All Things Goats

[Eliya Sage]

I realize i've given you all lots to think about, but i deeply thank ya'll for your suggestions, experienced tips, and past experience knowledge!

 

[Goat Whisperer]

Let me stop you at:

I know pretty much everyone hates bucks because they're almost all mean and aggressive,

This is NOT true.
We have 9 breeding bucks, we had two breeder Kiko bucks (but left last week) and a bunch of bucklings that are being raised up.

They are not mean. They are not aggressive. They are not crazy.
They are actually better behaved than most of my does. I can do anything to my bucks and I can turn my back on them and never have a worry. I love love love love my bucks. They are quite puppy-dog like LOL They are all easy to handle as well.

I took my one year old, 150# Nubian buck into the show ring myself (I'm 5' 5" and 100#) and handled him with ease. With just a collar. He was also bottle raised!

I love my bucks dearly, and I know many many other agree with me and have no issues.

All my kids are bottle fed as well (well, occasionally a doe will dam raise) and I've never had turn aggressive and everyone I've placed bucks with are very pleased with them. We have actually had several farms want our bucks specifically for their temperament (along with good looks and pedigree) several of those were never going to breed again, because they ended up with a wild or aggressive buck. After visiting and seeing our bucks they decided to give it another go. One of those farms has now gotten four bucks from me (all different lines) and love "their boys". If you raise them right you will not have issues. The temperament of the parent stock play a role in it as well.

I was nervous about getting a Nubian buck as I know a lady who was almost killed by one. When I went to the our Nubian buck's breeder I actually could go into the pen full of bucks and walk right up to my bucks sire and do anything I wanted (mess with his feet, boss him around, etc). His son (my buck) is the same way.

I encourage you to go visit breeders and look at bucks yourself. Talk to breeders and see what you like. Avoid breeders who have annoying, hi strung, fence jumping, or aggressive bucks.

Maybe I'll post some pics later. Our bucks are the biggest babies here on the farm.

 

[Goat Whisperer]

Also, you do not want to run your buck with the does. The milk WILL taste gross! Have you ever smelled a rutting buck? The milk will taste that way
Now we've had shared fence lines with no issues, but you don't want them living together.

But the bigger issue is that Nigerians breed year round. They can get pregnant days after kidding (I know someone who bred a doe 11 days after kidding ) and you do NOT want that. The does need time to recuperate before being re-bred. Also, bucks can absolutely breed their daughters at a young age. We have does cycling at 8-9 weeks old. You don't want your doelings getting bred that young. A neighbor down the road came out and found her 7 month old doe had just kidded- thankfully she lived- but that doe was bred around 8 weeks of age The owner was mortified and learned her lesson: don't run intact bucks with doelings!

 

[Goatgirl47]

We have our bucks in with our does and so far it has not affected the taste of the milk.

 

[Alaskan]

We have our bucks in with our does and so far it has not affected the taste of the milk.

Some bucks don't stink much off season, so only really change the taste of the milk after they turn stinky.

 

[Latestarter]

I just had my grandkids here and they tasted my goat's milk for the first time. They each had different reactions. One said it tasted weird, another said it was great and tasted "just like milk"... I can taste a very slight difference in flavor from store bought whole cow milk... not "goatie" really, just creamier... And the flavor does change a little over time based on whatever they've been eating. I notice it's sweetest/best tasting after they've been eating sweet gum leaves. It's a little different (not bad, just different tasting) after they've been eating oak leaves. Maybe due to the tanins in the oak leaves? I drink it raw, unpasteurized. I was buying raw cows milk (Jersey cows) from a nearby dairy and my goat milk tastes almost identical to that. (I would shake it up before use to re-mix the separated cream back in) It is soooooooooo good when it's ice cold

My goat milk comes from a Lamancha goat. The key from what I've been told is to filter it immediately and get it chilled even faster. The sooner you get it chilled, the better it will taste and the longer it will last (spoilage and flavor). I bring mine up to the house and filter it then refrigerate it shortly after I'm done milking. My goats all get their grain together after milking (morning/night) and I stand there and play referee until they've knocked off their major hunger fervor. Otherwise the herd queen starts doing a round robin possession thing between all three feed buckets, which gets everyone all worked up, not to mention the grain that gets spilled/wasted by tipping over buckets .

 

[Goatgirl47]

Some bucks don't stink much off season, so only really change the taste of the milk after they turn stinky.

I agree. Although I have had bucks in with my milking does during breeding season too, and still it did nothing to affect the taste of the milk. So saying, they were younger bucks, and I have heard that the older a buck gets, the stinkier he becomes.

 

[goats&moregoats]

Ok need to chime in just a bit. I do agree with not running bucks with does to avoid 2 things:
1) pregnancies at to young of an age for the does/too soon after kidding in any doe
2) unsupervised line breeding(father/daughter, mother/son etc.)
I did have a buck running with my does in the beginning but none were related at the time. It did not change the flavor of the milk.

My bucks were not aggressive, not even when in rut. They do seem to get stinkier when in rut as they mature. None of mine have been offensively stinky. I do not care to handle my males to much during rut, but that is just my preference. My bucks were as gentle as most of my does and even more gentle then a few. They followed me around like puppy dogs just as the does did. I spent just as much time with my males (out of rut season) as my females.

 

[Eliya Sage]

hmm, Wow, Thanks everyone! Much appreciated feedback!
Just wondering, has anyone ever tried like a diaper like thing to block the doe's rear from the buck, after she's kidded, until she's ready to breed again? maybe something designed to where poo can pass threw, but thats it?

 

[Latestarter]

Ummmmm based on that rear end structure (have you looked at it?) I don't see any real way to block the one entry while not blocking the exit... or something like that... If there's a hole for stuff to exit, I'm sure that a buck will find a way to enter.