# Wanting to jump in



## busymomx3 (Dec 31, 2013)

So I finally got the family on board with getting meat goats. I have lots of Boers around me that I could buy from and offers of bottle babies if any come in. But I want to make sure I'm on track with our plans. 
Our ultimate goal is to get 10 does and 1 buck. We plan to fence in at least 2 acres for them and build a structure. I hope that's enough space for that many. There are some things I'm unsure about. I think I should start with kids and raise them so I'm familiar with them but I am thinking bottle babies might be to attached . I'm getting hands on experience with Nigerian dwarfs that my sister has. But hers are less intimidating than a full size . 
Feeding we plan to put a round bail in the pasture but I'm still researching any other supplements they might need. Does it sound like we are on the right track? I would imagine we will start a couple does and a buck not all 10 at once lol. Thoughts? Suggestions?


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

No experience with the round bale in the pasture. I use square bales and my feeders are in their shelter.

They absolutely need a good loose goat mineral. 

Good idea to just start with a couple goats.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

I agree.

I would worry about mold or the goats climbing on the round bale and peeing ect. 
If I was to get something like that, I would put it in a barn and just tear off daily, what I would need to feed them, instead of laying the whole bale out in the pasture.


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## busymomx3 (Dec 31, 2013)

It's fairly common here to do the round bails. Although those are bigger herds than just a couple. Thanks for the info. 
I'm guessing many items my sister supplements her dairy goats with I will need for the meat goats like minerals and balancer. 
We hope to have some by summer.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Yes, goats are basically the same with health needs, whether it be dairy or meat goats. Of course, dairy breeds need a bit different method of feeding, if you want that milk quality and volume. As they do not have the muscle mass and meat, like the meat goats do. Meat goats can get really fat, if we feed them like actual dairy goats producing milk "in a dairy operation". 

You may learn a lot from your sister alone, if she is doing proper care for them. :grin:


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## springkids (Sep 12, 2013)

I would suggest starting with a couple does and adding as you go. It has been my experience with different people its kinda of " love it or hate it". For those of us that love it these animals add a lot to our lives including JOY!! But for those that hate it....they can be overwhelming. Starting small can also help keep your cost down untill you find out if these amazing creatures are for you.

You will need GOOD fencing and shelter. Free choice minerals are a must. They also require vaccinations, deworming, and hoof trimming. Also keep in mind a "goat vet" is a lot harder to come across than other livestock such as cattle or horses. You don't have to be a pro to start. Just do a little research beforehand
and be willing to learn. This website is a great place to look for info or ask questions.

Good luck!!!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Well said springkids, very well said. :thumbup:


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## agilitymaster01 (Sep 25, 2013)

I wanted to start with 5 does and a buck, and my dad went crazy and got 25 does and a buck. My suggestion...don't start with that many at one time expecially if you are new. My dad and sister were new, and I had a little background with my cousin, and my friend having goats. (still not enough know how to do it on your own with 26 goats) 

All I can say is start slow, and have fun.  Me being so new to this game there is not much I can suggest other than just enjoy the companionship of the furry goat friends.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Also very well said, agilitymaster01


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## busymomx3 (Dec 31, 2013)

Well we share a driveway with my sister so I help with her goats everyday. I must say I've fallen in love with their little personalities. We are actually lucky she found a vet who knows goats. 
Thanks for all the advice. I think we will start with three and see where we go.


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## packhillboers (Feb 2, 2011)

Start with 3 does and 1 buck if you only have 2 acres. I wouldnt go over 5 Does in one year. You will be overwhelmed for sure. It's better to get 3 quality ones that produce well and are healthy. I think 10 Does your first year on just 2 acres will get hard. You will be needing to fence off at least 3 parts of those 2 acres into separate areas. Your first year should be casual and enjoyable and fence building times.


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## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

Remember, it costs the same to feed & care for 5 high quality does as it does for 5 who are short bodied, have weak pasterns or bad teat structure.
Be picky! Take your sweet time. Invest your dollars.


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## busymomx3 (Dec 31, 2013)

Thanks for the advice. We have more than 2 acres but from reading thought that would be enough. How much are they supposed to have? As a general rule.


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## Dani-1995 (Mar 11, 2011)

nancy d said:


> Remember, it costs the same to feed & care for 5 high quality does as it does for 5 who are short bodied, have weak pasterns or bad teat structure.
> Be picky! Take your sweet time. Invest your dollars.


Agree! I always go for quality over quanity.... what good are 10 does that are breaking down, old, have kidding issues ect., when you can have 5 does that are great moms, soud in structure and will be around for many more happy kiddings?


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## Dani-1995 (Mar 11, 2011)

busymomx3 said:


> Thanks for the advice. We have more than 2 acres but from reading thought that would be enough. How much are they supposed to have? As a general rule.


I have two girls in a smaller pen. My whole yard is 1.75 acres and they have maybe a fifth or sixth of that. They do require more hay than they would on pasture but with only two it's not too bad.


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## busymomx3 (Dec 31, 2013)

One of the gentleman at church with Boers had 26 kids and only one bottle baby. That's a sign of good mothers right? Is that the kind of thing I'm looking for? I know to look for healthy animals but I wasn't worried about registered stock since it's just for meat. Am I going the wrong way? Shoot this seems more complicated than I thought.


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## Dani-1995 (Mar 11, 2011)

You want to ask about the particular doe your buying and her mother. If they had easy kidding with no problems then she should too. You also want to have a history of twins. Singles aren't good for production and tips and quads come with many problems to the doe as well as and chance of dead kids. It does sound like he has and fairly good mortality rate. As long as kids arent dying after birth and getting sick. 

It seems like a lot to take in but I'm 18 and going to college. I've had goats since I was 14 so I'm somewhat new but I don't feel like I am. I still have time to watch my girls, care for them how they need.... it just becomes instinct once you learn it all


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## busymomx3 (Dec 31, 2013)

Thanks for the advice. Yeah as far as I know he had mostly twins and no deaths but I didn't ask specifics. I will ask the two farmers we are looking at those questions.


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## packhillboers (Feb 2, 2011)

There is a lot to learn and it will be overwhelming at first so you don't want to take the fun out of all of this. If you start off with only a few, you will not be overwhelmed and it will be worth some of the problems. Are you thinking to put meat into your own freezer only? We had to re-define what our goat purpose was to be and ended up making a list of at least 4 top reasons why we had goats. Kidding season is a busy time for us, but the rest of the year, is quite easy management. A buck is hard to manage without a good fence and I do recommend an electric fence. The top importance for bringing any animal onto your property is health. There are too many goats that have diseases and some of these diseases -once they get onto your property are difficult to ever get rid of. I would save your money, look to at least buy 2 CL & CAE negative Boer Does or Boer mixes. There are many places that will have a good quality Doe to sell and will be asking a price that will be worth paying. Even if you get one of their lesser does, that is not show quality, that is way better than taking a chance on a goat that may have CL disease. If you end up buying a young Doe, she may or may not end up being a great mom but even so.. our BEST mother Doe was not the best her first year. I had to train her to not give up on nursing. Now she is the best mother doe. Most important----Buy from a clean herd. I would also recommend having does bred to a registered Buck even if you are just planning on for meat purposes- you will still want to someday sell your buck or perhaps sell one of your does and having a registered buck sure helps.

- If having a buck on your property is too hard at this time, I recommend finding a quality ranch and purchasing at least one bred Doe from their registered buck. Many people do not like this option but we did this as we bought from a very good ranch and have not regretted it at all. It is good to read up on all of this. We love Boers. You may want a Boer/mix for your meat purposes. Boers seem to have a nice disposition and none of ours are fence climbers.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

I have all avenues for different buyers.
I have all registered FB stock, but this allows me the option to sell:
Show quality registered
Standard registered
Commercial ( not registered)
Meat Goats, for meat

So no buyer option is left out, I don't always have all those options, but, will have it when a buyer comes along and I do have them.

When you have kids and you see a good Doeling keep her and raise her for your future breeding Doe, this saves money on having to go out and buy any Does if she is a good Doe. If she is better than a Doe you may have out there, sell that older Doe and re-place her with an offspring of another Doe ect or a Doe you may want to purchase. Any goats you sell, re-invest it into nicer Does. Even if you have to sell a few, to get one. Always get what you can afford. 
Be sure they earn their keep and you have enough for their feed bill.
Your goal ,is to better your herd each time, if you can only get one doe a year, or a buck ect, that is a good investment. Meat goat means, you want a goat with good meat,in a short amount of time. If you have a goat that is narrow, skinny, with no volume of long loin ect, it is not giving you proper meat ratio for sales of meat on the hoof or by hanging weight. You want a good Caracas meat.

Do not buy from an Auction, that is asking for trouble you do not want.

Of course, reality here, you don't need to start out with show quality goats, if you are going to go strictly meat, you do want your buck to be your biggest investment, if you get a good meaty, long, wide buck, go for the best that you can afford, as I know it is hard stating out. A decent or nice Buck, will put that onto almost any Does bred, whether it be a basic Doe, to a good quality Doe. With meat goats you want that bulk more over a skinny narrow buck or Doe. But remember your buck is your herd.
Make sure, your Does have good teat structure so they can feed their kids, cluster teats are a no, no, a kid may not be able to nurse, that will give you bottle baby(s) if she has twins or trips. If she cannot feed her babies, on the one side or 2, she is a loss to your herd and more work for you.

If you see any Lumps, bumps, in Lymph node area's, do not purchase, if you see swollen knee's, lameness do not purchase. CL and CAE are just 2 devastating diseases, that no one wants. 
Of course with some vaccination's, you may see small lumps in the armpit or where the shot was given, it is normal with CD&T.


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## busymomx3 (Dec 31, 2013)

Wow thanks for all that info! Right now the goal is meat for sale and our freezer with the hope that we can sell enough to cover feed. We aren't looking to profit. But breaking even won't break our hearts. Perhaps buying from neighbors isn't best since I wouldn't want to offend them by asking some of these questions . Or maybe they are used to it. 
I'm getting the impression that I should get older does not kids just weaned.


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## packhillboers (Feb 2, 2011)

busymomx3 said:


> Wow thanks for all that info! Right now the goal is meat for sale and our freezer with the hope that we can sell enough to cover feed. We aren't looking to profit. But breaking even won't break our hearts. Perhaps buying from neighbors isn't best since I wouldn't want to offend them by asking some of these questions . Or maybe they are used to it.
> I'm getting the impression that I should get older does not kids just weaned.


I am actually excited for you. I just made a website not long ago. If you go to it, you can see that we started off much like you are thinking. I have one older Doe that is so special to us. I cannot part with her. Her offspring wethers are usually are freezer meat and I have kept one of her little petite Doelings that has ended up growing out quite well now. The two twins on our website are huge and came from one pre-bred Doe. I think you are going to love getting into the Boers. You can have some little pets too and you will be able to sort out in your mind which ones you attach yourself to. Also a little Nubian influence in our herd makes for faster growing kids. It seems that the fullbloods grow a bit slower.


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## MsScamp (Feb 1, 2010)

busymomx3 said:


> We plan to fence in at least 2 acres for them and build a structure. I hope that's enough space for that many. There are some things I'm unsure about. I think I should start with kids and raise them so I'm familiar with them but I am thinking bottle babies might be to attached . Feeding we plan to put a round bail in the pasture but I'm still researching any other supplements they might need. Does it sound like we are on the right track? I would imagine we will start a couple does and a buck not all 10 at once lol. Thoughts? Suggestions?


Well, bottle babies are a royal pain in the butt most of the time, but they are a dream to kid out because they trust you completely! On the other hand, if you do go with bottle babies, you're going to have a significant amount of money invested in these does by the time you get them raised to breeding age. Even where I live milk replacer is almost 3.00/lb and 3 or 4 bottle babies will go through a LOT of it before they hit 3 month's of age. I personally would never even consider a bottle baby buck because they have no fear and can hurt you without trying or meaning to, but that decision is up to you. If you have good annual rainfall, 2 acres should work pretty good for 10 does. What is there to be intimidated about with a goat? I can see where a buck could be intimidating, but that isn't the case with does. The only time mine get 'aggressive' is when they have kids, and even then, they are far from being intimidating.

I would never put a round bale in the pasture to feed with for 4 reasons - 1) It leads to picky goats who will pick and choose what they want to eat. 2) They will waste more than they eat, and the wasted hay will kill the grass. 3) The wasted hay will provide a place for flies to breed, and the flies will subsequently drive you and your goats nuts. 4) Feeding time is a good time to walk among your goats, scratch a butt here and between horns there, and assess who is eating, who is not, who seems a little off, whether one is limping or has a runny eye or some other health problem. The key to knowing when a goat is getting sick is to know how they act when they are healthy and feeding time is the perfect time to watch and learn.


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## Dani-1995 (Mar 11, 2011)

Bottle babies make great does as far as easy handling and such. They are not ideal by any means though. My bottle doe was almost two years old before she was able to be bred because of being stunted.

ETA: to correct typo... oops


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Dani-1995 said:


> Bottle babies make great does as far as easy handling and such. They are not ideal by any means though. My bottle doe was almost two months old before she was able to be bred because of being stunted.


Do you mean 2 years old?


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## Dani-1995 (Mar 11, 2011)

Yes, two years. Sorry about that... long day. Will edit now


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## packhillboers (Feb 2, 2011)

I have not yet had one bottle baby here even with triplets in the past 4 kidding years. They don't have to be a bottle baby to be friendly. They all do have to learn manners tho. We bought a very wild Doe that was a wild field Doe and not used to human contact at all. She was so wild, I could not touch her for weeks and then one long day, after I was finally able to corner her, snap a leash on her and go for a wild ride around and around, something clicked in her brain and she decided to be my pet. That same doe is now our smart herd queen and a very dear pet of ours. She loves human contact now and loves to have me present for all of her kidding times. She will cry for me when something is wrong or if she needs something especially if she goes into labor. She was our very first Boer Doe. I never expected her to become so tame. Goats are hard to know and understand just how they will turn out but if you study up on natural herd government, you will come to realize, that in a natural herd that works well, each Doe will have a set job. Some will become the herd watch goat, while some will be happy to be the herd babysitter. It is good to eventually get a good herd government going with your does and we are at that stage right now. Some just were not working out because of a power struggle with the herd queen. Some are just going to be wild or of a shy disposition no matter how hard you try with them.


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## busymomx3 (Dec 31, 2013)

Oh gosh thanks everyone. Rainfall hmm in central Texas is not great so perhaps more space would be good. I'm more excited now. I was worried that they wouldn't be tame if I didn't bottle feed. Or if I didn't get kids. But in talking to more people I'm learning that isn't the case. I do enjoy visiting our Nigerian dwarfs every feeding. They are my sisters goats.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Goats can be calmed down with time, love, treats, calm voice, a few petting or scratching.
Goats are curious animals and they will investigate, LOL. Sit in a chair and enjoy.


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