Are Pygmy/Nigerian Dwarf goats good with kids?

[browneyebuttafly]

Hi, I'm new to this site although I've been a member of backyardchickens.com for awhile now. We are wanting to pick up 2 goats that are Pygmy/Nigerian dwarf mix. They are 8 weeks old. She wants them gone asap and if I want them I have to get them today. She's selling them for $50 each. I've already picked some chickens up from her the other day and got to see them in person. They were very sweet, but I'm wondering if their gentle nature will continue through adulthood. I have toddlers and do not want aggressive animals. I'll be doing alot of research within the next few hours before picking them up. Any help would be appreciated. In the meantime, I'll be reading on here. All goats are the same to raise as far as food etc....right? Thanks!!!

 

[Chirpy]

Welcome to BYH!!!

I have Nigis and have 8 kids of all ages (the youngest were 3 when we got the goats) and have other young children here regularly. My goats are just wonderful with everybody... as long as they are taught from a young age to not rub, jump, stand on people there should be no problems.

Never pet a goat on their head as that can cause them to lean into your hand which can cause them to butt or push as they get older... that leads to problems. Don't allow them to do anything as a kid that you don't want a 40 to 80 lb. goat doing as an adult. (Just like a puppy.)

You didn't say but I'm guessing you are getting two wethers according to the price you are paying. Make sure they are wethered... you do NOT want a buck.

Any animal can get aggressive as they age but it's rare. If they are sweet now and are handled properly they should always be sweet and safe with your human kids.

If they are wethers you do not want to feed them alfalfa hay or grain. Read up on UC (urinary calculi) in goats to learn how to stop it from happening.

Get them and have tons of fun!!

Oh.. I wanted to add.. do they have horns? I personally highly suggest you not having horned goats with little kids. Even the nicest goat can swing their head around and take out an eye or do other damage to a person with no malice intended.

 

[cmjust0]

If they're does or wethers, they shouldn't be aggressive...intact bucks can be, but even that just sorta depends on what you mean by "aggressive."

Worst we've ever had was somewhat pushy, and that was only from an intact buck in full rut.

As far as the "care and feeding" stuff goes, it's not so much an "all goats are the same" situation with regard to breed as it is with sex and life stage..

For instance, let's say you keep a doe and a wether.. When the doe's open and isn't in lactation, the requirements for her care and for the wether's care will be similar.

But then you breed her...as she hits late gestation, kidding, and full lactation, her needs are going to be significantly different from the wether's.

 

[browneyebuttafly]

I believe both are males. When we were there getting some Silkie chickens..I had no intentions on getting goats so I didn't really pay attention when she said what sex. I do know for sure that one of them is a male because she said she neutered him. She said "look, he's starting to shrivel" lol! Looked like she put a band around 'them'. She de-budded them but was showing me that one of the babies horns have started growing back. If anybody can point me in the direction of a link that tells all on how to raise them because I'm having a hard time on here. Thanks