# Pros and cons...Nubians or Nigerian Dwarfs?



## Cooperkeeper

I am new to goats and have been hanging around BYH's for a few weeks.  Thought I had made up my mind on the breed as I have met a wonderful women who has raised Nubians for 20 years.  She is wealth of information and many goat owners in our area call her with questions rather that our local large animal vet. So if I go with her beauties, I would have a great support throughout by new venture.   My plan is to have just enough milk for our family of 4 to drink as well as some for soap making.  I like the higher fat content of the Nubs for soap but have recently been reading more from all of you about your Nigis.  I do not want to find myself with more milk than I can utilize..though chickens would love to help out I'm told. Also, smaller breed seems like it could be easier to handle and maybe less hard on fences as well as requiring less space.  I would value all opinions on the matter.


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## ksalvagno

Having someone that knowledgeable is a great bonus. Plus if you are close enough, would she let you use her bucks? It really depends on you. If you got 2 Nubians, then you are probably looking at about 2 gallons a day of milk. You could certainly freeze some, feed other animals with it along with drinking it, making cheese, making ice cream and soap making. 

I have Nigerians and love them. They are very manageable and I do like their smaller size. Also, I'm not good at just keeping a couple of anything so I can have several Nigerians as opposed to a couple of Nubians. I have plenty of milk from the Nigerians for my needs but at this point, I'm not making soap or cheese.

If there is a Nigerian Dwarf farm near you, then I would suggest seeing both breeds and decide what you like best.


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## Cooperkeeper

Thanks Karen.  I have not been able to find a Nigerian farm nearby, but am still looking.  

I know having the Nubian breeder so close, and so eager to help me learn is valuable.  We have the space for the larger breeds as well.  the "mouthy Nubbies" I am reading about here is a little worrisome, but I know many people love them despite the noise!


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## mabeane

I have had both Nubians and Nigies. By far I like the Nigies better. Their milk has a higher butterfat. They are friendly and easy keepers. We get enough milk for our needs. I enjoyed my Nubians but they gave us far too much milk and they were also quite vocal.


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## Chirpy

I have both Nigis and Nubians so I'll just offer my personal comments and observations:

Nubians - although they are known for their vocalness my two Nubian girls are very quiet.   I think mine are in the minority in that area from what I hear from others.  My Nubians are very sweet but not 'in your face'.   I love having them come up, gently, next to me and want my attention.  One of my Nubian does gives me over a gallon and a half of milk a day, the other gives me over a gallon a day.   They are both really easy to milk but come from great milking lines.  

Nigis - my three Nigis are very needy for physical attention!   They HAVE to be petted when I'm nearby and they will paw at my leg to get that attention. (I have allowed that so it's my fault; but I'm ok with it.  I don't allow my large goats to act like that.)   If we are outside working - they are right there getting into everything we do (mine free range when we are home).  Two of them love to jump onto our truck (and any other vehicles that are available - so they have to be locked up when we have company); if the door is open.. they jump into the vehicle.   Milking Nigis can be a next to impossible challenge if they haven't been bred from great milking lines.  Those little bitty teats may be so tiny that you have to milk with two fingers... really not fun.   However, if you spend the time and money to get a doe from proven good milk lines they can be much easier to milk. I can't imagine a Nigis teats ever being as large and easy to milk as a full size dairy breed but lots of people milk them daily.  I don't milk mine since their teats are so small and my large dairy goats all have wonderful teats.

I found that fencing my Nigis was harder than fencing my large breed goats.  The Nigis go under the fence anywhere they can find a small spot to squeeze through.   The larger goats cannot get under the fences.  Thus, our large goat area is fenced with chain link fencing that has 2x4 boards stapled to it across the bottom to keep the Nigis in and across the top to keep the large breeds from leaning over the top.  When the large breeds stand on the fence, they can bend the wire so things like 2x4 welded wire would break under the strain.    Goats do love to rub against fencing... the heavier the goat the harder they are on the fence.   I have noticed that my Nigis rub against the fencing far more often than my large breeds.  I don't know if that's common or just at my house.

I love both breeds for different reasons.


Having someone to get help from is a huge and valuable blessing so keep that in mind.


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## DonnaBelle

Well, I really like my Nubians.  I have them out in a barn about 50 ft. from the back of my house.  

I will say this, no one can have just 2 Nubians.  It seems like they are very similar to potato chips.

My Nubians have never been that noisy, but then, I like the sounds of all my animals.  I would be a nervous wreck in a city, with all that noise.   If I go to Dallas to visit, I can hardly wait to get home to the peace and quiet of the ranch.

Remember, you have been warned about the goats increasing in numbers!! LOL.

DonnaBelle


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## Ariel301

Nubians have a reputation (and earn it!) for being very noisy. So if you or your neighbors would be annoyed by them being loud, they might not be a good choice unless you can find individuals that are known to be very quiet. However, they should produce more milk than Nigerians, if the Nubians come from good milking bloodlines. Good full size dairy goats should give about a gallon of milk per day if you are milking twice a day. Nigerians make a half gallon or less. They can also be more difficult to milk because they have small udders with small teats, which can be a challenge for people with large hands or people who are just learning to milk.

You can always make cheese or yogurt from the extra milk if you can't drink it all.


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## SDGsoap&dairy

I have Nigerians.  I had a Nubian for a few months, then traded her with a friend for another Nigerian.  Ours was extremely loud and I couldn't take it.  

Chirpy is right that not all Nigerians are created equal in terms of milking potential.  There are a whole lot of pet quality Nigerian and Nigerian crosses out there (because they make great pets!) that would make milking a real chore for minimal production.  If milk is your ultimate goal you'll want to choose your does carefully from proven lines.  Our top producers milk close to 4 lbs per day (half gallon) and the milk is creamy and delicious.  I also feel like they are much easier keepers than the Nubian was.

Good luck in your search!


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## SDGsoap&dairy

Ariel301 said:
			
		

> Nigerians...can also be more difficult to milk because they have small udders with small teats, which can be a challenge for people with large hands or people who are just learning to milk.


*Some* Nigerians have small udders and small teats.  Some have big giant udders with large teats and wide open orifices that flow with the gentlest squeeze... 







I've milked those two finger first fresheners and it's NOT fun.  Lots of pet quality Nigerians or Nigerian/Pygmy crosses have what look like permanent ff teats and won't give you a quart per day.  But there are good dairy Nigis out there...


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## dkluzier

We have nubians and as others have pointed out, they are very vocal and I have told neighbors that if they hear these weird noises coming from our farm... it is NOT humans but goats.  We have a freshener that is giving us a gallon a day of nice rich milk.  The only other goats we are milking are kinders - nubian/pygmy cross and their milk is even richer, fatter  and sweeter than nubian.  Maybe you should think about a mini-nubian, which is a cross of nubian and nigi??


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## Roll farms

When you visit her farm, notice which does are loudest and DON'T take a kid from them.  

I have some of the 'quiet' Nubs....All descended from our herd Matriarch, Dolly.  Mine are vocal at milking time, but not obnoxiously so.

I never understood what people complained about w/ Nubians being loud, until I bought a new doe this winter.  She was not just loud, she was a SCREAMER...the entire time I was in the barn until I got her milked she'd scream, and then start it back up when I put her back in the stall. 

I sold her a few mos ago and it's quiet here again....except for the Toggs.  

I've never owned a Nigi, because we use a lot of milk.  Like others have said, if you go Nigi, ask to see milking records and buy from a dairy line, w/ big, productive udders and teats.


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## chandasue

You might want to consider buying one that's a few years old, has kidded a couple of times AND been milked by hand. It really helps to have goats that know the routine when you're learning how to milk, especially ones with smaller teats. You won't really know how much milk Nigis are going to produce until their 3rd kidding and those teats need to be milked to stretch to a comfortable length. If you get a first freshener you might be disappointed in the amount of milk. We're a family of 3 and I soon discovered that 2 nigerians was not enough milk for us once I started making soap and cheese. Drinking wise it was plenty but if you get into cheese, yogurt and ice cream you'll discover you need a lot more milk.


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## ThreeBoysChicks

I have not milked yet, but have a Nubian that I hope to breed later this year.

I had same questions as you.  Visited a couple of goat farms and decided on the Nubian.  I am a man with large hands and I was concerned that me trying to milk a NIGI might be difficult.  My Nubian is very quiet.


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## whetzelmomma

I have had both. I'll not own a Nubian again. Too pushy, and too noisy. I love my Nigerians, and that I can have a "herd" (I'll have about 5 when I'm finished building my herd) in a much smaller space than I could have the same number of Nubians. 

In regards to the teat size, you get used to them. I also own a Henry Milker for those teats that give me troubles... inexpensive, and easy to use.

ETA: Another thing to note: For the same amount of milk, you'll get twice as much cheese/butter out of a Nigerian than a Nubian, because of the higher butter fat. I haven't gotten to this stage yet, but this is what I'm told by someone that DOES make cheese and has used Nigerian AND Nubian milks.


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## freemotion

It is just my husband and I, and before getting our first dairy goat, we probably used 2-3 quarts of milk a week.  Our first Alpine gave us a consistent 3 quarts a day and peaked at a bit over a gallon a day.

It was not enough.  I will be milking 4 does this year, and this is only my third season.   I discovered the joys of making cheese.

We use so much more milk than ever in everything!  Soap, cheese (not just chevre....in fact, I find chevre to be rather boring and don't make it anymore), kefir, yogurt, dressings and dips, ice cream, chowders, pudding, popsicles made with pudding and ice milk, hot chocolate, chocolate milk, milk and cookies......Raw milk from pastured goats is a superior health food, too.  I noticed my digestive system went back to super-cranky when my doe was dry for the latter part of her second pregnancy here, so the next time I froze lots of her milk and doled it out like a miser. 

Now my mouth is watering after typing all that.  My big producer just freshened on Monday and I can't wait until she is done producing colostrum.  Meanwhile, the pigs are getting fat on it.  They will also get several gallons of whey per week from cheesemaking.

Bottom line, I would go with the Nubians, personally.


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## helmstead

I have Nubians and Nigerians.

I also apparently have the quiet variety of Nubians...  Thank goodness for that.  My Nigis are only loud at feeding time, but I have a couple Nigis that have this maaaa that makes your ears ring it's so loud and obnoxious...

Ease of milking, as it has been mentioned, varies GREATLY by bloodlines even in the big girls (who cares if your doe makes over a gallon a day if she has tiny orifices and takes you 20 minutes of hand cramps to milk!).  So, shop wisely!


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## SDGsoap&dairy

helmstead said:
			
		

> (who cares if your doe makes over a gallon a day if she has tiny orifices and takes you 20 minutes of hand cramps to milk!)


EXactly.  Or who cares if her teats are 8 inches long if it's like a pin prick in a water balloon!   I swear one of our Nigerians has such nice orifices that she flows like a garden hose.   I love milking her!  I'd love milking her more if she didn't flop her fat belly onto the stand EVERY time she spooks at the slightest noise, but that's another matter altogether.


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## KellyHM

I have both and so far I like the attitudes of the Nubians better.  My Nubians are much quieter and calmer than the Nigerians.  You would think the Nigerian boys were dying the way they scream for attention.    The Nigerians are also a lot pushier, harder to pen (b/c they squeeze through anything), etc.  However, they eat a lot less (big plus for limited space) and still provide a good amount of  milk.  I love their colors and blue eyes, but if I only had to pick one I would stick with my Nubs.


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## julieq

We've had both nubians and nigerians in the past and gave up the nubians and stuck with the nigerians.  DH is disabled with degenerative disc disease and although our nubians were all bottle raised and very friendly, they can tend to haul a person around a bit.  The nigerians are much easier for us to care for.  The nubians were loud, but we've got one nigerian buck in the barn who's louder still.

We find the nigerian kids much easier to sell, either locally or via air shipments.  As far as milkability, it depends on the nigerians in question.  DH, who is over six foot and has good sized hands, helps milk our FF does without any problems.  We have a tall milk stand with a ramp  that's at waist level so he doesn't have to bend over.  

We currently have two nigerian FF's in milk and one mini togg and we're getting between 1-1/2 to 2 gallons of milk per day, which is more than we need, even with bottle feeding kids.


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## KathyCo

I love the way Nubians look.  If I had read this forum before I got my  Nubian goat I may have changed my mind but my girl only bawls now and then when she wants attention but quiets down quickly. 
My fences are more suited to a full size goat and I wanted something I could see from my deck - I think small goats would look like spots in the distance.  Now that my girl kidded I am double glad because the babies were small enough to require we shore up a bit under the gates in their stalll but mini babies would have required major work to keep safe.  Plus we have a lot of vegitation we want them to eat!
Smaller goats are very cute and maybe when I am older and can't handle a full size goat I will look into them, but I like the big ones with floppy ears for now.


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## AlaskanShepherdess

I have Nigies and love them, but I have heard that the crosses (Nigie x Nubian or whatever) often tend to get the best of both breeds. So don't forget to look into those as well.


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## pirtykitty

I was wondering how many kids the two breeds can have.. the dwarf nigerian & the dwarf nubian

I read somewhere and can't find it again that one of them could have 1-6 kids..


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## Goatmasta

I have both and what it comes down to for me is $'s....    Nigis cost about $175/head/yr to keep and produce on average 3-4lbs/day..  
  Nubians cost about $600/head/yr to keep and average 6-8lbs/day...

  For me the cost/lbs of milk Nigerians are the way to go since it cost 3x as much to keep a Nubian and you only get 2x the milk.  And you can get more freshenings out of the Nigerians since they can be bred year round and Nubians cannot.


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## theawesomefowl

If I was getting a dairy goat, I'd get a Nubian. I just LOVE the ears, and I'm enjoying my wether!
Nigis are nice too though; they're sweet little goaties.


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