Goat for beginners

[Roll farms]

I told my daughter today, that if I had to choose just one breed to keep (heaven forbid!!!), it'd probably be the Obs.
I like Nub personalities, but the Obs are just so sweet and polite.

 

[MrsCountryChick]

When we were researching a year before we got dairy goats the very 1st thing I knew is that LaManchas were weird looking & I didn't want them...........meanwhile we fell in love with a lil kid & that was it. Our herd has 4 LaManchas & while each has their own personality they are by far the most laid back. My Saanen is like a Heifer in size & is Quite the bully as herd Top Doe. My mini Nubian is by far the noisiest lil thing I'd ever heard. Screaming Maaaaaaaaaaa from across a field! And the Mini Nubian wasn't even on my list of wants, lol. Cuteness is irresistible, & it's very true you Can't judge a book by it's cover.

Good Luck on picking your herd!

 

[Hobby Farm]

We got our first goats about 4 months ago. We were in the same position as you trying to decide which breed is the best for our needs. We ended up getting and Oberhasli and a Saanen. As Roll Farms said, the Obe is very sweet. She is calm, quiet, and has turned out to be a great Mother with very good milk. Our Saanen is like a big dog. She always wants petted, and wags her tail when she gets attention. She is a good bit louder than the Obe. She is due to kid in a few weeks, so we'll see how she Mothers and milks. If I would have known then what I know now, I would have gotten two Obe's. Ours had a female kid, which we are going to keep, and are looking to buy another one soon. It's not that I don't like the Saanen, I just prefer the Obe. I am anxious to see how much milk the Obe produces in a few months when she hits her highest production.

 

[Ariel301]

I absolutely did not like the LaManchas when I first saw them. I was looking to buy a few does and saw that these were for sale. I had never heard of a LaMancha, so I did an internet search, and thought they were ugly. But the price was very, very good, so we got them.

I still think they are ugly. But their personalities make up for it. Ours have all been quiet except for one young doe we ended up selling. She would scream at the top of her lungs nonstop, and was always trying to escape. If she got out, she would run to the house and practically break the door down banging on it with her feet. Once she managed to get inside and ran through the house destroying things with us chasing her. When we put a lock on her gate she would try to open it, then have a weird crazy fit where she would throw herself at the fence, her shed, everything, just screaming. She would end up hurting herself. I think she was brain damaged. She went to be a companion for an injured old horse, and she still screams her head off, but the new owners don't mind it. Other than that one, ours have all been great goats. They are very affectionate, playful, and smart. They know what order they go in to be milked, and line up at the gate--they even chose the order they wanted, I just started by milking whoever I caught first--and they have stuck with that order for a year now. They are less stubborn than the Alpine we have, he knows what he wants, and if he does not get it RIGHT NOW he will have a fit. Unfortunately what he usually wants is to be picked up and held, like we did when he was a baby--it does not work so well with a 100 pound buck with 14 inch horns!

 

[RockyToggRanch]

hmmm.. reminds me of one of my sisters

 

[SDGsoap&dairy]

I've heard LaManchas are nice, but I'm sorry...their weird faces just freak me out.

Ditto!

 

[landis1659]

I'm new to goats also, I bought a buck first last Feb. he was 2 1/2 mos. when we got him. We played with him all the time, he was a lot of fun. But he was by himself for about another 2 1/2 mos. Then we finally found a female mate. They were both Saanens. Both were a lot of fun until the last few months. I didn't know about this site and didn't know much about raising goats. I bought a book but what it didn't tell me was what not to do when they are just kids. So anyway we all played with them all the time. Thought it was fun. But the problem was that when the get to be 100+ lbs and still want to play it get to rough and they can hurt you badly. We just recently had to get rid of our Buck because he kept getting loose. We separated them a couple of months ago because we were afraid that the female might be PG., and didn't want the to buck to hurt her. But he kept getting loose. I will say that our female is like others have said very sweet, just like a big dog, will follow you everywhere. I don't hear her until she sees me. Then she can be kind of noisy. I've read that the Saanen have the record for the most milk at one time but it's lower in fat. I'm hoping not so much as to effect using it for making cheese, butter & soap. Anyway I just wanted to worn you about playing with the babies. They're so cute when there young. I was told after the fact that playing with the bucks too much can cause problems when they are older. The females don't seem to be a problem. Good luck with what ever you choose, the guess I'm kind of parchell to the Saanens but thats all I have to go on.

 

[tracy]

Have you considered Angora goats? They are not dairy goats, but produce enough milk to raise their kids. They are reasonably small and easy to handle, and also produce mohair, which is a valuable fibre. As an addition, they are a good meat goat. And, finally, they are intelligent and curious, wonderful to have on the farm.

 

[Lil Chickie Mama]

I've heard LaManchas are nice, but I'm sorry...their weird faces just freak me out.

Ditto!

The heck you say? Tell me you couldn't love this face...

Well I like 'em anyway! Teeheehee

 

[Mammawannagoat]

I've heard LaManchas are nice, but I'm sorry...their weird faces just freak me out.

Ditto!

The heck you say? Tell me you couldn't love this face... http://i692.photobucket.com/albums/vv282/Dani_Girl0517/Buffy2.jpg

Well I like 'em anyway! Teeheehee

What a beautiful face...still looking at breeds. Really would prefer a milk goat over a meat goat. I do like the Angoras though.