New to dairy goats, We have many questions and need suggestions plez:D

[Cuttlefishherder]

1. We want to get 2 dairy goats for the family, we are looking for Medium to Small sized goats that are really good milk producers and are getting them as kids(sisters as a hope) and are child friendly. We have done research our self's and are looking at LaMachas or Mini Nubians, If any one has any other suggestions for Dairy goats, please speak your mind(we live in AZ so heat tolerance is an issue too)
(Mutts do they produce a lot of milk as well?)

2. How much are they going to cost are we going to be out a lot or a little?

3. When can they be adopted out? What age? No bottle feeding.

4. HOUSING. We are thinking of letting the dogs and the goats live together in the same run, Is this a good idea? Bad? We are getting a farm dog puppy that will grow up with the goats and an older dog who is animal friendly(Border Collie Lab cross). There is a tall 5 foot chain link fence around it and is very spacious with a cedar chips as bedding we are adding a shelter before we get the goats so they have a place away from the monsoons.

5. Foods, what all do you feed your dairy goat? We grow lots of herbs in the front yard and lots of sunflowers too. Is there any thing else we should consider feeding them next to Goat feed and greens squash ect?

 

[Roll farms]

Unless there's a poster from your area, you'll probably need to do the zoning / permits / etc. research yourself.

And there's not much point in the rest if you can't have them where you live.
A call to your local county offices should settle that up for you.

 

[Cuttlefishherder]

Unless there's a poster from your area, you'll probably need to do the zoning / permits / etc. research yourself.

And there's not much point in the rest if you can't have them where you live.
A call to your local county offices should settle that up for you.

Yes we are allowed goats, we put that question down while we were looking it up lol

 

[freemotion]

www.fiascofarm.com has tons of great information.

My first doe paid for herself very quickly in milk and dairy products. The cost depends on so many factors that we can't really give you a figure. It really depends on your area, your land, how much pasture/browse you have, what hay costs there, etc.

The babies should be at least two months old for weaning.

I personally would never put a dog that was not raised with goats in with goats. Even some dogs who are raised with them will turn on them. Dogs are predators and goats are yummy! And they run!

Goats main food needs to be hay, pasture, and/or browse. Veggies are a nice supplement, but they need coarse roughage in order for their rumens to work correctly.

I would strongly advise you to start with a doe that is very good at being milked first, before buying a baby or youngster that has never been milked. Milking a first freshener can be very difficult and frustrating, even for an experienced milker. And a pregnant or lactating doe that is easy to milk will still pay for herself within that first season, so it is win-win. You can then raise up one of her babies if you'd like to train a first freshener yourself. Save yourself some tears...they water down the milk and make it salty.

 

[Joel David]

I can't help much as I only have chickens so far but I did start an AZ thread in the "where are you who are you" section In hopes that it would grow by the time my wife and I start getting some goats .

 

[Cuttlefishherder]

I can't help much as I only have chickens so far but I did start an AZ thread in the "where are you who are you" section In hopes that it would grow by the time my wife and I start getting some goats .

We have so many chickens! A friend had to give up his chickens so we took his 8 and added them to out 15! I hope you have good luck with your goats, there are a lot more breeders out where you are than where we are. I'll check out your thread

 

[Cuttlefishherder]

www.fiascofarm.com has tons of great information.

My first doe paid for herself very quickly in milk and dairy products. The cost depends on so many factors that we can't really give you a figure. It really depends on your area, your land, how much pasture/browse you have, what hay costs there, etc.

The babies should be at least two months old for weaning.

I personally would never put a dog that was not raised with goats in with goats. Even some dogs who are raised with them will turn on them. Dogs are predators and goats are yummy! And they run!

Goats main food needs to be hay, pasture, and/or browse. Veggies are a nice supplement, but they need coarse roughage in order for their rumens to work correctly.

I would strongly advise you to start with a doe that is very good at being milked first, before buying a baby or youngster that has never been milked. Milking a first freshener can be very difficult and frustrating, even for an experienced milker. And a pregnant or lactating doe that is easy to milk will still pay for herself within that first season, so it is win-win. You can then raise up one of her babies if you'd like to train a first freshener yourself. Save yourself some tears...they water down the milk and make it salty.

I love Fiasco! that was the first place I found and I still reference it!

I am the main knower of goats right now, I just want to know that I'm not missing any thing and that I have good references.

Thanks for the roughage thing, I'll make sure they get what they need.

Doesn't the doe still need a buddy? Wont she be lonely till the baby?

This dog didn't eat the chickens when she got locked in the coop, she cleaned the bunnies, and sleeps with the cats. I think the goats will be safe. I will keep an eye out though, that possibility is entirely there, it makes me paranoid. But she didn't eat the bite sized bunny, it was just all kinds of doggy clean!

 

[lupinfarm]

2. Cost ranges HUGELY across states, provinces and nations. In my neck of the woods a weaned doeling from a good producer (may not be registered!) will set you back anywhere from $250 - $....infinity, because the registered animals tend to go for high price. This may (and most likely) is not the same for your area. Apparently we liked to pay a lot for our livestock here

3. I hate that word. "Adopted." 2 Months, but honestly while your goats are going to be friends and producers, they're livestock all the same so you're buying, not adopting. It just makes it sound better if you're adopting, but its not the same thing as a cat or a dog from a shelter.

4. I would not at ALL house the dogs with the goats. Especially young goats! Not only do dogs eat foods that goats should not, but even a dog raised with goats may wind up seriously injuring your beloved milking goats (which you paid a lot for, eep!).

5. Hay. Pasture. ect. Since my girls aren't on full pasture and it sounds like yours won't be either, I'd get yourself a *really* good hay producer/supplier. Currently I feed some nice quality alfalfa hay in their barn and during the day they're out in a small yard until my goat fencing is finished. I'll be feeding just grass hay next time I buy since my two does are not milking does (currently, they're only Pygmy's so...).

Have fun and all that stuff

 

[PattySh]

I would not keep a dog and a goat(s) in the same pen. For sanitary and safety reasons. I wouldn't want a goat I milk stepping or lying in dog poo. My friend's very quiet lab mix almost killed one of her goats last year "playing" with it. It got into chase mode and started getting really aggressive and the goats legs got tore up pretty bad. The dog chased the goat out of her electric fence. I think it started as harmless playing and escalated. I started out with breeding age does (first fresheners) and also bought a few bottle baby doelings to raise to increase milk production next year. I would caution that when buying a doe in milk you taste the milk, years back I bought a doe with very nasty tasting milk and pretty sure that's why she was available. I have a mininubian and she is a super easy milker with large teats. She gives a quart morning and evening. I also have an alpine/probably nigerianX (tiny goat) and she is milking 3/4 gallon a day, so the mini ones are productive and easy keepers to boot! I am lucky to have a large barn we built a few years ago. Built for horses and now comfortably houses horses, goats, a couple of cows, and rabbits! Our goats always have access to hay and water and mineral blocks, are given grain twice a day. The does have a large pen, as do growing does, little bucks have a seperate pen as well as new babies. My does come and go during the day. I open the door to the pasture after morning milking for the does and close it after nite milking and they eat less hay this time of year and are browsing alot. My babies are inside with hay and grain and we have playtime once a day where they can go out and browse. My buck has his own fenced grassy paddock with a shed.

 

[cmjust0]

1. We want to get 2 dairy goats for the family, we are looking for Medium to Small sized goats that are really good milk producers and are getting them as kids(sisters as a hope) and are child friendly. We have done research our self's and are looking at LaMachas or Mini Nubians, If any one has any other suggestions for Dairy goats, please speak your mind(we live in AZ so heat tolerance is an issue too)
(Mutts do they produce a lot of milk as well?)

Nigerian or Mini Nubian...just my $.02.

2. How much are they going to cost are we going to be out a lot or a little?

Depends entirely on the goat..

3. When can they be adopted out? What age? No bottle feeding.

>8wks

4. HOUSING. We are thinking of letting the dogs and the goats live together in the same run, Is this a good idea? Bad? We are getting a farm dog puppy that will grow up with the goats and an older dog who is animal friendly(Border Collie Lab cross). There is a tall 5 foot chain link fence around it and is very spacious with a cedar chips as bedding we are adding a shelter before we get the goats so they have a place away from the monsoons.

Depends on the dog.. Some dogs guard goats; some dogs kill goats. If it's not a livestock guardian breed I wouldn't do it...and a BCxLab isn't a livestock guardian breed.

5. Foods, what all do you feed your dairy goat? We grow lots of herbs in the front yard and lots of sunflowers too. Is there any thing else we should consider feeding them next to Goat feed and greens squash ect?

HAY. If they don't have access to graze/browse, their primary diet should be hay. If they need supplementation, give them bagged feed....otherwise, hay.