Hello, from Spring Hope NC

[adlynch]

Hello Everyone!! I live on 15 acres in North Carolina. We have 18 chickens, 9 ducks, and 2 dogs. I would love to expand our "farm" by adding goats, but i want to make sure we are FULLY prepared before they arrive! I really dont know much about goats so any tips, tricks, or good books would be greatly appreciated!

p.s. I just ordered the "Goat Notes" e-book!

 

[CntryBoy777]

Welcome from NW Mississippi!!....
We have goats, chickens, ducks, and cats here on our 20acres. It sounds like ya have a good start and you are wise in doing research before adding goats. There are many decisions to be made before adding them to your place there. Having the proper set-up in place before getting them will make the acquistion much more enjoyable. There is a lot of info in the existing Threads and Forums, so feel free to browse around and make yourself at home. If ya come across something that spurs a question, comment, or advice feel free to jump right in and post away. We all love to see pics of animals and set-ups so don't hesitate in sharing them either. There are quite a few very good and knowledgeable goat breeders in NC, so it could be that ya may be fairly close to some of them. When it comes to breeds, it will certainly depend on your plans and reasons for having them, whether for dairy, meat, pets, or brush clearing. One of the most important things is to find a knowledgeable vet that knows about goats. I'm sure some of those members in NC will be able to point ya in the right direction.
Again.....

 

[Latestarter]

Greetings and welcome to BYH from NE Texas. Please make yourself at home. Browse around the various goat threads and you'll "meet" a lot of great goat folks and pick up a wealth of info and experience. Please consider putting at least your general location in your profile. Location is important when you ask for help as what works down south might not work as well up north.

 

[Poka_Doodle]

Greetings from Colorado. I think that makes like fifteen NC members. We could almost have a NC BYH meet up

 

[Southern by choice]

Welcome to BYH!
There are a bunch of us here from NC!

 

[Hens and Roos]

Welcome glad you joined us!

 

[norseofcourse]

Welcome from Ohio!

Just my two cents - don't worry so much about being *fully* prepared - you won't be. And that's not to be negative or anything, I mean that you can read and study all you want, you'll never be fully prepared. Just like new parents never are, no matter how many classes they take and books they read.

It will help a lot to read all you can, but remember there are many different ways of raising goats that work; some ways work better in some areas and for some situations than others. What will also help is finding a good vet who works with goats. Another especially good thing is to find a goat mentor near you, who can help you learn and answer questions - with luck whoever you get your goats from will be a good mentor for you as well.

Set aside an emergency fund for the goats, just in case.

I have sheep, but I think I feel about my sheep the same way a lot of people feel about their goats. I love having them, and I love learning more about them and how to take care of them. You never stop learning.

Good luck!

 

[OneFineAcre]

Welcome neighbor from right down the road in Zebulon NC
Goats are easy ...sometimes

 

[Bayleaf Meadows]

Welcome from Ohio!

Just my two cents - don't worry so much about being *fully* prepared - you won't be. And that's not to be negative or anything, I mean that you can read and study all you want, you'll never be fully prepared. Just like new parents never are, no matter how many classes they take and books they read.

Norse has a point. I thought I was all prepared and as soon as I brought my goats home, the littler ones walked right through the cattle panel fencing I had set up! The holes were large enough for a little nigie to go through. I added a section of tighter fencing at the bottom of the panels and all was well.

 

[adlynch]

Thanks for the warm welcome! So cool to see people on here from NC and all across the county. Thank you for all the info. I look forward to chatting with you guys and gals in the future!