If you have proper fences, no problem. My parents kept a few Saanens in their retirement. Before they got the goats, they installed sturdy fencing to reinforce what was there already. The TX property had been used for a few cattle, so they had something to build on. My parents’ goats were like pets. They got hoof trims and baths. They were in the goat yard overnight and in a fairly good-sized pasture during the day. The milkers got some sort of grain mixture while they were being milked. They really love alfalfa, but will only nibble the little leaves. The stems we threw over the fence for the neighbors’ cows. The buck had to live nearby because of coyotes. Just milk into a steel or enamel pail, and store in glass. Plastic bottles make the milk taste goaty. I swear, they were very quiet and very healthy. We did pamper them. The 2 adult females were walked on a leash to the grape arbor area to eat the leftover dried grape leaves that had blown up against a fence.
Nice video! I raise dairy sheep, which allows me to avoid all but the parasite issue. We manage our herd completely naturally, so no synthetic dewormers ever.
@LittleFarmLand I tried wormwood once, but my sheep didn't care for it. I occasionally offer DE but I don't see much change with it. Our approach includes 1) pasture rotation, 2) access to high tannin forage like willow, chickory, dock, and saifoin, 3) an oil mix I've created from pumpkin seed oil plus a few oil extracts from herbs, and 4) copper sulfate. Copper can be toxic to sheep, but I make sure there's zero copper in their diet and then offer 1% copper sulfate free choice away from all other minerals and salt. Also I have gotten the approval of my copper approach from my vet who runs 100 head of dorper sheep and also offers copper sulfate to his flock.
We have raised goats since 2008 and even with those years of experience, we still feel like novices! I didn't realize that they were considered difficult to raise until a bunch of homesteading videos started to pop up in my feed. We raise our goats for milk and milk twice a day. We do co-own them with another family, so we are able to share the milk and some of the labor. The main thing that make goats a higher level of difficulty is kidding. We have lost a few does due to difficulty in birthing.
I’m sorry to hear that about your dose that would be difficult. And it’s awesome to hear that you’re getting milk from Goats for your family! Goats were my first introduction into livestock animals and I would have told you that they weren’t that difficult also but after experiencing stuff other than Goats, I can tell you they’re probably the most finicky lol. You just have to work with the type of animal will be raised and know the animal you’re raising, and it isn’t as difficult as fighting against the animal.
If you have woods and manage them for browse, it can help keep them from killing trees. Know someone that raises sheep. She gets a ram only for breeding purposes and once he's done his job, she gets rid of him.
Goats are browsers, not grazers. They were designed to eat trees and brush rather than grass. They will eat grass, but their preference is not from the ground.
I totally agree, but with a tiny bit of pushback, it’s mixed of ground and not ground. By ground for those reading this comment I mean things on the ground lol. Because they like things like Ivy, which is on the ground or even blackberry and so on. These are just harder to maintain and growth in a lot of grasses, which is why they browse higher up in trees, especially if they’re taller Goats like a Nubian. But smaller goats like Nigerian dwarfs, almost exclusively grace, ground forge, and small brush because they’re so small to the ground.
I live WITH my herd. What goats ( animals) need is a SHEPHERD. The less committed use dogs and fencing and neglect and then whine about it. The weak need sheep.
This isn’t wrong. All animals are management. A lot of management, but Goats need infrastructure more than some other animals. A cow might not tell you she’s hungry but a goat well but both are hungry in that case.
I'm very much a supporter of goats on any smallholding, but all my experience has been in places like Cyprus and Yemen, where the goats are extremely hardy and are grazed in the wild, mostly with little or no access to extra 'feed'. However, we never experienced a lot of these issues with feed and health, despite the goats being left alone to forage for themselves and out and about all the time...... so the question which comes to mind is, do you think that many of these issues have arisen because in the west, we've bred the 'natural' and 'self sufficient' goat out of them? I've seen this recently in the UK with sheep as well. A friend of mine is a vet and spends an awful lot of time during the lambing season, having to continually intercede in the lambing and also seeing a higher mortality rate than there should be, simply because livestock has been so heavily bred to develop either the meat or milk, that they are incapable of being 'natural' in many ways and are susceptible to so much and need so much intervention to survive now? ....... I'm well into my 70s now and the sheep and goats I experience now, are nothing like those I grew up with in places such as Cyprus and Yemen in the 1950s and 1960s? So do you think that we've 'shot ourselves in the foot' in the West over the last 50 years or so through our husbandry of livestock?
This is an interesting observation, and I think it touches on part of the truth. For example, in the Border Collie community, there was a strong resistance to the breed being recognized by the AKC. The fear was that recognition would shift the breeding focus to physical characteristics rather than the intelligence and working ability that define the Border Collie. Similarly, in the livestock world, we’ve seen trends that prioritize certain traits-like higher milk production, larger carcass size, or even novelty, such as the rise of mini cattle breeds like mini Jerseys or mini Highlands. While these animals are undeniably appealing to certain markets, they often require more care or are less hardy because breeding for these traits can come at the expense of resilience and natural functionality. This shift is particularly evident when we look back over the past 50 years. Many of the hardy, self-sufficient traits that were vital in traditional farming systems have been bred out in favor of high-yield animals or animals suited to niche markets. While this approach has had its benefits-like meeting the demands of a growing population-it can also make livestock more vulnerable and reliant on human intervention, feed supplements, and intensive care.
@@LittleFarmLand - absoloutly right! And it all just seems so wrong, though one can understand what they've been trying to do - though at a great cost!
I’ve gotten a tremendous amount of goat-raising knowledge from Deborah Niemann. Can highly recommend! She’s written a book on goat care, and also has an extensive you-tube channel, covering so many essential topic re how to keep your goats alive and healthy! Her information taught me all the things I did not know, that have turned out to be critical for the health of my Nigerian dwarves. Her comprehensive discussions about minerals, for instance, have made a world of difference.
If you have proper fences, no problem. My parents kept a few Saanens in their retirement. Before they got the goats, they installed sturdy fencing to reinforce what was there already. The TX property had been used for a few cattle, so they had something to build on.
My parents’ goats were like pets. They got hoof trims and baths. They were in the goat yard overnight and in a fairly good-sized pasture during the day. The milkers got some sort of grain mixture while they were being milked.
They really love alfalfa, but will only nibble the little leaves. The stems we threw over the fence for the neighbors’ cows.
The buck had to live nearby because of coyotes.
Just milk into a steel or enamel pail, and store in glass. Plastic bottles make the milk taste goaty.
I swear, they were very quiet and very healthy.
We did pamper them. The 2 adult females were walked on a leash to the grape arbor area to eat the leftover dried grape leaves that had blown up against a fence.
Very good video! We have raised dairy goats for over 40 years, and we thank you for shinning the light on the truth about them!❤❤❤❤
Nice video! I raise dairy sheep, which allows me to avoid all but the parasite issue. We manage our herd completely naturally, so no synthetic dewormers ever.
That’s amazing! We tried to raise all of our animals naturally also. Have you gave wormwood and diatomaceous surf a shot?
@LittleFarmLand I tried wormwood once, but my sheep didn't care for it. I occasionally offer DE but I don't see much change with it. Our approach includes 1) pasture rotation, 2) access to high tannin forage like willow, chickory, dock, and saifoin, 3) an oil mix I've created from pumpkin seed oil plus a few oil extracts from herbs, and 4) copper sulfate. Copper can be toxic to sheep, but I make sure there's zero copper in their diet and then offer 1% copper sulfate free choice away from all other minerals and salt. Also I have gotten the approval of my copper approach from my vet who runs 100 head of dorper sheep and also offers copper sulfate to his flock.
We have raised goats since 2008 and even with those years of experience, we still feel like novices! I didn't realize that they were considered difficult to raise until a bunch of homesteading videos started to pop up in my feed. We raise our goats for milk and milk twice a day. We do co-own them with another family, so we are able to share the milk and some of the labor. The main thing that make goats a higher level of difficulty is kidding. We have lost a few does due to difficulty in birthing.
I’m sorry to hear that about your dose that would be difficult. And it’s awesome to hear that you’re getting milk from Goats for your family!
Goats were my first introduction into livestock animals and I would have told you that they weren’t that difficult also but after experiencing stuff other than Goats, I can tell you they’re probably the most finicky lol. You just have to work with the type of animal will be raised and know the animal you’re raising, and it isn’t as difficult as fighting against the animal.
If you have woods and manage them for browse, it can help keep them from killing trees.
Know someone that raises sheep. She gets a ram only for breeding purposes and once he's done his job, she gets rid of him.
Goats are browsers, not grazers. They were designed to eat trees and brush rather than grass. They will eat grass, but their preference is not from the ground.
I totally agree, but with a tiny bit of pushback, it’s mixed of ground and not ground. By ground for those reading this comment I mean things on the ground lol.
Because they like things like Ivy, which is on the ground or even blackberry and so on. These are just harder to maintain and growth in a lot of grasses, which is why they browse higher up in trees, especially if they’re taller Goats like a Nubian.
But smaller goats like Nigerian dwarfs, almost exclusively grace, ground forge, and small brush because they’re so small to the ground.
I live WITH my herd. What goats ( animals) need is a SHEPHERD. The less committed use dogs and fencing and neglect and then whine about it. The weak need sheep.
Explain a little bit more what you mean by you live with your herd lol
So, a LOT of management
This isn’t wrong. All animals are management. A lot of management, but Goats need infrastructure more than some other animals.
A cow might not tell you she’s hungry but a goat well but both are hungry in that case.
All you've said is 100% true! Yamale goats passing on their own faces is a real thing as well as that they will kot leave your females alone.
I'm very much a supporter of goats on any smallholding, but all my experience has been in places like Cyprus and Yemen, where the goats are extremely hardy and are grazed in the wild, mostly with little or no access to extra 'feed'. However, we never experienced a lot of these issues with feed and health, despite the goats being left alone to forage for themselves and out and about all the time...... so the question which comes to mind is, do you think that many of these issues have arisen because in the west, we've bred the 'natural' and 'self sufficient' goat out of them? I've seen this recently in the UK with sheep as well. A friend of mine is a vet and spends an awful lot of time during the lambing season, having to continually intercede in the lambing and also seeing a higher mortality rate than there should be, simply because livestock has been so heavily bred to develop either the meat or milk, that they are incapable of being 'natural' in many ways and are susceptible to so much and need so much intervention to survive now? ....... I'm well into my 70s now and the sheep and goats I experience now, are nothing like those I grew up with in places such as Cyprus and Yemen in the 1950s and 1960s? So do you think that we've 'shot ourselves in the foot' in the West over the last 50 years or so through our husbandry of livestock?
This is an interesting observation, and I think it touches on part of the truth. For example, in the Border Collie community, there was a strong resistance to the breed being recognized by the AKC. The fear was that recognition would shift the breeding focus to physical characteristics rather than the intelligence and working ability that define the Border Collie.
Similarly, in the livestock world, we’ve seen trends that prioritize certain traits-like higher milk production, larger carcass size, or even novelty, such as the rise of mini cattle breeds like mini Jerseys or mini Highlands. While these animals are undeniably appealing to certain markets, they often require more care or are less hardy because breeding for these traits can come at the expense of resilience and natural functionality.
This shift is particularly evident when we look back over the past 50 years. Many of the hardy, self-sufficient traits that were vital in traditional farming systems have been bred out in favor of high-yield animals or animals suited to niche markets. While this approach has had its benefits-like meeting the demands of a growing population-it can also make livestock more vulnerable and reliant on human intervention, feed supplements, and intensive care.
@@LittleFarmLand - absoloutly right! And it all just seems so wrong, though one can understand what they've been trying to do - though at a great cost!
Hi. I am interested in keeping goats. Where can I learn about them, what books would you recommend? Thanks
You could try out these two books,
• “Raising Goats for Dummies” by Cheryl K. Smith
• “The Goat Handbook” by Ulrich Jaudas and Seyedmehdi Mobini
I’ve gotten a tremendous amount of goat-raising knowledge from Deborah Niemann. Can highly recommend!
She’s written a book on goat care, and also has an extensive you-tube channel, covering so many essential topic re how to keep your goats alive and healthy!
Her information taught me all the things I did not know, that have turned out to be critical for the health of my Nigerian dwarves. Her comprehensive discussions about minerals, for instance, have made a world of difference.