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- #61
savingdogs
Overrun with beasties
He is supposed to be three months old and I did wonder about the size myself, but I guess I was running with the thought that perhaps we should purhase a buck and resell a month or so later.
How to find the right buck for my does....time is now!
- Thread starter savingdogs
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- #62
savingdogs
Overrun with beasties
Now we are looking to buy a 3-year-old Nigerian dwarf buck. We hope to re-sell him in a month or two when he has done his business here.
Thank you for all the imput!
Thank you for all the imput!
SDGsoap&dairy
Loving the herd life
This has been a FANTASTIC thread, lots of great points made. But there is still something in the original post I'd like to see fleshed out by the experts.
She clearly stated that her goal IS to break even. Considering the costs involved with keeping/breeding goats, selling mutt kids with supernumerary teats might not cut it. This isn't a value judgement about mutt kids with 4 or 6 or whatever number of teats, BTW, I'm just questioning whether those kids would be consistent with her previously stated breeding goal. I have a suspicion that some of the statements made about backyard/hobby/pet herds are mutually exclusive to breaking even (which is perfectly FINE if this isn't your goal...)
We're just starting out ourselves, so I'm not an expert by any stretch of the imagination, but it seems to me that the only way to break even or make a profit is to have very clear breeding goals whether the kids are mutts or FB. Maybe you have some crosses that are fantastic milkers and can market to people looking for goats that can MILK and don't need a fancy pedigree. Or, maybe you have some percentage goats that can produce excellent market wethers. Or desirable bloodlines... Either way the original post seemed like it was about improving the herd in order to prevent the goats from being a money pit or am I way off base?
OK, that's not at all phrased like a question, but there is a question in there somewhere.
This is our first year with goats (all registered but with widely differing monetary values) and I'm keenly interested to hear folks weigh in on "making money back on breeding and disbudding costs, etc." because I'm continually surprised at the (unexpected) costs of starting from scratch. I'm having a hard time envisioning breaking even if all your does are "mutts" or registered and you're selling kids for $50 or even $75 just often enough to keep them in milk (even if everyone remains disease free). If it is possible PLEASE let me know... 
Thoughts? Opinions?
There was a great discussion about the needs of a mutt/backyard herd vs a FB/registered herd but my take was that the opinions about the needs of a backyard type breeder were somewhat incongruous with this statement in the original post.savingdogs said:
She clearly stated that her goal IS to break even. Considering the costs involved with keeping/breeding goats, selling mutt kids with supernumerary teats might not cut it. This isn't a value judgement about mutt kids with 4 or 6 or whatever number of teats, BTW, I'm just questioning whether those kids would be consistent with her previously stated breeding goal. I have a suspicion that some of the statements made about backyard/hobby/pet herds are mutually exclusive to breaking even (which is perfectly FINE if this isn't your goal...)
We're just starting out ourselves, so I'm not an expert by any stretch of the imagination, but it seems to me that the only way to break even or make a profit is to have very clear breeding goals whether the kids are mutts or FB. Maybe you have some crosses that are fantastic milkers and can market to people looking for goats that can MILK and don't need a fancy pedigree. Or, maybe you have some percentage goats that can produce excellent market wethers. Or desirable bloodlines... Either way the original post seemed like it was about improving the herd in order to prevent the goats from being a money pit or am I way off base?
OK, that's not at all phrased like a question, but there is a question in there somewhere.
This is our first year with goats (all registered but with widely differing monetary values) and I'm keenly interested to hear folks weigh in on "making money back on breeding and disbudding costs, etc." because I'm continually surprised at the (unexpected) costs of starting from scratch. I'm having a hard time envisioning breaking even if all your does are "mutts" or registered and you're selling kids for $50 or even $75 just often enough to keep them in milk (even if everyone remains disease free). If it is possible PLEASE let me know... Thoughts? Opinions?
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- #64
savingdogs
Overrun with beasties
Yes, you were correct about my original post...I don't want to spend any more money on the goats here than I have to in order to get milk....although I DO care about their health and happiness. One thing going in my favor is practically unlimited forage 3/4 of the year, so I can feed them more cheaply (despite hay being very expensive here) except for winter.
The current plan I'm going with to try to get a good sire at a cheap price is this:
I'm looking at a nigy stud today, three years old, a kid's grown up 4H project who has already fathered enough babies for them.
I plan to keep him for two months and try to sell him at the end of two months for the same price I bought him for or close to it. I already have some fencing and a little hut-building I got for free, so there is no money involved in that and I will buy him some hay and pellets but other than that no other real expenses except travel costs and labor.
We have only had goats a year so we are going to evaluate this goat for personality before committing, as well as other factors. I studies "correct" nigy stud pictures until late last night...yawn. I was not thinking nigy until I read this thread, but now I see it will be the best choice for us with our mini nubians first time. The stud looks so cute in the picture my hubby is now talking about possibly keeping the first females if we get some, so we may be using him as a one-time stud but may "found" some of our herd, so it is nice he is 100 percent Nigerian. I don't want to throw too many breeds into the "mutt" mix or they might be too hard to market.
But yes, smithurbond, I do wonder whether it is even possible to "break even" selling mutt goats, that is part of why I was asking for advice here and how I came up with the current plan.
I realize our babies will be born early in the year, but again, that will just mean more labor on our part so we can "earn" our free stud service. We have more time than money at this point and I doubt I'm the only one.......
The current plan I'm going with to try to get a good sire at a cheap price is this:
I'm looking at a nigy stud today, three years old, a kid's grown up 4H project who has already fathered enough babies for them.
I plan to keep him for two months and try to sell him at the end of two months for the same price I bought him for or close to it. I already have some fencing and a little hut-building I got for free, so there is no money involved in that and I will buy him some hay and pellets but other than that no other real expenses except travel costs and labor.
We have only had goats a year so we are going to evaluate this goat for personality before committing, as well as other factors. I studies "correct" nigy stud pictures until late last night...yawn. I was not thinking nigy until I read this thread, but now I see it will be the best choice for us with our mini nubians first time. The stud looks so cute in the picture my hubby is now talking about possibly keeping the first females if we get some, so we may be using him as a one-time stud but may "found" some of our herd, so it is nice he is 100 percent Nigerian. I don't want to throw too many breeds into the "mutt" mix or they might be too hard to market.
But yes, smithurbond, I do wonder whether it is even possible to "break even" selling mutt goats, that is part of why I was asking for advice here and how I came up with the current plan.
I realize our babies will be born early in the year, but again, that will just mean more labor on our part so we can "earn" our free stud service. We have more time than money at this point and I doubt I'm the only one.......
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- #65
savingdogs
Overrun with beasties
We got him!
I guess no more worries about finding the right buck.....I have a buck now, so I sure HOPE he is the right one!
I guess no more worries about finding the right buck.....I have a buck now, so I sure HOPE he is the right one!
ksalvagno
Alpaca Master
Congratulations on getting your male. I think as far as "breaking even," you are going to have to look at cost savings when you use the milk. How much milk do you buy now. How much yogurt do you buy now. If you are going to make cheese, how much cheese do you buy now. Of course to make cheese, you do have to buy the rennet and stuff. You can make your own molds. But cost savings will have to fit into that breaking even.
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- #67
savingdogs
Overrun with beasties
Good points, Karen. My other goal is making goats milk soap, I already make my own soap but I've really just been practicing for when I have my own goats milk. I have two teenage sons so we do go through the groceries. The other day I asked where two dozen eggs went in two days and the two of them and my husband had eaten them all!
Ariel301
Loving the herd life
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Sounds like it's time for a flock of chickens to join your family lol.savingdogs said:
freemotion
Self Sufficient Queen
If you are anything like me, your milk consumption will skyrocket once you have delicious, fresh, raw milk available. We use a quart of milk a day, a quart of kefir, supply milk to my parents, turn down many requests from friends, and I make cheese once every week or two, a four-gallon batch. I could EASILY use twice that much. Easily.
Before goats, we used 2-4 quarts a week. And it is just me and dh.
Before goats, we used 2-4 quarts a week. And it is just me and dh.
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- #70
savingdogs
Overrun with beasties
We DO have a flock of chickens and ducks, that is where they got the two dozen eggs, Ariel. I had the darned eggs sold and they had eaten them.
We consume quite a bit of cheese and I also work at a veterinary clinic where fresh goats milk is recommended as milk replacer for puppies and kittens, they would most likely be happy to hand out my card. I haven't actually worked out that deal yet but want to see how much supply I have first. At the last veterinary clinic I worked at, a lady supplied gallons of milk to the puppy breeders for 8 dollars a gallon. So I do have plans for my goat's milk! Here in WA state you cannot sell it for human consumption legally.
We consume quite a bit of cheese and I also work at a veterinary clinic where fresh goats milk is recommended as milk replacer for puppies and kittens, they would most likely be happy to hand out my card. I haven't actually worked out that deal yet but want to see how much supply I have first. At the last veterinary clinic I worked at, a lady supplied gallons of milk to the puppy breeders for 8 dollars a gallon. So I do have plans for my goat's milk! Here in WA state you cannot sell it for human consumption legally.
