# Can I make this a business or is it just a hobby?



## keiserfarms (Jan 21, 2015)

Hi there,

Quick backstory:

Spring of 2014 I bought two NDG wethers, fell in love with them and in late November 2014 I was given an opportunity to purchase a small NDG registered herd from the same breeder. The herd consisted of two blue eyed tri bucks and three does, two blue eyed tri paternal sisters and an exposed buckskin. In late December we tragically lost one of our bucks to a suspected aneurysm and now I am searching for a new buck. (My remaining buck is paternal brother to my sisters.) I spent $1,500 on this group.

Today I located a registered trio, one buck, a bred doe and a doe in milk. The breeder told me she is selling the does because their udders did not meet their standards even though they produced well. The trio was offered to me for $800.

My questions are:
If I do buy this second trio can I turn this "hobby" into a business or am I being naive? 
Is two bucks and five does enough to create a herd that can turn a profit?
How much do you budget each year for each goats expenses?

My objective for the NDGs is to produce milk for soap and cheese making, produce a breed of goat that is in high demand but hard to come by in our area, have my human kids show are our county fair and to enjoy! (Obviously, I am not looking to get rich but don't want a business that loses more than it brings in!)

Thanks to all who comment, your advice is greatly appreciated!
Krystal


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## FarmerInaDress (Mar 15, 2013)

I can't speak to the soap side of things (maybe ask Happybleats?), but if a business is what you want and you want to sell cheese, absoutely read _The Farmstead Creamery Advisor_, by Ginaclis Caldwell. There is a lot of red tape and the rules vary by state. Best of luck, it sounds like you got a great price on some awesome goats!


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## dreamacresfarm2 (May 10, 2014)

To start a new business usually takes money and lots of time. - raising goats can be profitable if you have a market but you are never going to get rich. 9 out of 10 business close in the first year. Get in touch with your county business office, most counties have some where that helps new business with all the paperwork and market development.


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## keiserfarms (Jan 21, 2015)

Just to clarify the soap and cheese making would be "gravy" my "meat and potatoes" would be the breeding of goats. In my Nebraska I can sell my "homemade" products as long as it is face to face. If I want to have my product displayed and sold in a store I would have to then produce my products in a certified kitchen and be put under the microscope so to speak.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

For that small of a herd. No.


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## KW Farms (Jun 21, 2008)

It's very difficult to make a profit with goats. I agree, with a herd that size, I don't think you'd make much, if any, profit. Also, starting up breeding goats right now, the nigerians are probably not the best breed choice, in my opinion. The market is just flooded. It seems like everyone raises them now. Most established herds do well, but it takes a LONG time to get there. If I started a new herd, I'd be looking into rare or hard to find breeds like the golden guernsey.


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

with a small herd of 5-8 you will be lucky to break even or only be in the red a couple hundred dollars. There is a lot of overhead in medicine, supplies, kidding supplies, pen building, housing, supplements etc. Once you get the basics purchased then you have to up keep them. You need a disbudding iron, tatoo kit, hoof trimmers. ADGA membership. Registration costs, transfers of registrations. going to fair? be sure you count the vet costs for health certificates. Goats always bring somethign home from the fair so expect them to need vetting by your or your vet to get them well. Its a grand idea to make money off just the sales but unless you have top quality stock and can get 600-800 a kid you wont even break even the first year. And God forbid you have another loss or a devistating illness (always on the favorite or best doe/buck/kid) that needs hundreds of dollars in vet care. 

The soap and cheese idea will help keep your goat hobby a float and maybe help it pay into itself. But even then there are huge overhead of supplies needed so will take a couple years. 

Ive been raising goats for 18 years. After a couple years of raising registered ND I was able to actually break even for the most part. Then I had a life change for a couple years. Now Im back into it with my husband and its been hard this year as we fix up the barn thats already here on the property but in disrepair and building pens. Im hoping in a year or two to be back where the goats pay most of their way. But until then Im so happy he accepts that its a hobby and all that goes into a hobby. 

Oh and if you want milk products buy the BEST milk does you can afford as well as the best bucks from the best milking lines. Check for DHI test records through ADGA and dont just settle. A goat giving 2 cups a day takes up just as much space and time as one who produces 4-6 cups a day or more.


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## TDG-Farms (Jul 12, 2013)

The best thing I have ever heard about making money with goats is:

"If you wanna make a small fortune in goats, start out with a large fortune"

As for your purchase you didnt say a few things that needed to be heard. Like were any of the animals you bought tested for the common goat diseases?
There are two general types of udders. First being a show udder that is scored vs. the ideal. The ideal is not just because its pretty but because its functional and holds up over the life of the goat. The second is a utility udder. This kinda of udder milks well but doesnt have the ideal shape. Although usable, its not an udder you want to be breeding for OR breeding with. Meaning if you dont have a good buck to counter a does issues, then at some point you are much more likely to encounter major problems. Its less likely with smaller breeds but a poorly attach udder that milks say 1 1/2 gallons at a time is not going to hold up very long. So you are not going to get the same amount of useful years outta that goat then you would from one that has the attachment needed to do so.

As for the business side, there are a few things to think about. Feed vs production is always going to be more cost effective with a full sized goat. Yes I know there are good milking smaller breed animals out there but they will never compete with a full sized productive goat. Second, you need to know and understand the major goat disease. If you didnt test the animals before jumping right in, you might have already cost yourself a good amount of money, effort and time. Next you need to see what kind of market is in your area or if you plan on branching out over the internet. Not to mention you have to learn how to produce a quality product as there are many people out there selling goat milk products. NOW, with all this in mind, any and everything you can do to bring even the slightest bit of money in to offset the costs of raising goats is a GOOD thing. So I suggest, move forward but do some research first. On your goats and now products. This way you dont sink money in where you dont need to. Good luck


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## Free Range (Sep 27, 2010)

OMGoodness what a bunch of negative Nancys, You know what if you want to turn anything into a business you can, if you have the drive you can make it. Find the niche market, others are not looking for, market, market, market. Get out and beat down doors, read everything you can get your hands on about marketing, and about goats. NEVER LISTEN TO THOSE THAT SAY YOU CAN"T only listen to those that say you can.


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

It will take time and a lot of initial expenses to make some real money off of a goat farm, but to start out you can at least make it a self-sustaining hobby.

I've got a small herd of Nigerian Dwarves - 5 does at this point, but I bred 2 does this year. They had three babies total, all bucklings, and I sold them as 2 bucklings and a whether. I also sold 2 other whethers and 2 pygmy does, and I grossed around $900. I could have sold more, if I had any! 

However, there are a lot of expenses - food, supplies, etc - and then the other more major stuff like fences, barn, tractor, etc. Those are what really cut down on your profitts as you start up your farm. 

What we did to make the whole farm a 'self-sustaining hobby', for at least the first year or two, is we made it an official business, and got a tax-exempt status (so now we don't pay taxes on feed and that). Because we're an official business, we now have to keep track of everything we buy and sell so the IRS can pick through it they feel like hassling us, which is a bit of work. But, the good part is that now any money we loose on the farm (as we build it into a working business) counts against the taxes we have to pay on the business that we are currently making a living off of. And, being tax exempt saves a lot of money at tractor supply!

Anyway, I hope all that made at least a little bit of sense.  

I'm going to breed at least 5 does this year, so I'm hoping to end up with at least 10 kids, and then if I can sell them for, say, $100 each (which is a fairly low estimate), that's $1000 - that's some pretty good potential at actually making a couple hundred dollars. I have an advantage, though, that other people might not: I'm about the only breeder of Nigerian dwarves within a 2 hour's drive of me. I'm sure that has an affect on my success in selling goats this year. 

Well, that's been my experience so far. Hope that helps, and best of luck to you and your goats!


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## FloatnRockRanch (Feb 7, 2015)

Free Range said:


> OMGoodness what a bunch of negative Nancys, You know what if you want to turn anything into a business you can, if you have the drive you can make it. Find the niche market, others are not looking for, market, market, market. Get out and beat down doors, read everything you can get your hands on about marketing, and about goats. NEVER LISTEN TO THOSE THAT SAY YOU CAN"T only listen to those that say you can.


Completely agree!!! It's all about what you can and do put into the venture. It doesn't matter what ANYONE else does or says. That's them. This is you. My only advice would be to research big farms that have succeeded such as Onion Creek Ranch in Texas, and those big places that failed. Find the pros and cons and know how to fix the cons before u start. Make a plan and know when to adjust that plan for success.


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## Cedar Point Kikos (Oct 16, 2013)

Free Range said:


> NEVER LISTEN TO THOSE THAT SAY YOU CAN"T





FloatnRockRanch said:


> Completely agree!!! It's all about what you can and do put into the venture. It doesn't matter what ANYONE else does or says. That's them. This is you. My only advice would be to research big farms that have succeeded such as Onion Creek Ranch in Texas, and those big places that failed. Find the pros and cons and know how to fix the cons before u start. Make a plan and know when to adjust that plan for success.


^ yeah that.

_"If you tell every one of your neighbors what you want to do, and they say, "don't do it, it'll never work," THEN DO IT!"_

Do you want to know who said that? Joel Salatin about his Father. And guess what, they have one of THE most successful organic/free range/etc in the US.
If they had listened to what their peers said (which was plow & plant gmo crops basically) they would have been dirt poor...and without the dirt.
BTW, if you haven't heard of Joel Salatin, look him up...he's great!

Morel of the story, if you think you can make a go at it, FLY AT 'ER! Have fun! Not everything is always about making money 

And, many people will disagree with me on this one, but you don't REALLY need medicine bills, and dewormer bills, and vet bills. You can get rid of all those by using herbs, and growing them yourself. (herbs are full of nutrients, health benefits and are cheap & easy to grow!)
Realize that goats don't NEED vaccines, chemical dewormers and a scheduled timescale. Your goats will be happier and healthier if you use natural methods instead of conventional.
Want to cut down on food costs? Learn about pasture-rotation. Grow veggies and roots that goats enjoy to feed in the winter. (goats love pumpkins, by the way )
Want to cut down on pen costs? Learn about cost effective fencing, such as electric nettings.
Do goats make money? Yes, I believe they do. Most folks just spend all the money and health supplies and food stuffs goats shouldn't really need. (please, don't take offense anyone )
And research, study, look up, make lists, write goals, figure out your aims!

You CAN make this venture a success if YOU want to. Because you will do what it takes to make it work. Whatever that may be.

Now, about the soap. I've been making Goats' Milk Soaps for 4 years now  I will admit, it's not a goldmine. But, find the right shops and the right shows and it does turn a pretty penny. Mine definitely pays for itself.
Find ways to reduce costs, use your own milk, infuse your own oils, find a cheap / local source for tallow/lard/whatever you're using or grow it yourself.

Hope this helps! :wave:http://www.thegoatspot.net//www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/


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## LibertyHomesteadFarm (Feb 1, 2014)

Cedar Point Kikos said:


> ^ yeah that.
> 
> _"If you tell every one of your neighbors what you want to do, and they say, "don't do it, it'll never work," THEN DO IT!"_
> 
> ...


YES! You should read "_You Can Farm: The Entrepreneur's Guide to Start & Succeed in a Farming Enterprise_" by Joel Salatin
You really can make a living off of farming, just not the conventional USDA-promoted way.
Go for it!


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