by her collar. I guess the Nubian/Kiko will, too, but she isn't as friendly and is REALLY QUICK at getting away if she thinks you're reaching for her, so we don't get the chance very often. The Saanen is pretty friendly and doesn't seem to mind. Mine both have horns and have never tried to get anyone but each other (while eating) with them. Wait, my little Nubian/Kiko was throwing her head back at me when I was straddling her and trimming her hooves, but it didn't hurt. 

I just bought stakes and leads to tether my goats out to start clearing some brush. You just have to stake them far enough apart that they can still be next to each other (they need to be able to touch to be happy) but not close enough that they can go around each other and get tangled up. We tried it out on Sun. I staked one down and had the kids hold both at the farthest reach of the tether, then put the other stake down at the end of the lead as far from them as possible. That way they were the right distance apart. We had them out there about 3 hours. I don't think they ate anything, they were too upset being out of their safety zone near the barn, but I think once they get used to the idea, it will be fine. We also have a portable electric fence, but since that would involve clearing where the fence goes so it doesn't short it, it seems that tethering will end up being much much easier. If we owned out property, I would probably invest in fencing it in, but we are renting, so I am not investing any money in it! We fenced in the goat and chicken yards, but that's all.


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## ~KK~ (Feb 20, 2012)

Yeah there's no way we can fence in our entire property. It's woods all the way around! We also have a creek that snakes through the property that doesn't permit proper fencing. I think if we did it we would have to build a goat pen and tether them for brush-clearing.

What about running a cable and having them tethered that way? That would allow them to move around a bit more. Or if it's simple to set  up I think portable electric fence would work. how do you get in and out of it though? haha


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## Queen Mum (Feb 20, 2012)

Staking out goats is a recipe for disaster.  Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt.  Portable electric netting is a great way to go.  Moveable, and reusable, easy to set up and easy to maintain.  NO cheap though.  It's easy to do.

Yes, packgoats are a great way to go.  And they are very easy to maintain.


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## bonbean01 (Feb 20, 2012)

Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt....ROFLAO!!!!!!  Queen Mom...I broke out laughing while drinking coffee while I read that...you owe me a new keyboard


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## mama24 (Feb 20, 2012)

Please tell me what happened when you tried staking your goats! I only have 2 goats, so it's not like I will be staking out like 20 of them! I am really hoping it works. The electric netting I have just seems like it's going to be more work to put up than it's worth. THe area we want them to debrush is really overgrown with brambles. I suppose we could just put the fence up on 3 sides and hope they don't go through... I also am starting to think that just having my kids walk them on leashes might be another option. They didn't seem to mind being on the lead at all. I was thinking they might do ok just being out free with someone watching them, especially since they don't seem to want to be away from the barn.


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## Goatherd (Feb 20, 2012)

Staking a goat can work in some cases, but aside from them getting tangled with each other or wrapping themselves around a tree, you have predators to consider.
A staked goat is an easy mark for something that would find it a tasty meal.  Even if the goat isn't physically harmed,  the stress and excitement of being stalked by a predator could lead to other problems such as broken legs, etc.

If you are going to stake them it should be when someone is basically babysitting them the entire time they are tethered, which may not be feasible for you or your family.


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## marlowmanor (Feb 20, 2012)

We staked our 2 wethers out some before we got a lot they could browse in put up. We only did it when we were going to be around to watch them though. We always made sure we could see them and make sure they were not tangled up and were safe.


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## Queen Mum (Feb 20, 2012)

They were constantly getting tangle up in the stuff they were supposed to be eating and each other.  They would have to be untangled and then restaked.  AND it made them targets for predators. 

Putting up the netting takes a few hours to set up and an hour to take down.  You can use push in stakes or T posts.    I've used it in a number of places.  The goats respect it.  It keeps them in and the predators out.  You just work your way around obstacles.  I used it in the Pacific NW where there  is  a LOT of brambles and berries and cedar trees and bushes and STUFF.   Once up, you either hook it up to a car battery or a solar panel or to a LONG electric cord.  Then you move it once they clear out the area.   

For a shelter, you can use a couple cattle panels bent over into a quonset hut and put a tarp over the top.


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## ~KK~ (Feb 21, 2012)

Is there a breeder directory on this site? I'm looking for breeders of pygmies, nigerian dwarfs, and fainters as close to Portland, OR as possible.


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## Pearce Pastures (Feb 21, 2012)

~KK~ said:
			
		

> Is there a breeder directory on this site? I'm looking for breeders of pygmies, nigerian dwarfs, and fainters as close to Portland, OR as possible.


You could try 
Hoobly.com (I like it better than Craigslist which is another option)

Or visit associations sites like AGS, NDGA, NMGA to locate registered stock.


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## ~KK~ (Feb 21, 2012)

I totally made a powerpoint presentation on why our family should get goats, haha! I think it looks pretty good! Hopefully it works...


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