# when you first started on your goat adventure...



## Starla (Aug 29, 2013)

did you start out with only one? or did you buy several your first year? 

I am curious... had someone make the statement to me that most people don't start out with a lot of goats, they learn and then buy more. So I was wondering how other have done it.

I bought my very first dairy doe 12 years ago, I knew nothing about her and did nothing special for her upkeep BUT I was only able to keep her for one milking season and then had to rehome her. I knew I love the animals and have wanted them for years until this year, we made it happen! I went from one goat to 10 over the course of the Spring/ Summer. Am I crazy?  Tell me your story! I would love to hear it!


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## ElLomah (Jun 5, 2013)

For us it was never an option to start with just one goat - we had done our homework and knew we should have at least 2 so they could be together. I always tell kid customers this as well - so most around here start with 2  We purchased a doe and her wether kid. A few months later we purchased 2 more young does and sold off the wether kid. Took them to a breeder that fall and kept a doe kid the following spring, and purchased our first buck kid. So through the first year went from 2 to 5. 

We started with Nubians but as I got more into it I wanted to try other breeds - so that next summer I purchased 4 more does all of different breeds - 2 of them had 2 kids each, and the other 2 were pregnant. We ended up keeping 2 of the kids and selling off the rest. We also kept a second buck. So now from 5 to 12.

Third year in - keeping more kids and branching out to kinders as well, we were up to 16 milkers, 6 bucks, and 3 wether pets. I haven't really kept much count over the years, our herd peak was over 50 in it's height + bottle kids. I have done a few cut backs, with this years cut back being the most - going from 43 down to 24. 10 years into goats and I'm ready for smaller numbers again  Aiming to be down to 15-17 next fall.


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## Starla (Aug 29, 2013)

interesting, Kristen! I have heard they are addicting  I did a lot more research this time before I bought my second goat...and have researched a lot more! I am learning although I am starting to think, it doesn't matter how much research you do, there will always be something that comes up you didnt' expect  I am scared to have more than 10 or so right now....I would be ok with a couple more. I am doing this year what you said you have done in the past. I have Nubians, Lamanchas, Nubain/Saanen cross and a Nubian/Lamancha cross. Just seeing what I like. I love the look of Alpines, Toggenburgs and Oberhaslis too! I like them all! I may have a problem!


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## Caprine Beings (Sep 19, 2008)

We started out with two donated older does for Lindsey for 4-H. It did not take us long to have more and more and more. Now we have Am.Alpines, PB Nubians, Grades, Nigerians and Boers.


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## lorit (May 10, 2010)

Fall of 2009 we started with 2 for milk (children have dairy allergies) and this last summer we had a high of 24 (total ever owned is 30). My poor husband.  Down to 10 for the winter and a more spaced out breeding plan for this coming year. Honestly as much as I love them and could EASILY find way too many worth purchasing, I am finding that lower numbers mean I enjoy them more, and still have time for my family. For me 10-12 is a good number to stay at for the next few years.


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## EmyAcres (Jul 3, 2013)

I started out with one pregnant Pygmy (I didn't know they were herd animals) my grandparents brought me in 2011. Who later had two doelings. I then learned that there was milk goats!!! And I then learned that my most loved breed of all (nubians) was milk goats!!! We had goats as kids but we never really took care of them we put them in a very overgrown fenced in backyard we actually started out with an alpine wether (who's previous owners was afraid of because of his size and he had learned that if he reared up ppl was afraid of him!)and a blind pony! Of course we gave him sweet feed and then ppl just started bringing us goats hear and there and that's how I learned about nubians! but anyways when I learned about milk goats I sold my Pygmy's and then did some research and started out right this year with a doe and a wether until I could get another doe the most I have had is three but I would love more!!!


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## MF-Alpines (Mar 29, 2010)

We started out 5 years ago with two does, a 3yo milker (so I could relearn how to milk - I grew up on a dairy farm - cows) and a dry yearling. Big learning curve as I found out both were CAE+ the day before the first one was due. Practiced strict prevention methods and from those two does, we are now up to 8 adults and 7 kids, all CAE-. Those two does are now sausage. We did not purchase any bucks until two years in. We then purchased another buck that has really improved my herd tremendously. Sold the other two bucks and also purchased another quality buckling to breed my kids. I am more at ease breeding kids to young bucks because of the size. I have a deposit in for a buckling from the same herd as my mature buck. Can't wait to see what I get next spring. The most I've ever milked was 5. Next spring, I should be freshening 14 or 15. Will definitely have to see some kids and milkers next spring as that is just more milkers than I really need!


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## cvalley (Apr 15, 2009)

We started out with a pair of regisered nubian does from a reputable breeder. I grew up with goats so I knew basics going into this 4-h adventure wiyh my daughter. Didn't purchase a buck until 3 years in. Now we will be freshening 8 does! Oh, my-- goats are like potato chips-- can't have just one!


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## Starla (Aug 29, 2013)

umm....so maybe I am crazy! sounds like most of you started with only a couple of goats....and here I am with 3 milkers (lost one milker a week or so ago) and will have 4 first fresheners next Spring and 2 FF in January and then my 3 milkers too! I want to be able to stage out my milking programs so that I can hopefully milk year around  and I have two young bucks! well three, but the third one is staying at a friends and if he comes home, I will be selling him. I guess I am crazy!! oh well....I must love living on the edge! LOL


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## doublebowgoats (Mar 6, 2008)

In 2005 my mom gave me $100 for a goat. I started out with a single Spanish female ($65) who was supposed to be pregnant. Well, even with not knowing anything about goats, I could tell the next day she was in raging heat so we brought in two bucks. She gave me triplets that year. I sold the bucks and used that money to buy a nigie female. From that $100, I ended up with 16 goats in two years. Sold most of those and ended up with my first Lamancha. Haven't looked back since. Love love love my munchies!


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## Ziggy (Nov 13, 2009)

We started our with a Purebred Alpine in milk and one of her daughters from that year.


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## lovinglife (Mar 19, 2013)

I am stricken with the goat sickness...... I wanted a couple milkers, saw an ad for Nubians doelings, got them late in the year as bred, then discovered Guernseys, so of course I had to have them, now one short summer later I hav FIVE GUERNSEYS and FOUR NUBIANS, six of which are does and all bred for March babies.... WHAT HAVE I DONE!!!!!! I work full time and commute two hours a day!

I love my goats.....


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## goatkid (Oct 26, 2007)

I was working on a goat dairy when I got my first goats. They were two doelings, a Nubian and a Saanen. My friend/boss was into showing and I helped her and brought my two girls. The Saanen did amazing in the ring and I was sold on goats. I got a few more doelings and an adult Nubian that year. Next year, I added Boers. I currently focus on Nubians and have one La Mancha as well as five recorded grades for a total of 23 goats til the next batch of kids are born. I've sold out my Boers to concentrate on dairy goats.


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## fmg (Jul 4, 2011)

Why did you get 2 bucks, Michelle? Sounds like quite the return on investment!

I started with 2 goats as well, 2 Nigerian dwarves...one was suppose to be bred, the other not. It turned out that the opposite was true!!! The one that was NOT suppose to be bred, kidding only 7 months after her last kidding...she had either backed up to a fence or there was a buck escape that the previous owner was not aware of. I rented a buck, who never seemed interested in that doe, but did breed the one that was suppose to be already bred, so I started getting suspicious. Sure enough, I ended up having December babies in Jackson Hole! But they did just fine. That spring, the doe that bred with my rented buck had a doeling which I kept and got a mini alpine doeling...and then my love of mini's began. I moved with those 4 goats, and added another doeling and a buckling from the same mini "breeder" (never got paperwork, those mini's all tested CAE+ from a "negative" herd...sigh). I bought 2 alpines that summer to use for making mini's, and a Nigerian buckling. Got rid of the positives, one of the alpines had an accident and died (she fell into a spot and drowned ), sold one of the original Nigerians, and bought a mini alpine buck, during that winter/next spring. I then bought 4 alpine doelings from Soldier-Mtn. They had all bucks their first year, and I bought a yearling milker Nigerian (who I'm very happy with--she now has 2 GCH legs as a 2 year old!); each alpine gave me at least 1 doeling this spring, along with some of the other does I have, and I am now up to 19 does and 3 bucks out there right now, as well as 2 sheep, including my purchased doeling and buckling from this year! I plan to sell most of my babies next year, and several of my milkers..gonna need to get my numbers down some.


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## lovinglife (Mar 19, 2013)

I wanted to keep my two seperate breeds, didn't actually plan on a Nubian buck but lucked into a nice buckling for cheap, couldn't pass it up.


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## swgoats (May 21, 2010)

I started with one pregnant goat. She kidded not long after I got her, a single buckling I kept for awhile. I bought a doeling to breed him to. That doeling and buckling were sold as adults before I moved from Texas, but I still have Birdie the doe in my avatar. After them I got into NDs for a little while and bred Mini Nubians. I found I was having better luck with Mini Nubians, hybrid vigor or something. So I sold all the NDs, and stuck with Minis. Now I've upgraded my minis quite a bit and am just starting to get my feet wet with Nubians. Best advice is not to buy from all over. I see people buying up cheap goats here and there, and then they end up out of goats a year later when the pellets hit the fan. There is a learning curve.


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## doublebowgoats (Mar 6, 2008)

Nancy, I had to take both bucks because the sellers wanted them GONE!


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## fmg (Jul 4, 2011)

lovinglife said:


> I wanted to keep my two seperate breeds, didn't actually plan on a Nubian buck but lucked into a nice buckling for cheap, couldn't pass it up.


Sorry, that was confusing...I was asking Michelle, not Michele.  But she answered above.


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## [email protected] (Sep 18, 2008)

I started with 2 doe kids from SherrieC and bred them to one of her bucks. They both had b/d twins and I kept the doelings but list one of the original does so bought two more does from her. Also bought an outside buckling and one from Sherrie to raise with him. So the second year I had 7 goats. Currently have 16. Should be freshening 12. Will have to make some hard cuts this next year.


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## Sans Gene Goats (May 15, 2011)

I'd always liked goats, and when we finally were able to buy acreage, was able to have them. This will be my 5th year, after starting with one bred doe and a wether to keep her company. I have 21 currently, and will be kidding out 9 does this spring and plan to kid out another 3 (this years juniors) late summer. We got into showing, then milk test, LA - the whole enchilada. The deeper I get into it, the more I love it. It HAS to be some kind of sickness lol.


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## SANDQ (Dec 27, 2011)

We stated keeping goats when we moved to Bulgaria. In October 2008 we bought 2 pregnant local breed does, they freshened the next spring and we kept a doeling from each of them. In May 2009 we bought our neighbours old doe after she had freshened making 5 goats aquired in 7 months. In 2010 we kept another of our own produced doelings making 6, in 2011 we kept another of our own produced doelings and bought in 2 more does. In the fall of that year we bought a Bulgarian white dairy buck ( basically a Saanen ) to improve our herd genetics. In the summer of 2012 we bought another doe and her daughter and in the fall of that year another 3 does. This year we bought 4 Nubian does and a 4 month old Nubian buckling to breed with next year. 
It has been a learning curve from day 1 but we did read up before we bought our first goats and we have learned a great deal from DGI giving us confidence over the last years to expand. We have got rid this year of the low producing local breed goats, the best have stayed, and my Bulgarian bucks daughters are coming up through the ranks now. We now have 17 does and 3 bucks, we had planned to put a limit on keeping 20 animals only, but our cheese making side of the business has gone through the roof. We have made and sold over 400kg of cheese this year and towards the end of the milking season we had to ration our customers, and they still keep turning up in droves for it but we have sold out. So although we said we were not going to expand any more it seems likely we will. Next year we will probably keep the Nubians daughters as the mothers were cossed with the "saanen " buck and we think the " snubians " will be good producers.
As you all know it is extremely hard work but it is, very satisfying!


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## SolsticeSun (Feb 23, 2013)

I started with 4H sheep when I was a teenager so when I finally got some land I thought, surely if I can raise sheep I can raise goats. Ha! So I bought a doe in milk and a wether from SherrieC and that fall brought the doe back to be bred. Lost the doe to toxemia that spring (I had no idea what I was doing!), bought a buckling to keep the wether company (also from SherrieC). Sat that year out because I was pregnant and high risk but the following spring, finally, added a yearling dry doe from FaithfulCrown. A few months later, added another doe (in milk) from SherrieC. Sucessfully kidded the first doe in August. So hopefully I learned the hardest lessons early and smoother sailing from here. So third year in goats but rough going getting started.


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## 2wFarm (Sep 20, 2012)

Starla said:


> did you start out with only one? or did you buy several your first year?
> 
> I am curious... had someone make the statement to me that most people don't start out with a lot of goats, they learn and then buy more. So I was wondering how other have done it.
> 
> I bought my very first dairy doe 12 years ago, I knew nothing about her and did nothing special for her upkeep BUT I was only able to keep her for one milking season and then had to rehome her. I knew I love the animals and have wanted them for years until this year, we made it happen! I went from one goat to 10 over the course of the Spring/ Summer. Am I crazy?  Tell me your story! I would love to hear it!


We started on the advice of a 40-year-experienced dairy goat gentleman. He said to buy the "best" babies we could afford. I could only afford 2 doelings and a buckling...but it was a start. they truly are like potato chips...you just can't seem to stop once you get started...


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## Xtra (Jan 1, 2010)

Once our daughter saw a Sundgau Alpine and fell in love - we went shopping..... the go big or go home kinda shopping.  

We have our 2 cornerstone does left from our first year, and a few daughters from some of our other first does that we sold to a close friend.... and are building around them. Adding a few outside does each year, and adding bucks as we 'need' them.


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## MargaritaCrews (Oct 8, 2013)

I have a friend that got me started with my goats. I bought 2 milk goats from him. We wanted the fresh milk for health reasons. Little did I know how much fun the goats would be. And our goat family is growing.


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