I can't count!

[SkyWarrior]

Someone asked how many we have. I realized I am not sure. somewhere around 90..... I think.
I feel awful. I used to count every night to make sure they all got back. Now I don't even know how many I have.

 

[samssimonsays]

I would respectfully suggest that you are comparing apples to oranges.
In the city of Raleigh NC which is the area I live, people are allowed two miniature goats on a half acre lot.
I get a lot of recommendations from my vet who is a professor at the vet school at NC State in Raleigh. Plus, I screen my buyers carefully

This is two of the more suffering ,tormented , mistreated goats that I have sold.
By the way, they are dressed up for Halloween.
View attachment 9391

In my area, a rural area, there are not many rules on goats. Horses, yes. Goats, not so much. Or rabbits. People here buy them as pets and "breed" them as pets and sell for profit and do not care. Many are confiscated or end up starving in muddy, nasty pens with no food or water up to their knees in feces. I have seen abused goats in my area and even people who have screened well for homes have had a bad outcome. I screen for rabbit homes as well as puppy homes and have for many years. Never a goat but they can be subjected to neglect and abuse the same as any other animal. I have seen so many bought as Easter gifts along with Lambs, rabbits and chicks that end up dead or in horrific conditions. My area is all I speak of as I can not speak for any other. I had nothing against what you said, as I too would much rather the money from an animal alive than dead BUT I also agree with Southern as if I do not get that money, I am ok as they will be used. I also referred to I would rather see them in the freezer as my way of saying if I do not find a suitable home for them I would rather they be in the freezer than in a potentially bad situation. I obviously know not everyone who buys will be a bad situation and my post was completely taken wrong.

 

[Ridgetop]

I have to agree with Southern and Samantha about selling for meat rather than pets. I have done both, and with goats, lambs, and rabbits. A lot of the pet homes returned for a second pet rabbit because they did not follow directions and their children or dogs killed the bunny. I had a great business at Valentines Day, Easter, etc. selling pet bunnies. After the first year, I bred for litters 2 weeks apart so I had more cute bunnies to sell when these people returned for a replacement. I made money but I could only do it for 4 years before I couldn't take selling those poor bunnies and knowing that half would end up dead in a few weeks. At least selling for meat they died quick. Selling for meat I also get return business so it is a win win for me.

Onefineacre: You are lucky to have a good market for pets in your area. Not everyone has that luxury. I sell my lambs and kids for meat, but I have large meat and dairy animals. I did what you talked about, for the ethnic market I got more money for a buck kid, not disbudded or castrated. I sold at the auction at 2 months. When it comes to pets I never do it anymore. I sold a lamb once to a family who wanted a pet for the children and to cut the grass. I was specific that the sheep would graze but needed hay as well. 3 months later the people wanted me to buy her back. Not take her back, but buy her back. They didn't want to feed her hay and when they turned her loose to graze in their backyard she ate the flowers instead of the big nasty weeds. They wanted me to pay them the original purchase price, plus the price of the halter they bought for her, and the price of the hay they had fed her! Oh yes, they wanted me to pick her up from their house too! Another family I gave a doe kid to as a pet for her son. They claimed not to have any money and were in my 4-H club. After they got the goat, they put her in a show and when she didn't win told everyone I had sold them a lousy show goat. You read what I wrote about the bunnies. I can tell you other stories too. For every pet in a good home there is one that is dumped or mistreated. You have only to visit your local animal shelter to know this. This is why I personally don't sell pets, only terminal club animals or freezer animals. Adult breeding animals are sold at the livestock auction so I don't have to wonder.

Here in California goats are going for $3.50 lb. which would make a 50lb wether worth about $175.00. There is a big ethnic market here for goat meat too. Southern puts her wethers out on grass, their keep costs her nothing and she sells 2 ior 3 a week. Good profit and little work once they are out on grass. Good going Southern. No feed bill and they are paying the way for their mamas and daddy. Everyone of us who sells animals has to think of the bottom line. My bottom line is always in the red - hay here runs $20 a bale. Back in the day, hay was $7 a bale and we had a lot of dairy goats, sheep, replacement heifers, hogs, and raised calves on the goat milk. We never made a lot of money, probably never broke even. Most of the animals were used as 4-H project animals. Our kids went to the mall once a year at Christmas and we only live about 7 miles away from 2 malls! They spent their time working with their animals, in 4-H activities, doing homework, sports teams, riding their ponies, and moving manure. The cost of our animals was worth every penny because it brought us together as a family and instilled a work ethic in our kids that they adhere to as adults.

We keep sheep now because feeding them is cheaper than paying a crew $3000.00 a year to do the 200 foot fire clearances around my house and barns required by the fire department. We live at the top of a ridge and the slope is about 60 degrees. We can't but the brush but the sheep take it to the ground. We are livestock people and having a few animals around is peaceful. We sell freezer lambs. It doesn't make a profit but helps on the feed bill. I wish we had pasture. This year we are going to send the wool out to be processed and see about selling wool to handspinners. Every little bit helps.

Each part of the country we are in has a different market for our product. Some don't want to sell for meat, others don't want to sell pets. Some people have grass, others it's all carry feed. For all of us it is a lot of work with livestock that we enjoy. We have to be comfortable with our own choices, not with anyone else's.