# Raising your wethers for meat



## HerdQueen (Oct 15, 2012)

We have a herd of 12 nigerians(so far). My husband and I were discussing raising some of our wethers for meat(those that may not sell). Is raising them for meat worth it? The local butcher shop will kill and process for $65, is the amount of meat on a nigi worth that cost? Also if I wanted to sell the meat they have a USDA inspector on site and that is an option available to me. I like the idea of someone else doing the shooting/processing because I get very attached to the little bucks, and lack the equipment other than a gun, a knife, and a meat grinder.

Would it be better to buy a bigger reg. dairy doe raise F1s and use those wethers for meat? If so what breed would you recommend? 

Also in your best words what does goat taste like? 

At what age do you butcher? What do you feed a wether your going to eat?


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

You aren't going to get that much meat from them. However, this is the way I look at it. Feeding them and caring for them cost money - more than $65 when you add up feed/hay/water (if you have city/county water)/electric/time. It costs me about $200 at my current vet to have them euthanized. So looking at the cost of the $65 versus the other costs, it is cheaper and I have meat in the freezer.

The other thing is that I would rather put them in the freezer than possibly be neglected or abused. Most goats aren't going to good homes at the regular auction places around me. 

I did put an adult Nigerian buck in the freezer. He was about 105 lbs live weight. I got about 20 lbs ground meat. Now you lose meat when doing it all ground meat but you probably aren't going to get a whole lot more.

At this point in time, I will take anything to the processor and have them take care of things. I don't have the facilities or time to learn how to do it. Not to mention that at this time I just can't emotionally deal with it.


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## Di (Jan 29, 2008)

Now there is a difference between using "surplus" wethers and actually raising meat wethers. Sure if you want a bigger "freezer kid" then yes, you want to breed larger goats. But, I agree with Karen. I read a goat book that said some folks butcher boys at birth and cut them up like chicken. I agree that for $65.00, I'm sending them to the processor. Totally worth it, even for a few lbs of ground meat. 

I have eaten goat. It was very much like beef. This was a buck, however, it did have a little bit of funk. lol. And, I would have "defatted" the gravy.


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## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

We have eaten 2yrold buck in rutt He was done properly & all ground. 
Next up was 2 one yr olds intact. One was made into brats & the other Italian sausage.
The dogs never got even a whiff of any of it & the ground was out of this world!


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## HerdQueen (Oct 15, 2012)

Thank you everyone for your imput!


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## Arkie (Sep 25, 2012)

"gun, a knife, and a meat grinder." What else would you need?? I expect that if I slaughter, skin, gut, and quarter that Mizz Grannygoose will turn it into something FINE for the table!

Bob


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

The place to do it is the biggest obstacle for me (aside from the emotional aspect of just plain old not ready to do it on my own). There is no way I want any blood or guts to attract predators. I have no where to wash away and drain blood. My barn floors are dirt and my driveway is stone.

I just don't want anyone to feel bad if they can't or don't want to do it on their own and send them to a processor. I also see that as helping the economy since you are helping to keep someone in business and people employed.

I applaud those who do it on their own. But i just don't have the time, patience and emotional thing or lack thereof to do it myself. I would rather pay someone else.


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## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

We dont have proper set up for butchering either. And Im totally with Ksalvagno on the blood & guts. 
Unless you can bury the leftovers deep & have some sort of place for blood to drain where it can be hosed off with bleach or something.


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## HerdQueen (Oct 15, 2012)

I guess the thing I lack is the guts(and time) to do it myself... I have butchered all kinds of critters, just not goats. Remains are easy to take care of, great coyote bait, local buyers for sled dog food, etc. Local buyers for skins. There is just something about goats. I'm not so attached that I wouldn't eat it, it sounds delicious. I'm like Mikey I'll eat anything. 

I do like the idea of supporting the local guy. $65 to do the whole thing even if its 20 pounds of ground meat that is $3.25/lb. Sounds like good deal to me, plus I know what went into that animal.


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## clearwtrbeach (May 10, 2012)

My husband has to shoot, open up and remove guts and head before I can look. Then I look at just the meat, we use a table (those heavy plastic type with folding legs at 6' long). As we work we continue to hose down the area, once we're done I keep the water running and a little bleach until it's totally gone into the dirt. The inards we put in a double large trash bag, and dig a very deep hole. We will run out of room this year so I'll check with the rancher/landlord about using another piece of his property (he has I don't know over a 1K acres I believe).


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

ksalvagno said:


> The place to do it is the biggest obstacle for me (aside from the emotional aspect of just plain old not ready to do it on my own). There is no way I want any blood or guts to attract predators. I have no where to wash away and drain blood. My barn floors are dirt and my driveway is stone.
> 
> I just don't want anyone to feel bad if they can't or don't want to do it on their own and send them to a processor. I also see that as helping the economy since you are helping to keep someone in business and people employed.
> 
> I applaud those who do it on their own. But i just don't have the time, patience and emotional thing or lack thereof to do it myself. I would rather pay someone else.


We are paying someone else as well. We made sure the place was humane. I simply can't do it myself, and I don't think there is any shame for that at all.


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## mjgh06 (Sep 4, 2012)

Check with any local universities or colleges if they have a small ruminant division. Our local University has one an donly charge $10 for slaughter and then I think it's 40c per pound for processing.


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## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

^Now THAT's a steal of a deal!


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## xymenah (Jul 1, 2011)

I butchered two wethers last year. Honestly you don't need much room to do it and attracting predators is not a big deal if you do it right. We shot them in the yard then immediately placed their head in a bucket to make sure the blood didn't get on the ground and carried them into the garage. We had a tarp on the garage floor and a troth to catch the guts and blood under where we skinned them. We hung them from a metal pipe tied off to a truck rack. It you have a rolling garage door I could imagine you could hang them from the track. We used kitchen knives to skin and a sawzall(you could easily use a hack saw) to cut through the bone. When we were done we took the guts and stuff out in the desert to dump to feed the buzzards, prairiedogs and coyotes.


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## milk and honey (Oct 31, 2010)

If you have a friend that hunts deer/elk.. they might be willing to do the job and/or teach you how to do it... That is how I plan to learn. I know a guy that said it's just like processing a deer, and he would be happy to 'do the deed' and I'm gonna learn how too. Like you, I have Nigies, and if the wethers dont sell, they will be for the table. I think it was xymenah who posted a sight with instructions that I have printed out... they were really good!


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## alliecat23 (Jan 25, 2013)

U don't need a hack saw or saw to cut limbs off just cut the tendons on the knee or hock and twist it will be a clean break and u won't have bone and hair everywhere I butchered a lot of deer


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