# Buying goat to butcher



## Sweetpea8 (Jun 6, 2013)

hi!

I just have a few dairy goats. I recently had to butcher one d/t a staph mastitis issue and had it all ground for burger and got 34 lbs. the meat has been really good, nothing strange about it, so I was considering buying a whether/doe, whatever he wants to sell from a boer breeder down the road. He said it would probably cost $150 for the goat and $75 for butchering (I'm a wuss, not butchering it myself) . I figured out the cost per pound and if I get 45lb of meat, ( I'm hoping to get more meat because mine was a 2 year old saanen drying up from milking) it will cost $5/lb. I also found out he feeds lots of grain to his goats. My main question is, are there still benefits to buying goat meat if it is grainfed or would I just be wasting money when I can buy decent hamburger for $4/lb. I can only find information about how healthy grass fed goat meat is.

Thanks so much!

Stephanie Stevens


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## LibertyHomesteadFarm (Feb 1, 2014)

Grainfed should be fine...The difference would be like the difference between grain-fed and grass-fed beef.
Grassfed tastes better IMO, but grainfed should be fine too.


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## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

We feed grain, the meat is out of this world!


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## J.O.Y. Farm (Jan 10, 2012)

We will be harvesting some of our own wethers next year and will feed grain, along with milk as long as they will take it.. I've tasted meat from others who do the same and the meat is so good!! 

We have dairy goats will be using our wetheres I have heard that you get a good amount of meat off them


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

Grain-fed goat meat will still be healthier than commercially produced grain-fed beef. The goat is leaner and lower in cholesterol. And in all likelihood that boer breeder uses fewer antibiotics and growth hormones than commercial beef feedlots. If you are sensitive regarding GMOs or having organic food in general you could purchase the meat goat and then pasture/hay it grain free for a month to eliminate any lingering chemicals etc.


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## bclev (Feb 24, 2014)

Should be similar to beef. Grass fed beef is lean and not much flavor and grain fed has more fat in it and full of flavor!


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Oh my friend it will be worth it. I've seen cattle that end up as hamburger and some are down right gross. 
Let's put it this way, we have always butchered young steers so of course it tastes better then the store. We had a fairly older cow (8-9) break her leg so we went ahead and processed her. I was expecting nasty with her age but was still way better. So you'll be getting goat meat witch is more healthy then beef and know that it wasn't half dead when it got processed so I would say the extra $1 is very much worth it and really a good deal


Sent from my iPhone using Goat Forum


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## lottsagoats1 (Apr 12, 2014)

I raise 2 wethers each year for the freezer. I leave them with their dam until I load them to go to freezer camp. They get grain and hay in addition to the milk, as I have no pasture. The meat is awesome, tender and not fatty at all.


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## Sweetpea8 (Jun 6, 2013)

Thanks all, we actually had two little wethers here this spring that I was hoping to raise for meat, but they just added more complications to life than I am up to right now, so they went to pet homes.( I'm sure they're happier!) it's good to know it is healthier still, even if it's grainfed!
Stephanie


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