# Planning before buying



## jb6962 (Mar 18, 2017)

Okay, here's the story.

Goals: Introduce a 3 year old and 12 year old to livestock and the experience of caring and raising of animals.

The family: Daddy I want goats and chickens. 

The working area: about 1 acre, split rail fence on three side, chain link on the other side, with plans of installing welded wire on the inside of the split rail.

Before I buy any material or live animals, i want to have a plan that makes sense for both chickens and a specific breed of goats. We want chickens of course for their eggs, but the goat idea is strictly for the raising experience right now. I don't know enough about what goats offer(meat or milk) to make a determination about a type. My first inclination is to get some sort of dwarf type, just for the simple fact of them not jumping the fence.....maybe I'm wrong...yes...livestock virgin here(I'm a reptile guy). 

I came here for advice on which type of goat to buy and what type of structure to build. I will be doing 100% of the construction myself, and beings I work 5 AM to 5 PM, probably the majority of the care until kids get up to par on chores..... 

I am perfectly fine with an answer of "you don't know what your doing" or the like. I came here for help. If you need more information or pictures, i can provide. 

I would like to know the following:
1. What type of goat would be best suited for this situation.
2. What type of structure will be needed to house both goats and chickens.
3. How crazy am I for embarking on this task and what am I exactly in for.


All options and advice will help..Thanks!!!


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Lol. Small goats, NDs in particular, are like fence jumpers FROM HELL. :lol: I had a 35 lb doeling climb a 5ft woven wire fence. The brats are invincible :lol:

I'd probably go for a breed like Saanens or LaManchas. Known for being mellow and quiet and above all, staying in the fence.


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## jb6962 (Mar 18, 2017)

Which ones go well with chickens? I would like to have one structure, but can build two if needed. as far as type of chicken...no idea...the kind that lay eggs is the only check I have made on my list.!


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Any breed should do well with chickens. Probably the more mellow types (Saanen or LaMancha) might do better, but mine do fine with our chickens - I have Alpines and Nigerian Dwarves.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Chickens are very dusty. I like having the chickens and goats separate. You need a fence at least 4 feet tall for any goats. My Nigerians never jumped the fence and at one point I had 15 of them. But it all depends on the individual goat. Keep in mind you want to keep predators out as much as keeping animals in. My advice would be to start out with chickens only. You need a good size place for goats because you also need to be able to store hay and feed that goats can't get into. You also have to think about predators in your area and how you will protect them.


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## PippasCubby (May 13, 2015)

I love our Nigerians...they have quite the personality, and I think they make great pets. Our Boers are good too, but seem to lack in individual personality. But, I do like their calm, easy going demeanor. I really don't think you can go wrong with any breed. I would advise to buy from a breeder who has registered, disease free, healthy goats. Even if you have to pay a little more up front, it is worth it in the end.

I would not use welded wire for fencing of any kind if at all possible. It seems to break too easily. I would use a woven wire (such as "no-climb" horse fence) or panels (hog panels, combo panels etc.) I would also invest in an electric fence. Stringing one or two wires along your fence should keep the goats off of it, and it'll last much longer.

Like others have said, I would have different shelters for the chickens and goats. They can have the run of the same pasture, but I am not a fan of having chickens living in the same barn as my goats...mostly because the chickens poop everywhere...on the feed bins, on the hay and so on.


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

Where do you live? (state or general area) The reason that I ask is that if you live in a Southern clime, you wouldn't need the same type of barn as one in the North.


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## jb6962 (Mar 18, 2017)

Middle of Kansas


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## catharina (Mar 17, 2016)

Sounds like you'll need a pretty good shelter then...You can divide 1 building into 3 areas--1 for goats, 1 for chickens, & 1 for feed. Or keep the food in your garage. The goats absolutely need to be kept out of the chicken & feed storage spaces. If they break into either they could easily kill themselves eating chicken food in large quantities. 

Fencing isn't the place to try to economize. You really won't believe what goats can do to a fence, & if you buy anything but the strongest materials you'll probably end up having to patch &/or replace it like I did! They are truly the hardest animal to fence. They need the "hottest" kind of electric fence even, which of course costs more.

For miniature goats there are Pygmies, Nigerian Dwarfs, & miniature versions of many of the standard breeds as well. If you want milk look into Nigerians or one of the mini dairy breeds. You would have to take the does to be bred & wait for them to kid to get milk. If they're nursing kids you can milk once a day but if not then you have to milk twice a day no matter what the weather is. If you want to go away for the weekend you have to find somebody to milk for you. It really is a commitment. If you just want pets, then you can get wethers (castrated males) for less money. They are good pets. Pygmy goats are mainly kept as pets. Some meat goats are Boers, Kikos & Fainting Goats. They aren't very small. Then there is a 3rd choice too-fiber goats that produce angora or cashmere. It's really impossible to advise you on the best kind of goat for your family--Maybe you can go to the county fair & look at all the goats there & talk to exhibitors? If you plan on breeding the goats I do advise you to buy registered goats. They cost the same to raise but their kids sell for a lot more. I strongly suggest not buying any animals from livestock auctions--they've been exposed to a bunch of other animals under very stressful conditions, so they often end up catching parasites or sicknesses for that reason. You need at least 2 goats--one would be lonely, miserable & very loud about it. For 1 acre of land, 5 goats is what I've read can live on it & get most of their own food. If you want more than that you have to plan on buying more hay.


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

Truly, you do need more than welded wire for fencing on your split rail sides.

Check out poultry hatchery catalogs to learn more about chicken breed characteristics. There are VAST differences. I don't recommend white leghorns...

As for goats, start with 2 wethers. They make the best pets and are pretty forgiving for that inevitable "learning curve".


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## Redbarngoatfarm (Jul 8, 2015)

I agree with cheap fencing - cattle panels are the best- I recommend 16' x 48" 6 gauge- they do have great sales at tsc if you watch for them- and if if it doesn't work out they retain their value and you can resell them. Install with t-bars, very easy to do as well! And it's flexible so you can move or change your setup pretty easy...wish I new that 10 years ago


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## BoerSaanenmother12 (May 21, 2014)

If i may make a suggestion on the chicken breed:

I have 2 Rhode island red Roosters 5 1 year old Rhode island red hens 1 3 year old Rhode island hen. I get 1 dozen eggs from are 6 hens they lay Large close to jumbo size eggs and are great dual purpose breed of chicken Meat and eggs.

My 5 young girls started to lay at 5 1/2 months old and never stopped laying even my 3 year old hen is laying every day. I don't have the heart to butcher her she is my favorite chicken LOL. 


If your looking for a dairy goat or just a plain pet for your kids Here is a couple of goats i have had in the past 4 years:

if your looking for a dairy Breed:

Saanen's are great
Lamancha's are to (But be sure to have a 6ft fence because my 1 Lamancha doe would jump my 5 foot fence like it was nothing). 


I would consider Nigerian dwarfs to be my favorite breed for milking goats I get 1 gallon of Milk every 3 days from my 2 does. they gave me also 1 pint of cream in 1 1/2 weeks they have the highest butterfat of all the dairy breeds. (I also would recommend them for your kids to learn to raise goats they are very personable goats. 





If you also want an egg production poultry I love the Muscovy duck they are the best egg layers and mothers of all time they lay twice the size of a chicken egg and can have up to 20 babies each and they don't quack like the other ducks do. the females chirp a little and the males Hiss they make great pets to. we have had flies like mad here because of the animals but once we brought in the ducks they ate all the larvae bugs and whatever they can eat and we noticed last spring are fly population has gone down the chickens did help to but the ducks are like weed and bug machines. My 10 Muscovy hens gave me close to 200 babies last year. my 1 Muscovy hen would take all the babies under her wings so the other hens decided to re-nest on there own sense the other hen took there babies. the hens were all fat and healthy even with laying so many eggs and having so many babies they got up off the nest to eat and drink every day then would go straight back to the eggs.


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