# Nubian Goats: What do I need to know?



## samssimonsays (Aug 24, 2015)

My hopes are to Move my herd towards a full Nubian herd, aside from my jumbled three starters that is, in the coming years. I am wanting a dairy with the option for meat breed and I hear that Nubians are strong milkers as well as double as a meat goat. 

My only concern is I live in Northern Minnesota and it is very cold here. Cold enough that everything shuts down due to subarctic temps numerous times through the months of January to March. Now, I am concerned about this because I have heard that Nubians get cold easily... I will not have a heated barn but I may be able to put in a heating lamp or coat or something. My plans are not to have babies until end of May-June to avoid the risk of frostbite as it seems to happen near me. 

I have heard about the G6S deal that Nubians can have but I am not 100% sure on what it is exactly as I am not 100% clear on the CL and CAE as well as anything else they need to be tested for or can get. I am leaning towards maybe seeing if we can add a yearling or doe in milk next year along with a buck but there is a lot of work to be done on fencing and a building for them. (We have an addition to my barn that needs to be redone for them yet but temporarily they have a shelter in the pen and will have a stall in the barn if the addition isn't fixed for them by winter. I have about 20 rabbits in the barn and usually they can keep pretty decent body heat in there (it is a 10x20 building) but it still drops below freezing only staying about 10 degrees warmer inside than out.

Does anyone have experience with the Nubian breed and have any advice for me with them? It would be greatly appreciated!    Thank you in advance for any advice.


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## mikiz (Aug 25, 2015)

No info personally, because I don't know your area, but you could email and ask either of these places:

http://www.poplarhillfarm.com/

http://www.baa-sifarmz.com/

They're both in Minnesota but I'm not sure how close to you, they might have some kids when you're ready too, and there's a goat association in your state as well, they might have some tips

http://minnesotagoats.org/


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## samssimonsays (Aug 25, 2015)

Thanks! I found a breeder about 4 hours from me and text them, they said they'd have bucklings available next spring but have yet to respond to me on what they test for and such.... Thank you so much for the links! I forget about that sort of thing with goats...


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## samssimonsays (Aug 25, 2015)

I just emailed the Baa-Si Farmz in hopes for some advice and pricing so I can get ready for him next spring. Looks like we will just be biuying him and selling after Tilda is bred... Sigh. Oh well. And will only have the 3 goats since I was only supposed to have 2 to start with.  Maybe one day...


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## mikiz (Aug 25, 2015)

Aw  I love Nubians they were always my favourite, so colourful and dainty, with a giant set of lungs, although my friend borrowed a buck for her girls when I was younger and my god he was ugly, never could work out where his eyes were, it was like he didn't have a face


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## samssimonsays (Aug 25, 2015)

Hahahaa that is hilarious!  I've never seen an ugly Buck but I'm sure there are plenty out there... same as with anything really


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## Vossfarm (Sep 2, 2015)

I bought my starter nubians from Tennessee, Bonnie Blue Farm, they're a grade A Cheese dairy and test for G6S, CAE, CL the works. My buck is am AI son of Warpaint Acres Superbuck, old lines that milk way better than the newer nubian lines. I've worked at dairies and milked lamanchas, toggs, obers and Saanens in addition to nubians. I'm sad to say, as much as I love them, the Nubians aren't great milkers anymore. So I've gone back to the older lines. Less than stellar conformation, shorter ears on some of them but those older lines are hardy and milky so I'm really happy with my new start.


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## samssimonsays (Sep 2, 2015)

Vossfarm said:


> I bought my starter nubians from Tennessee, Bonnie Blue Farm, they're a grade A Cheese dairy and test for G6S, CAE, CL the works. My buck is am AI son of Warpaint Acres Superbuck, old lines that milk way better than the newer nubian lines. I've worked at dairies and milked lamanchas, toggs, obers and Saanens in addition to nubians. I'm sad to say, as much as I love them, the Nubians aren't great milkers anymore. So I've gone back to the older lines. Less than stellar conformation, shorter ears on some of them but those older lines are hardy and milky so I'm really happy with my new start.


That is sad to know. I do not want any other breed aside from my alpine two. I simply would like the Nubians for their character and milk. Not major milking as it is just myself and my husband and I will already have 2 does for milking as well. My chances of getting a full Nubian doe are slim to none right now (hubby) but one day I would love a few of them. I don't want animals that will be sickly all the time though either... Lots to think about I guess.


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## Vossfarm (Sep 2, 2015)

Nubians aren't any more sickly than other purebred goats. I've found that the nicer the show lines the less hardy the goat (or chicken, horse, anything really) because when your goats are national champions and worth thousands you're much more likely to vet them and do whatever it takes to keep them alive, then they medicate, cocci prevent, bottle feed etc the next generation and they all thrive due to human intervention and soon you have some animals that need catering and babying to keep them alive. So I'm working with old school lines from the 70s back when they focused more on milk and even fed silage like they do the cows. These goats are much easier to keep, healthier, quieter, calmer and more milky than the ones I used to breed which were all the newest champion show lines and we're nearly suicidal lol.


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## samssimonsays (Sep 2, 2015)

Vossfarm said:


> Nubians aren't any more sickly than other purebred goats. I've found that the nicer the show lines the less hardy the goat (or chicken, horse, anything really) because when your goats are national champions and worth thousands you're much more likely to vet them and do whatever it takes to keep them alive, then they medicate, cocci prevent, bottle feed etc the next generation and they all thrive due to human intervention and soon you have some animals that need catering and babying to keep them alive. So I'm working with old school lines from the 70s back when they focused more on milk and even fed silage like they do the cows. These goats are much easier to keep, healthier, quieter, calmer and more milky than the ones I used to breed which were all the newest champion show lines and we're nearly suicidal lol.


Ok that is good to know. I do not intend to show. Just have family pets who are milkers, you know, the pets that give back to the family in product not just love    Shhh don't tell, "Pet" can be considered a bad word by some.  I have my rabbits for showing so no time for goat shows too LOL.


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## Pamela (Sep 3, 2015)

I love my nubians!  I only have 2 does, but I hand raised these girls (one from birth) when they were not being treated well by their moms.  Baby was the tiniest of the bunch, all 3 of my Nubians having kidded within a couple of hours of each other, and really couldn't get going at all.  I set up a goatling NICU in my living room and got to work.  Now a year later, she is super friendly, gentle, and inquisitive. We kept Baby and Oreo, another runty doeling, and sold all the others.  The batch that we sold were terrible fence jumpers!  We couldn't build a fence high enough to keep them in.  These 2 that we kept never even try the fences.  (Hopefully, they will stay that way!)  My daughter ended up with their cousins and they are fence jumping little boogers too!  If you are getting Nubians, get good fences, or you will never have a veggie garden, or flowers, or young trees!


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## babsbag (Sep 3, 2015)

Put a hot wire on that fence...they'll stay where they belong.


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## Pamela (Sep 3, 2015)

I would like to think a hot wire would be effective.  My doe's grandma would go right over or through hot wire.  She was an ornery girl!


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## babsbag (Sep 3, 2015)

I thought that Alpines win the ornery award but maybe not. Mine respect that wire so much that when we are working on a project and don't want their help we can run a wire and not even energize it, they stay away from it.

We have a 4' no climb fence with a hot wire at the top and at about 12" off of the ground.  They don't mess with it at all and the bite that the fence gives will sit me in the dirt in a hurry. IT HURTS.  Maybe you just needed a hotter fence.

Mine used to go on walk abouts but not any more.


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## samssimonsays (Sep 4, 2015)

I will have to find some that are raised closely with people to ensure they are "well mannered"  I know, I crack myself up, we are talking about goats! My oldest two (Nubian/Saanan mix and an Alpine) are pains in the rear and naughty little boogers but have not challenged a normal, 4' fence "YET" that is. The littlest one (Alpine) I can leave in a lean to gated pen and she will not challenge it. I am hopeful that when we are able to add a Nubian, or so, to the herd we will have our pen expanded substantially but my goats get to come out on the property and graze freely while we are home as it is now. 

In response to the respecting of the hotwire, I did put the dogs shock collar on the Alpine wether and he got a nice jolt when he went too close to the road. He remembers that boundary well. (we aren't going to run hotwire around the entire property for what short time they are out and about with us )


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## Vossfarm (Sep 5, 2015)

If it jumps out three times it goes bye bye, two years later I had goats that stayed in 2 wire barbed or twisted wire fences they could technically just duck through lol


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