# Newcomer



## kkmoon4 (Jun 6, 2013)

Please help me !!!!i have no idea how to raise or show a goat but I would like to do it this year for FFA and i haven't even gotten my goat yet !!!SNY BODY PLEASE TELL ME THE BASICS!!


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## sweetgoats (Oct 18, 2007)

First of all you need to get with your extension agent and see if it is still possible to show this year. I know most but not all have a registrations date deadline and it is past in a lot of places.

Then you should join either a 4H or FFA group, they can help you hands on. We can sure help you to a point but if you have never done it at all before it is a little hard to explain here then in person.


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## goatgirl132 (Oct 18, 2012)

Join 4-h and/or ffa both should have someone to help you. Here we dont do our regrestration till beginning of school year but order our tags end of summer.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Do the above and also read through the threads on here.


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## kkmoon4 (Jun 6, 2013)

Thank you!!if fact I am already in FFA and I have like no idea how to approach my ag teacher about it so I have like no idea when any competitions start or who to talk to


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## kkmoon4 (Jun 6, 2013)

Starting in August I am going to be on the officer team serving as the reporter and I haven't really e involved with FFA a lot this year but I figured to be involved I could be on some of the teams and stuff like that


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## goatgirl132 (Oct 18, 2012)

Just tell them i want to get into showing goats.


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## kkmoon4 (Jun 6, 2013)

Well yeah I figured just having like a conversation with him about it but like I don't know ANYTHING about showing goats


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Talk to your ag teacher, even if it's too late to show this year, you can use this year to learn, and plan for next year  
Find out if there are others your age who show who could help you, because IMO it would be much easier if someone could 'show' you how to do stuff. 

Your FFA teacher should know how to find out about goat shows, if not contact your county extension office/4-H livestock or goat club leader and they can give you information.

I'm assuming you want to show a market wether, which would be a Boer goat or Boer goat cross. 
If so, go to youtube and look up 'market goat show' 'boer goat show' and do searches and watch some of those videos. 'how to show a market goat' 'showing boer goats' etc. 
If you want to show a dairy goat, then search for dairy goat shows, and include the breed of goat you want to show in your searches. Dairy goats are shown differently than Boer/meat goats.


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## BrokenArrowRanch (Jun 6, 2013)

You can show a market wether, which is probably most common. These are usually boer goats. The Wether is a casterated male, and he will need to be a certain weight at fair. You will show him at fair and then auction him off for meat. Don't do this if you think you will be too attached to let it be slaughtered.

You may also show meat goat breeding stock. Meaning you take a doe (female) and show her, You don't have to sale her. You may even breed her and take her and the babies to show.

There are also milk goats. There are many breeds or milk goats, Alpine, Toggenburg, and Nigerian dwarfs to name a couple. Most are pretty big goats, but Nigerians are dwarf. (obviously by the name). I have a Nigerian doe that I will show in milk this year. I absolutely love her! For a milk goat you can show them in milk or dry. In milk means they have a milk bag and you are milking them everyday. Dry means they have no milk bag. It's usually better to show them in milk.

You can do more research online, just google showing dairy goats or meat goats or whatever. Here is a couple links to decent articles about showing.

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/4h/4-h1120.pdf

http://www.cals.ncsu.edu/an_sci/extension/animal/4hyouth/AS34060-meatgoatguide.pdf


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## BrokenArrowRanch (Jun 6, 2013)

After you decide what you want to show, and talk to your teacher about it, You can come back and ask more specific questions or read about your choice of goats


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## kkmoon4 (Jun 6, 2013)

Thanks !!!!! I actually wanted a boer goat so that's actually I good thing that I know I am picking a good breed


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## Dani-1995 (Mar 11, 2011)

kkmoon4 said:


> Thanks !!!!! I actually wanted a boer goat so that's actually I good thing that I know I am picking a good breed


Boers are the best 

You have some great advice here! I was going to make some suggestions but these folks got ya got covered. Be sure to post back with any future questions... maybe then they won't beat me to posting lol!


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## kkmoon4 (Jun 6, 2013)

Dani-1995 said:


> Boers are the best
> 
> You have some great advice here! I was going to make some suggestions but these folks got ya got covered. Be sure to post back with any future questions... maybe then they won't beat me to posting lol!


Haha thanks I will defiantly ask more questions!!


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