# Very new to goat packing



## carlah0318 (May 11, 2010)

My daughter is in 4-H. We have one goat that we are wanting to show as a pack goat. Which company has a cheap but has good quality equipment? What equipment should I look for?

Thanks, Carla Hopton
SE Ohio


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## Bob Jones (Aug 21, 2009)

I have found that our sponsors have good products and fair prices. The support they offer here is well worth supporting them. 

You can make a collar from a piece of rope and a bowline knot. You can hand tie a halter. You can make your own lead. When it comes to a cross-buck saddle you can't beat the price of the do-it yourself kit at Northwest.

A good pair of hoof trimmers is worth its weight in gold. A dog dazer is an essential tool if you are out in public. 

I am goat packing on the cheap and only get what I need and can afford at the time.

And welcome aboard.


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## sanhestar (Dec 10, 2008)

Hello,

I would add to the essentials you buy the pocket pads that Northwest is selling. Yes, you can make saddle padding way easier but these pads are really something ingenius. They won't slip or slide out under the saddle, won't crumble, cause sores, easy to adjust, you can wash them, etc.

If you're good with a sewing machine, you can make your own panniers, halters and collars. Although, I used to sew halters and collars and gave up on it. Regular sewing machines have a foot that can't be adjusted enough to make the really neat sutures around rings and buckles and snaps that the sewing machines of saddlers can do and it always looked a bit cheap and shabby.


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## sweetgoatmama (Dec 10, 2008)

You can't go wrong with Northwest's products. They have a variety of price ranges and a great guarantee.


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## Bob Jones (Aug 21, 2009)

Recreation Outlet has duffle bags where the handles are straps that go around the bag. Because of this they work great as panniers.

They are $12 -$20 depending on size. When they aren't completely stuffed, I use a short line to accordion it lengthwise and make it ride better on the goat. I also alternate handles on the crossbuck so they lock each other on.

They don't look as cool as the panniers, but sometimes 'not cool' has its own coolness. You will find on the trail that just having the goat is coolI also have some cargo netting that I have cut down, and though I haven't used it yet, it will load just about anything on the crossbuck.

Rex is going to charge me extra 'cause I used his crossbuck kit as-is, and it's supposed to have some sweat equity in the finishing of it. They say you're supposed to finish them so that goat pee doesn't get absorbed into them. The kid was taunted "Didn't your parents teach you to wash your hands after that?" "No, they taught me not to pee on my hands."

But then I am the original poster in "Learning the hard way..."


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## Rex (Nov 30, 2008)

LOL Bob... The goat pee reason is a good one, I'll have to add that to the instruction sheet that says "if you want the lifetime warranty on your saddle, you have to finish the kit".


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## carlah0318 (May 11, 2010)

Thank you all for your input. I'll definitely be checking out these sources. I am not a good sewer so I won't be going that route, lol.


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## Bob Jones (Aug 21, 2009)

For me, the hard part of building a saddle from scratch is moving all the stuff out of my garage so I can get to my tools.

If I am going to go to that effort to find my sander and a paint brush, I might as well get my saws and stuff too.

Funny thing is, all that stuff was collected and stored in my garage so that I could make stuff from scratch.

My younger brother went the other way. He only owns two plates, two forks, two spoons, two knives, a pot, a pan, two glasses, two chairs, a bed, a sofa and a tv. If he needs something he buys it then gets rid of it after wards. 

I might consider living that way if the statute of limitations hadn't run out. ;-)


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