Choosing a breed for a small property

[Bosky]

In less than two months (counting down!) we are moving to a small property, about one acre. It may not be much by some standards but it is OURS, paid in full! I know I'm getting chickens -- I've had chickens before and miss them terribly. I'm also considering adding goats, for milk mostly. We don't need a ton of milk, we're not big milk drinkers, but enough to use a little everyday and to make cheese and yogurt. The goats won't have a big space -- they will have to share our acre with a big vegetable garden and enough yard leftover for family use. So I've mostly been looking at the small breeds, so they'll have a little more space (comparatively) to run. Also, although I love horses and big dogs, I also know smaller animals are generally easier to handle and deal with, especially around kids (we don't have any, but hope to). From here the questions start...

I love the idea of tiny goats for our tiny farm so I've been looking into Nigerian dwarfs. Then, I'm hearing they are not as easy to milk because of their size. How much of a difference does this make really? I'm a dead beginner when it comes to milking (but good with my hands, usually). And I also heard someone say they don't milk for as long after kidding as some other goats. Is that true? I do know I should be looking for animals from dairy lines, not just show/pet.

I would love to hear from ND owners on these or any other issues. If not NDs I might consider one of the mini breeds or even full-size, but don't even know where to start on those. It seems every breed has its fans who claim they are the most docile/most personable/best in every way and good luck narrowing it down! They are ALL adorable as far as I'm concerned... I admit LaManchas would take a little getting used to but I'm sure I could! We do have neighbors on either side so hearing Nubians are noisy might be an issue... but then our neighbors have roosters so maybe not. Any owners of MULTIPLE breeds want to weigh in on personality or other differences between them?

Given I want goats primarily as family dairy animals, I thought about just getting grade goats or whatever good milking goats I come across first. But, the thought of having to do SOMETHING with the baby goats makes me think it might be a better idea to get good purebred goats. Am I right in thinking the babies would be in more demand and easier to sell/rehome? I admit the idea of even making a little extra cash down the line by selling the kids (I mean, the goat kids) is not unappealing, though from having raised other animals I know better than to count my chickens before they hatch or expect a profit at the end of the day. (Even before labor hours are factored in!)

Well, anyway, enough questions for now, please weigh in if you have thoughts for me. I have a ton of experience with a lot of animals but I'm a newbie when it comes to goats. Thanks!!

 

[glenolam]

I'm a large breed person myself, but there are a ton of nigerian owners who love love love them and have no problems milking. Of course, you have to get used to their tiny teats, but once you master that you're fine.

A mini-Nubian (nubian/nigerian cross) or kinder (nubian/pygmy cross) may result in larger teats for easier milking.

Congratulations on the property!!

 

[jodief100]

I admit the idea of even making a little extra cash down the line by selling the kids (I mean, the goat kids)

Some days I would like keep the goat kids and sell the human kids.

I only have 1 milk goat, the rest are meat goats. My milk goat is a LaMancha, a little smaller than some of the full size ones and I really like her. She is very easy to milk but it may be just her.

I have heard good things about ND's as well. No personal experience.

 

[Roll farms]

Oberhaslis are also small(ish), super smart, sweet, quiet.....I <3 Obs.

 

[Emmetts Dairy]

I have a large dairy breed as well. But mini nubians would work well I think. Nubians are good milkers as stated.

BTW Welcome to BYH!!

 

[SDGsoap&dairy]

Congratulations! An acre to call your own is nothing to scoff at, that's for sure!

I milk my nigerians. I'll admit, our Nubian was easier to milk in terms of teat size but to me it wasn't worth the trade offs associated with her mouth. That is, how much grain had to go in it and how much noise came out of it! I know the noisiness isn't everyone's experience but let me tell you, my 6 nigis PUT TOGETHER don't make that much noise. But, like the Loch Ness monster, I hear tell of the existence of quiet Nubians...

Just be mindful about finding a doe with good production and workable teat size. Not all of them do have tiny teats. If you're starting with a doe kid then you'd want to look for these things in her genetic background.

You're right, every breed has something appealing. It's just a matter of finding what fits your needs/preferences. I've found Nigerians to be easy to handle, efficient with feed, easy to house, and a whole heck of a lot of fun.

Good luck with your search!

 

[SDGsoap&dairy]

Oberhaslis are also small(ish), super smart, sweet, quiet.....I <3 Obs.

If we ever add a full sized doe it'll be an Ob...

 

[chandasue]

I have a few ND's and I do love them. Yes be sure to get them from a milking line and better to start out with goats that have been bred and handmilked before so they know what's expected of them. Mine are decent milkers as ND's go but not outstanding by any means. I get about 6 months out of them and then they dry up. You can stagger breeding to have milk year round from 2 good milkers. However it's not enough milk for us now that I've learned how to make cheese so we're getting a lamancha soon. The teats are different to milk than a standard so be sure to have a breeder show you how to handmilk them. It's more like thumb and 2 fingers rather than using your whole hand.

 

[PattySh]

I have mostly grade does. My oberhasli/alpine milked over a gallon a day in her first lactation. She is pretty small but her teats are not and she is awesome to milk. My mininubian also has large teats and milks awesome but only 1/2 gal a day(1st lactation) but rich milk that made great cheese and excellent ice cream. She is really quiet natured. I have a Nigerian but she has never milked more than 2 cups a day (after weaning her young, we never milked her from day one) She also stopped milking pretty quickly. My full size goats we had to dry off after breeding. Might I suggest possibly two full size goats that milk good or are from good milkers, make sure on small acreage that you don't inherit fence jumpers, or a goat so spoiled she is a screamer. Also taste the milk if the goat is milking. 3 mistakes I made years ago. One plus from purebreds is that the kids will sell for lots more if the breed sells well in your area. Although nice well taken care of grade doelings dewormed and with shots etc are definately wanted around here, not all people can afford the registered prices.

 

[BetterHensandGardens]

I went thru the process of selecting a goat breed last spring and settled on the Nigerian Dwarfs. A couple of good milking ND can keep a family supplied in milk thru the year and they're good for small areas. I wrote a bit about why they make a good selection here: http://www.betterhensandgardens.com/2010/09/15/nigerian-dwarf-goats/

We now have three and are really happy with them so far. They're not old enough to breed (have milk) yet, but we decided to go with pedigreed goats from good milking lines both to help insure a good milk supply and help with the sale of kids in the future. For understanding the pedigree (milking potential), I tried to explain that here: http://www.betterhensandgardens.com/2010/12/22/understanding-goat-pedigrees/

Hope the information helps and good luck on finding the perfect goats - they are great to have around.