# Anybody else have Toggenburgs?



## Arkie (Sep 25, 2012)

Other than Ms xymenah? We only have one and I don't know of another anywhere close. While our Lottie is a bit excitable, she's a great milker and very entertaining. I'm curious why they aren't more popular, or is it just our area of Arkansas?

Bob


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

No, I have Nigerians and an Alpine/Nubian mix. Maybe just your area. I know there are Toggenburg breeders around me.


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## sunshinegoat (Feb 7, 2012)

We have one Toggenburg doe which we rescued recently. She was not in very good condition when we got her but has been wormed and on pasture and good grain and is looking good. She's not the friendliest doe but is warming up with treats and what not. She doesn't produce as much as I would think but I have heard they don't produce as much as other breeds..is this true? This is our first Togg experience other than the ones at the fair (who didn't seem to want to be patted either)
We have a Saanen who produced 2 gallons a day and our Alpines produce a gallon each...what is the Togg average? This girl produces maybe a half a gallon a day but she kidded back in March so she could be getting towards the end of her lactation. What are your thoughts? Ive been wondering about her...:shrug:


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## Arkie (Sep 25, 2012)

We just got our "Lottie" a couple months ago when she was approx 6 months into her lactation. She has pretty consistently given approx 3/4 gallon total from twice daily milkings since we got her. Which is considerably more than our only other goat "Gertrude", a Nubian, but Gertie didn't start from a proper kidding, she miscarried and my Wife went ahead and brought her to her milk. They are both bred to a Nubian buck, so we'll see what turns up after they both (hopefully) freshen.

Planning ahead though, we'd both like to see the Tog bred to a like buck. We've even thought of A.I. if no Tog buck can be found by next year.

Her posing, posturing, bad girl, attitude delights both of us at least as much as the Nubian's "good girl" attitude.

Bob


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## caprine crazy (Jun 12, 2012)

Toggs used to be the most common breed, but then slipped to the least common bred dairy breed. It could just be your area though. I have looked for Togg breeders around me as well and haven't had much luck.


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

Arkie... have you checked breeder listings with ADGA or AGS? You may be able to find Togg breeders close by through either of those registry web pages.


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## Arkie (Sep 25, 2012)

No, I haven't. If something doesn't turn up locally though, that is on the list to check though.

Bob


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

ADGA has Togg,American Togg and Grade Togg breeders listed in Hagarville, Beebe,Leola, Garfield, Western Grove, Perryville, Yellville, Clarksville, Pearcy, Casa, Prairie Grove, Cabot, Dover and Centerton.


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## ptgoats45 (Nov 28, 2011)

Go to the Southwest Missouri Dairy Goat Associations website : http://southwestmissouridairygoats.webs.com/ They have listings for all of their members and are also having a buck show at the end of the month. If you can, I would try to go and see some of the Togg bucks in person and find out if anyone offers stud services.


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## Arkie (Sep 25, 2012)

THANKS! Liz & PT ! Lots there to ponder.

Bob


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## xymenah (Jul 1, 2011)

Well as you know I already have half of one lol. But when I get into purebreds I plan on going for both Toggenburg and LaMancha. Maybe when I get into them we can meet in Tennessee since I'm going to be moving to North Carolina.


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## WarPony (Jan 31, 2010)

I have Toggs, and I adore my girls. I'm in Michigan. My does are complete pocket pets, would absolutely mug me for scritches and cuddles if I let them, and are just as sweet as can be... though they can be a bit hyper. 

Around here they have a reputation for having gross milk, so a lot of people avoid them. For a while I was starting to wonder if they were right but the lady who owned their dam when she kidded gave me the tip to give them feed heavy in B vitamins and their milk sweetened right up. I love the breed, I think they are gorgeous. My FF does were each giving me 6 to 7 pounds a day when I was milking twice a day, but I wasn't really feeding for production. I think with a change in feed I could have had them up to a gallon. I have no doubt when they freshen the second time I will be getting a gallon each. I'm milking once a day right now, and not feeding for production, and still getting about 3 pounds a milking per doe.

My other goats are Mini Nubians and a bunch of mixed breeds with everything from Boer and Kiko to Nubian, LaMancha and Alpine. My Mini Nubian milks about as much as my Toggs even being smaller, she is a milking MACHINE! My only complaint with my own Togg does is that they both have tiny tiny teats.


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## Arkie (Sep 25, 2012)

@ Warpony; I'd love to see some pics. Ours has great tasting milk. One udder is rather small the other is decent size for my medium man size hands.

Bob


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## WarPony (Jan 31, 2010)

Pictures!!! Hehehe... Those I can do. It's hard to get decent pictures because they always want to be right up in my face.




























Hehehe... Ivy is the doe with wattles, Nutmeg is the doe without them. The other doe in here is my older mini Nubian, Kahlua.










Please ignore the mess in the background, I am in the process of completely changing around my barn and it's a mess right now, worse than usual.

This is Ivy, she is a hairy beast. She has super tiny teats, like smaller than a Nigerian Dwarf and smaller than my mini Nubian's.









and Nutmeg, who is only hairy on her bum and down her spine, lol. She is a better milker so far, for the simple reason that she has tiny teats not SUPER tiny teats like her sister.










Gratuitous shot of my Mini Nubian bucklings, just because they are cute and kept trying to get my attention while I was taking shots of the ladies.










back to the toggs.










The perspective makes my mini Nubian look huge, lol. She isn't actually bigger than they are, though she isn't a LOT smaller she is "mini" compared to a full Nubian.


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## goatsfun (Oct 5, 2012)

I have Toggs...


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## peggy (Aug 11, 2010)

One of my first goats was a togg. She was a big girl with attitude but she was stunningly beautiful. Unfortunately her milk was not the best tasting milk and she was fed the same thing that the other goats ate. Toggs were developed to produce stronger tasting milk for cheese making so this was just genetics with her.


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## WarPony (Jan 31, 2010)

peggy said:


> One of my first goats was a togg. She was a big girl with attitude but she was stunningly beautiful. Unfortunately her milk was not the best tasting milk and she was fed the same thing that the other goats ate. Toggs were developed to produce stronger tasting milk for cheese making so this was just genetics with her.


To get sweet milk from mine I just can't feed them the same way I do the others. They get a completely different ration and different vitamin supplements now. If I feed them the same as my other does their like tastes like pure goat funk. *shudder* I bought them for cheese making then life changed and I just don't have time for it now, so now I need drinking milk.

Once I dialed in their feed their milk flavour improved 100%. It was absolutely undrinkable at one point. I almost sold them off over it but now I am glad I wasn't able to find a buyer. I have an unproven theory that the breeding for stronger milk actually produced a higher need in them for certain vitamins than other breeds, and if they get the different feed they need they can have much better milk than their reputation suggests. Mine get brewers yeast when I can get it and spent distillers grains with their feed as well as a cobalt block chunk in their feed pan all the time. I also give them extra B complex vitamins. Their milk is sweet enough now that even my husband drinks it. For a while there he wouldn't.


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## Arkie (Sep 25, 2012)

As I've already posted, ours has GREAT tasting milk. She is a much larger that our fullsize nubian, longer, taller, much bigger boned. Have no idea if she's purebred or not. No long hair, though it's longer and coarser than the nubes

It took her less than 30 minutes to establish dominance though the Nubian "Gertie" would bellow in frustration at her unwillingness to give in for several days. Two totally different personalities; when my wife enters their enclosure "Lottie" will come to her gentle as a lamb looking to get her head scratched. When I enter she does the skittish-as-a-deer act till she gets close enough. Then it's pawing at the ground, rearing with neck bowed, and pushing her horns against my fist if I extend it toward her. Then she just kind of wilts for me to scratch between horns or her cheek. If ignored she'll start rubbing on and twisting about either of our legs like a cat.

Bob


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

WarPony said:


> To get sweet milk from mine I just can't feed them the same way I do the others. They get a completely different ration and different vitamin supplements now. If I feed them the same as my other does their like tastes like pure goat funk. *shudder* I bought them for cheese making then life changed and I just don't have time for it now, so now I need drinking milk.
> 
> Once I dialed in their feed their milk flavour improved 100%. It was absolutely undrinkable at one point. I almost sold them off over it but now I am glad I wasn't able to find a buyer. I have an unproven theory that the breeding for stronger milk actually produced a higher need in them for certain vitamins than other breeds, and if they get the different feed they need they can have much better milk than their reputation suggests. Mine get brewers yeast when I can get it and spent distillers grains with their feed as well as a cobalt block chunk in their feed pan all the time. I also give them extra B complex vitamins. Their milk is sweet enough now that even my husband drinks it. For a while there he wouldn't.


That is very interesting. I will have to remember this when people are complaining about the taste of the milk. Thanks! :thumb:


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