# help choosing a dairy breed please



## zachbelle (Apr 26, 2014)

i am looking for a dairy goat origanally i wanted duel purpose but after a lot of research and info from my mom (who raises boers) i think im going to go with a few dairy does and use her boer buck to breed my meat kids. now the question is which dairy breed? we go thru almost a gallon on milk per day at my house so i need a high producer but i am also interested in learning to make cheese so from what i understand i need the butterfat...i have read saanens produce a very high quantity of milk but have a somewhat lower butterfat content. we are used to drinking 1.5% and skim from the grocery store so as faras drinking i think that would be fine but would i be able to make a good amount of cheese and butter from this? my first choice wasa nubian but from what i read thwy dont produve quite as much and as i said we go thru a gallon of milk a day just drinking and cereal etc meaning i need more than that in order to have enough to make cheese. i only plan on keeping two does this is purely for my own families needs. any thoughts? any other dairy breeds reccomended? any info would greatly help thank you.


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## OneFineAcre (Apr 26, 2014)

You are right. Saanens produce the most but Nubian's have higher butter fat.  But that isn't to say that you can't make cheese from Saanen milk.
We know people who have goat dairy and they have Saanens, Saanen type recorded grades, and Alpines. (Google  Spinning Spider Creamery)
Maybe that's you answer, get a Saanen x Nubian grade/


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## GLENMAR (Apr 26, 2014)

I have a nubian that will easily give a gallon a day. I think you need to find a good dairy bloodline.
Quality makes all the difference in production.


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## SkyWarrior (Apr 26, 2014)

I have LaManchas and I've had Saanens.  Both are awesome for milk and making cheese.


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## AshleyFishy (Apr 26, 2014)

One Nubian should give you a gallon a day and will have plenty of butterfat for cheese. I've had a snubian (nubian x saanen) before and was happy with her production levels but the milk wasn't sweet like the nubians. Some people swear by lamanchas for butterfat, I just cant get past the ears though. 

My favorite milkers of all time though are my two kinders! (nubian x grade "nigerian") as FFs one is producing a gallon easy and one 3/4th gallon. They are keeping weight muuuch better than my nubians did and bred to my mostly boer buck made some nice chubby babies.


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## SkyWarrior (Apr 26, 2014)

AshleyFishy said:


> Some people swear by lamanchas for butterfat, I just cant get past the ears though.



What ears?


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## zachbelle (Apr 26, 2014)

thank you i appreciate the replys kind of sounds like its all on preference and you wont know whats beat for you until you try different goats. thanks so much


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## woodsie (Apr 26, 2014)

whatever you choose, just make sure you look into the lines you are getting them from. Some Nubians will produce 1 liter a day, some 5 or 6 liters a day. Same goes with any breed, it is worth getting them from a source that you know is breeding for milk production not colours or pets.


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## SkyWarrior (Apr 26, 2014)

woodsie said:


> whatever you choose, just make sure you look into the lines you are getting them from. Some Nubians will produce 1 liter a day, some 5 or 6 liters a day. Same goes with any breed, it is worth getting them from a source that you know is breeding for milk production not colours or pets.



x2


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## OneFineAcre (Apr 26, 2014)

GLENMAR said:


> I have a nubian that will easily give a gallon a day. I think you need to find a good dairy bloodline.
> Quality makes all the difference in production.


x2


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## OneFineAcre (Apr 26, 2014)

woodsie said:


> whatever you choose, just make sure you look into the lines you are getting them from. Some Nubians will produce 1 liter a day, some 5 or 6 liters a day. Same goes with any breed, it is worth getting them from a source that you know is breeding for milk production not colours or pets.


x2


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## frustratedearthmother (Apr 27, 2014)

I have Nubians and Pygmys and have bred Kinders - a cross between a Nubian and a Pygmy.  A mini-Nubian is a cross between a Nubian and a Nigerian and I hear they are wonderful milkers also.  But, I have two Kinder does that are wonderful milkers.  They give alllllmooooost as much as my purebred Nubians and they are maybe 1/2 to 2/3 the size of Nubian.  They eat less and produce AWESOME milk.  Nubian milk is good - but Pygmy milk is like drinking a melted milkshake.  Kinder milk is right in between...it's sweet, has a high fat content and makes awesome cheese too.


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## stitchcounting (Apr 28, 2014)

I just going to say what I perfer by taste since I don't raise any and probably won't. La mancha and nubian cheese is my fav and depending on what are you plans you can offer to restaurants depending on your location.


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