Goat housing

[Southern by choice]

Yes there is a range however I do not know of any mini breeders that have mini's producing 1 qt a day they would be culls. Again it would depend on the breed and freshening... but never seen a FF producing only 1 qt.

Kinda like with the Nigies. I can't stand it when some one says they don't give a lot of milk and then you have the extreme of some saying that the norm is 1/2 gallon a day.

Most places I read say nigies give an average of a quart a day but you and I know that there are many Nigies that give well and above that.

 

[goatgurl]

while the others discuss the pro's and con's of different breeds i want to go back to the importance of where and how you set your barn. i live on the Oklahoma/Arkansas border and almost all of our bad storms come from the west or southwest so the wide door to my barn opens to the southeast. that keeps the hard driving rains and snow out of where the does bed down. i don't use sleeping platforms for the girls simply because i am afraid that copperheads would use the underside of the platforms for their beds. the barn sits up just a little so the water drains away from instead of into the barn. there are large trees over it for shade. you know how hot it gets here in the summertime. i started using the deep litter method when i lived in w.va. it got pretty cold there and it worked well for me and i have continued using it here, just easier for me. i usually leave it in place for a couple of years and then put it all on the garden. in the summer i use fly predators to keep the fly population down. if i had a barn that had a solid floor i probably wouldn't but with a dirt floor it drains well and works for me. you will have to do a trial and error thing and see what works for you.

 

[babsbag]

@Bossroo I don't usually participate in money losing ventures so I am not too worried about my Nigi purchase. This is the way it works, I have to have my dairy goats freshen; I don't show my goats so no one is going to come looking for my goats on name alone; I will have 30-50 kids born here every year and many people like small animals of any kind, not just ones that produce milk; there are many many pet goats where I live. The minis are a rage right now and it may or may not stick around, and mini Alpines are not that common, what is what I will have. All I have invested in this is the purchase of one buckling which was really a trade so I have nothing to lose and I can bet that a teeny little Alpine will be easier to sell than a standard. I have a few Alpines I will breed to my standard buck with the intent of keeping any doelings but the majority of the does are having kids because that is what they have to do to make milk. I would be crazy to not try and ride this wave and I see no possible way that is will be a losing venture.

 

[annabelle333]

I like the idea of trying all three! I will start with two Nigies first though...we are a small family and don't need a lot of milk...

 

[annabelle333]

while the others discuss the pro's and con's of different breeds i want to go back to the importance of where and how you set your barn. i live on the Oklahoma/Arkansas border and almost all of our bad storms come from the west or southwest so the wide door to my barn opens to the southeast. that keeps the hard driving rains and snow out of where the does bed down. i don't use sleeping platforms for the girls simply because i am afraid that copperheads would use the underside of the platforms for their beds. the barn sits up just a little so the water drains away from instead of into the barn. there are large trees over it for shade. you know how hot it gets here in the summertime. i started using the deep litter method when i lived in w.va. it got pretty cold there and it worked well for me and i have continued using it here, just easier for me. i usually leave it in place for a couple of years and then put it all on the garden. in the summer i use fly predators to keep the fly population down. if i had a barn that had a solid floor i probably wouldn't but with a dirt floor it drains well and works for me. you will have to do a trial and error thing and see what works for you.

Thanks goatgurl- that is all good practical advice for the location and I had never thought about the snakes underneath...all good things to consider!!!

 

[Ridgetop]

Babsbag: You are looking at it from the right perspective. You haven't invested a lot in a bunch of "trendy" goat does hoping to make money. The kids from your ND buck will be for sale which means you are reaping the benefits of your milking does output in the dairy. Don't forget that each standard dairy kid needs 2 qts day of either milk or replacer till weaned, while you will probably be feeding your ND x's a lot less. Milk = money in a dairy and bucklings are considered trash in a dairy SO if you can sell your ND x wethers as pets for more than bucklings bring for meat at the auction, you have just increased your profit line. Win- win for you, since if it doesn't pan out you can sell the ND buck and you haven't lost his purchase price -he was a trade!If or when minis or ND x's are no longer popular as pets you have not invested anything and your dairy is still flourishing.
Good thinking Babsbag - excellent business idea.

 

[Bossroo]

One day you are an expert on sheep, the next day cattle, the next rabbits and then horses.

Seems one time your necropsied a killer whale didn't you?

Now, you are telling folks what kind of goats they should buy?

You are a real jack of all trades. '

Master of none?

Master of none?[/QUOTE]Why thank you acre ! The jack of all trades credit goes to almost 3/4 of a century years of experience of FOR PROFIT farming and the IRS rules and regulations stating that one has to make a profit in 2 out of 4 years of doing business, or be considered a hobby therefore expenses can not be deducted. Since I can't afford an expensive farming hobby, I choose to make a profit and hopefully help others in areas that they may not even have considered. Oh yea, yes I did necropsy a killer whale.

 

[OneFineAcre]

You forgot that.

 

[OneFineAcre]

@Bossroo

So you say. You can be anything you want on the internet.

Then you are old enough to remember what a nattering naybob of negativity is then?
Bet you never thought you turn out to be one did you?

Have you ever posted a positive comment on this forum? You seem to take great pleasure in criticizing what others are doing.

And also, what you said about Nigerians is incorrect. While we are a hobby we actually do pretty well with ours.

Is that the source of your bitterness? That you were not successful enough in life to afford a hobby farm like many on this forum?

Maybe your friends just didn't know what they were doing? Or maybe they just listened to you to much.

 

[goatgurl]

@Bossroo and @OneFineAcre at the risk of sticking my nose in and getting it snapped off do you two really have to keep sniping at each other on a public forum? annabelle333 is just trying to get some question answered.