Crazy idea about goats

Buzz-sawyer · May 21, 2005, 10:50:48 AM

I always liked to make jokes about "Goat farmer" what us hicks call what we consider a hick :D :D :D
Now I got this crazy idea to get a goat or 2 for milkin and weed control, Do those two things mix? Do they need a GOOD diet to make sweet milk.............AM I NUTZ TO WANNA BE.............

".A GOAT FARMER!"

DanG · May 21, 2005, 11:44:19 AM

Yup! :D :D :D

Grawulf · May 21, 2005, 12:08:28 PM

Buzz,
Sara and I used to raise grade dairy goats back in the late seventies. They're browsers so they would rather chew on your favorite tree than eat nasty weeds - they'll eat thorns - multiflora rose. They like comfrey. They won't give a lot of milk unless you feed them quality hay and good feed. They can be very lovable and the next minute really cantankerous. If you want low mantainance animals, goats aren't.............but.........once you start drinking goats milk, cows milk tastes REALLY weird :-\ If you're really serious about getting some goats, PM me and I can give you more info.

Gary_C · May 21, 2005, 12:33:50 PM

crazy idea? ----------- Not really
AM I NUTZ? ----------- Probably, Yes

Seriously, cattle, goats, sheep, deer, and giraffes are RUMINANTS which means they have a four compartment stomach that can digest just about any fibrous material even wood. Metals and plastics, no!!! In India, the cattle roam the streets of the towns and eat food scraps waste, etc. What they will eat may impart slight tastes to the milk, but the sweetness or fat content depends more on other factors. Just don't let them eat jimson weed.

Do you really want to be tied to one goat for 365 days/year like the dairy farmers are to their cows?

Percy · May 21, 2005, 12:41:34 PM

Had a goat that used to hang around the mill years ago. "Billy" was a she-male and very entertaing. Climb anything, like A GOAT :D :D One day a custmer is loading WRC into his van and leaves the door open while Im makin out the bill and we B.S. of course. Well we can hear Billy eating somthing in the back of the van. We check it out and the goat is standind at a pail full of the yellow marettes(things for twisting house wiring together) and its chewing them up like they was candy. The goat was allways loving and freindly, cept once when I was goofin with it, I pretended I was a goat and threatend to butt heads with it.....NOT A GOOD IDEA :D :D :D :D :D :D

Texas Ranger · May 21, 2005, 02:14:58 PM

There are so many one liners in there that I will not even attempt to post, even one.

Jeff, say thank you.

DanG · May 21, 2005, 02:39:29 PM

Let me help ya out. ;D

I yousta have some goats. Somebody posted about some sort of plant that was poisonous to them. I piped up and said that my goats ate that all the time, and I hadn't lost one yet. This guy named Staples, that hung around here in them days :

, answered back, "Sorry about the goats, Dan. Keep trying." :D :D :D

I still chuckle every time I think about it.

Tom · May 21, 2005, 03:33:07 PM

I thought that I wanted some goats to keep the underbrush out from under my planted pines. I was mentioning it to my "old-timer" buddy 'cause he was a dairy farmer in a previous life and had all kinds of animals.

He said "Do you know how to keep a goat from jumping over the fence?"

"No"

"You lay a board up on the fence and he'll walk over. "

It took me a minute to realize that he was telling me that fences don't keep goats in the field very good. :D

I have a neighbor who raises little goats. They have field fence (what we call Hog Wire) and the goats will sometimes get their heads caught in the fence. It seems that they would rather have the stuff that is growing on the other side of the fence. If they get caught just right and you aren't there to get them out,, they will get tired, lay down and asphyxiate themselves on the wire. Sometimes they can't figure out how to get their horns back through the hole.

Dogs are goat preditors too. If you have many ferral dogs around, you need to keep a close watch on your goats.

Ron Wenrich · May 21, 2005, 04:15:35 PM

I had goats for a good many years. They were used mainly for brush control and they did a number on the multiflora rose. They also killed the ash trees, maple trees, and any other tree that they could strip the bark off.

They are a pretty smart animal, and will be able to find the smallest hole in your fence and crawl under it. At first, I put up barbed wire. I was chasing goats, since they went right through that type of fence.

Eventually, I just let them free range. They stayed fairly local, but had one that took off for a week and then came back.

They like company, so you're going to have to have more than one. And they don't like wet areas.

Other than that, they were pretty good lawnmowers. Too bad it wasn't always my lawn they were mowing. You gotta have good neighbors with a sense of humor. :D

old3dogg · May 21, 2005, 04:24:18 PM

Those goats sound like a pain to raise!
But a lot easier than teenagers! :D

Patty · May 21, 2005, 05:29:43 PM

Every once in awhile we consider getting a goat to milk. I really like the taste of the milk, and it makes really good cheese. Then I consider all that has been written above, and decide I have too many projects going now as it is. Maybe when I retire my day job, I will consider a milk goat.

isawlogs · May 21, 2005, 05:57:56 PM

My brother raised goats at one time ... they where cute ... they are good mowers too ... they ate the lawn and every thing on it and or above it ... Even had a few bites on the clothes that where on the line ... Took the tractor seat for desert , trailer wiring ... for lunch ... the bark off the yard trees for supper .... ;D Yep real cute in somebody elses yard ... ;D

Ed_K · May 21, 2005, 08:25:07 PM

Our's liked the flower garden the best :D :D :D.

Furby · May 21, 2005, 08:34:56 PM

Yup!

thecfarm · May 21, 2005, 08:38:57 PM

We had three goats.We didn't milk any of them.Didn't want to be tied down.We got the goats when they were small,they would fellow us around better than the dog.We had 2 does and a fixed buck.One of the does would stay by my side like glue.Even using the chainsaw or the trimmer.The only time they got out is when I forgot to latch the door.Our goats never climbed on anything or acted bad.We would speak sharply to them when they got in the garage,OUT,OUT,OUT or if they were chewing on the raspberry bushes and they would move on.I'm clearing some land and didn't they love the suckers that came out of the stumps.Just let them loose and we would lead them down there,they would have a ball.The one doe got to pushing children.We only wanted to get rid of one,but this real nice family wanted all three.Off they all went.We do miss them.We will get some more.

Rockn H · May 21, 2005, 09:16:10 PM

I don't know about the milk, but we had about 1/2 acre with junk cars and not enough room to keep cleared out around them. It had field fence around it and four goats in it. ;D They did a good job of keeping it cleared out and never did try to get out. The goats liked eating the cars to. They would come out from under one with a stripe of gease on their backs and a mouth full wires and hoses. I did supplement their diet of wires with give away feed from the co-op, oats and corn mostly that had got moldy.

etat · May 21, 2005, 09:36:00 PM

I once had goats. Most I had at one time was forty three head of them boar goats. They're more trouble to fool with than you'd think. I had to trim their feet every couple of months (not a fun job). If you keep em in a wet area they're prone to hoof disease. You have to keep em wormed and occasionally change types of wormer so they won't get immune to it. You have to be careful not to feed em too much grain, they'll founder, and DIE. You have to doctor em when they're sick. If you give em antibiotics you have to follow that with stuff that puts microbes back in their stomach so they can digest their food or they may die. If they're really fat, young, and pretty, sometimes you have to help them give birth. If it's really really cold or damp winter time you need to have heat lights in the stalls for the little babies. In MY experience the higher dollar the goat, the more susceptible they are to these matters. It's not much fun having a goat that cost hundreds of dollars up and die on you. They're aggravating to feed cause they'll follow you around and try to climb on you and in the feed bucket you're carrying.

That said, I enjoyed em and someday in the future will probably have some more.

tnlogger · May 21, 2005, 09:58:28 PM

we used to have goats and the wife will again she takes care of um and their pets for her. we bought some sale goats a few yrs ago and with shipping fevor i layed the LA 200 to they when we got home.
That stuff will light a fire in them tails that wont quit :D try watching 8or10 goats fired up like that ya almost feel sorry for them. ;D

beenthere · May 21, 2005, 10:07:05 PM

tnlogger
I missed that -whatever it was you said. ;D

DanG · May 21, 2005, 10:26:26 PM

It's ok if ya missed it, BT. The important thing is that they missed you. Just don't stand behind them, and you'll be alright.

;D :D :D :D

Gary_C · May 21, 2005, 11:53:28 PM

And don't get downwind of a Billy Goat.

We had a Billy for a short time in a pasture across from a church camp and he preferred their neatly mowed lawn to the pasture. They never complained once, even though he smelled pretty bad. Bet they were happy when we sent that creature back to it's owner.

Buzz-sawyer · May 22, 2005, 12:03:22 AM

My friend told me to tie them up like a doggie and let them eat in a circle...then move them to a new spot.Thus avoiding a bunch of goat related hassles.
What is a good breed of goat? The free kind?

leweee · May 22, 2005, 12:21:29 AM

Quote from: Buzz-sawyer on May 22, 2005, 12:03:22 AM
My friend told me to tie them up like a doggie and let them eat in a circle...then move them to a new spot.Thus avoiding a bunch of goat related hassles.
What is a good breed of goat? The free kind?

Beware of tethering goats....if they get loose with the tether attached, they can hang themselves....nieghbour gave up goats tethered.....too many hung themselves in his orchard....seems they just love apples.....not to mension valve stems on any implement parked with in range. Goat farming is for people that love a challenge....but not for the faint of heart :D

PS. if you have coyotes in the area you will need a donkey or mule to protect them ;D

Gary_C · May 22, 2005, 01:50:09 AM

My wife's brother has a whole herd of goats across the river from you in Iowa. Must have 30 or more to keep the Multiflora Rose under control on his farm. He has quite a few "fainting goats." No kidding, when they feel threatened in any way, they just pass out and fall over. Not a very good defense for predators but there must be safety in numbers as he doesn't seem to loose many.

He does not milk them, just raises young ones and lets them run in the pasture.

UNCLEBUCK · May 22, 2005, 02:11:22 AM

I bought a momma goat and a holstein bull calf and the calf got his daily milk supply from the goat and the calf ended up huge from goats milk even if he only had it for 6 weeks . Then the goat just hung out around the barnyard and really never was a burden at all . The goat had 2 baby goats a few years later and that was fun to watch the 2 little goats getting in trouble every day . You will have goats riding the log on your carriage when youre sawing . They dont seem to be afraid of anything . A few goats is fun

etat · May 22, 2005, 02:19:35 AM

I used to give em LA 200 when I first bought any back from a sale. I'd always follow it up with probius (I think that's how it is pronounced. It is possible for large shots of antibiotics to shut down the microbes that helps goats digest food. Especially if you feed a lot of grain. Make sure you give it in a muscle and when you first give it to em, you gonna think for a minute you've killed em dead. For just a few seconds it'll about knock em off their feet.

Also a real sick one sometimes just a little shot of red cell, by mouth will bring em back to life. When it does work, and sometimes it doesn't, it gives em strength back immediately.

The first goat I ever owned was Old Bob. He was a MEAN one and we had us many many a fight. Most times it was hard to say who won. I think there's probably a story around here somewhere about him.

Here's a few young ones out of a herd of mixed goats I had one time.

UNCLEBUCK · May 22, 2005, 02:46:11 AM

Sounds like Old Bob didnt like getting stuck with the needle ! :D :D

etat · May 22, 2005, 03:36:03 AM

Nah, it would've took much more than a shot to knock ole bob off of his feet.

The saga of old Bob, the meanest goat I ever knew.

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=4976.280

post number, 286, number 295, number 313, and number 345.

Roxie · May 23, 2005, 09:27:39 AM

:D Cowboy Bob has a friend that raises the fainting goats. He has a game he just loves to play when folks new to the area stop by......he has a starting pistol that he fires (the goats all fall over in a faint) and he yells real loud "Ok honey, get the pot ready. We've got meat for dinner now!" :D
It sure does look like one shot killed about 15 goats!

Doc · May 23, 2005, 10:02:12 AM

I like goats.......BAR-B-QUED!!!! 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8)

No better cookin than goat on a spit. Lean meat, and no worries about them jumping fences or eating the car.

Doc

Kirk_Allen · May 23, 2005, 10:15:05 AM

Be prepared Buzz because one day they will get loose and you will come out to find them on top of your car, your loader, your saw shed etc.

They love to climb!

Ernie · May 23, 2005, 04:46:10 PM

We had about 1500 Saanen milking goats as recipients for our Angora ET programme. We milked about 150 to feed Angora kids. They are easy to control with electric fences but can tell when the unit is off. Our land gets too wet for their feet and no number of footbaths with copper or zinc sulphate seemed to keep the susceptible ones from getting foot rot- very smelly. They really need rocks to climb on the keep their feet in good shape.

NEVER again

Haytrader · May 23, 2005, 08:13:46 PM

Buzz,

Boer goats are popular here. Seems to be a good market for them.
They say they are MEAT goats. Check this site out.
http://www.boer-show-goats.com/

ck, :D :D :D

LA 200 is an antibiotic and kills bugs.
Probios is a probiotic and makes the good bugs do better. It is to be used INSTEAD of antibiotics.
No wonder it knocks them. The bugs don't know what to do........... :D :D :D

pigman · May 23, 2005, 08:47:07 PM

You all have cost me a C- band sale. ;D I was working on a deal with Buzz-sawyer on my old big dish. I think he was going to use the free programs to entertain the goats he was going to get. ;) With all this negative talk on the goats he probably will change his mind on the dish. ;) Buzz-Sawyer wrote
"I WISH I had one to use for its intended purpose.Swamp donkey got me interested in what is available for free on c band...Anyone in central/center US got a donor??? "
I think the goats would enjoy animal planet. :P
Buzz may have a slightly different story on this, but what the heck it is my lie and I am sticking to it. ;D

Buzz-sawyer · May 25, 2005, 01:52:45 PM

Thanks Haytrader..............

Pigman...
I been thinking through this whole GOAT FARMER thing,

and I am not sure if my IMAGE can take the strain.........

Will I have to let junk and trash pile up so high it retains the goats???

Will I have to start bathing LESS?

I dont know if I wanna be a goat farmer.........
NOBODY on the forum will associate with me ..........they will treat me like they are downwind from a BILLY GOAT!!!!!

ALL that just to have 1-2 goats...I dont think so