# Would a Nubian/Alpine cross be a good milker?



## TSYORK (Jan 1, 2008)

A few threads back I had posted that I was looking for a boyfriend for my Sally Mae. She's a nubian who is 5 yo, and this will be her second freshening. I want to have some milk to feed pigs and steers, so I think I'm going to get another doe, so I can have two to milk. I got an email last night from a guy not too far from me regarding my quest for a buck. He raises alpines and is needing to get rid of two top-grade Alpine bucks. They're not registered, but are full blooded. The only reason he needs to sell them is he needs to change the bloodlines on his farm. One is dehorned and the other is horned. Obviously I would like to get the that is dehorned. He's asking $65.00 obo. Is this a good price? Also, would this combo make a good milker if there were any does to come of this union? The other doe I'll probably try to purchase is a Lamancha, would a Lamancha/Alpine make for good milking?


----------



## ellie (Nov 17, 2007)

Argh! A buck with horns? And unregistered??? Is Sally Mae registered? Remember, at some point you will want to sell the offspring. A $65 goat does not pay its own way. And that's about all an unregistered goat will ever be worth, especially with mixed breeds. Purebred but with no papers might mean a line (yea, even in Alpines) that looks like crap and milks like crap. Which gets you wasted time and money ...jmho.


----------



## TSYORK (Jan 1, 2008)

Sally Mae is not registered, was just wanting a dairybreed boyfriend, so I could get some kiddos out of her, and then milk her.


----------



## Sondra (Oct 25, 2007)

yes tis a good price and you will just have to wait and see what any daughters would do for you in the way of milk. So yes is all you are ever wanting out of these goats is to have some milk for your family and meat to eat then go for it. Don't get one with horns unless you just use him to breed your doe and then butcher him as soon as you know she is bred for sure.


----------



## goatkid (Oct 26, 2007)

It would depend on the lines they are from, of course, but generally speaking, Alpines throw milk and crosses out of them will give you milky does. Last fall I bred my Snubian to an Alpine buck and am retaining the doeling for a milker. Hid daughters give lots of milk as does my doe.


----------



## TSYORK (Jan 1, 2008)

All I'm buying him for is to breed my doe. I possibly will purchase another milk breed doe, so he can breed both of them. Once I confirm they're both preggers, then he's off to the sale. We don't eat goat meat, so there's no use of him staying on my grocery bill any longer than he has to. I'm looking for a couple of does for milk to make cheese and feed a couple of pigs with.


----------



## Caprine Beings (Sep 19, 2008)

Shane since you don't eat the meat and just are looking for does wether any bucklings. You can sell them for meat or you can send them to sale as well. Tam


----------



## KJFarm (Oct 26, 2007)

Shane, in regard to your question, crossing Nubians with any of the Swiss breeds (Alpine, Saanen, Toggenburg) should make you a nice milker. The Swiss breeds are heavier producers, the Nubians will give you higher butterfat. For your situation, a crossbred would be fine.


----------



## milkmaidranch (Jun 21, 2010)

I can say from 15 years of experiance with my very first goat ever, Sarabi, that the cross of an Alpine/Nubian is wonderful. If you go to my web-site she is on the home page and other pages. She died this past April at the age of 15. Her last kid was at age 13 and this is the kid with her on the home page. I milked her for 12 years in a row, never sick a day in her life. At 15 she was still cycling but I didn't want to stress her after 13 years old. Proud to say she was one of my best friends ever. Missed with many tears still. www.milkmaidranch.com

As your girl is not registered, go ahead, get the buck if he is healthy. She should also have smaller kids from this cross.


----------



## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

It would cost you $50 to bring your doe here in heat and have her bred. So buying a $65 buck and putting him in with her to get her bred, 30 days after you see her bred (check under her tail twice a day, it will be nasty with dried semen when she is bred) send blood in to biotracking.com (you can do a CAE Test and a pregnancy test) if she is bred than eat the buck or sell him. We milked almost all hybrids on the dairy part of the farm...my favorite by far was a Lamancha crossed with anything. I have a Nupine (Alpine dam, Nubian sire) on my website if you want to see what they look like....the ears are alot like the old show The Flying Nun and she can lift those ears straight up when she is frightened. The first cross are usually super healthy, the best of both bloodlines. Perhaps this winter you will want to deposit a Nubian buckling out of a local herd to purchase to use 2011, breed her and her daughters and then sell him. Alot of my friends do this yearly so they don't have to overwinter bucks. Or go back to this guy with the $65 bucks and get another one. Vicki


----------



## Nancy (Oct 25, 2007)

One of my does is half nubian half alpine(sire was alpine). She gives plenty of milk and has a nice udder. Like Vicki said ,this one also has the flying nun ears(with a lot of control). It seems to be a pretty good cross. I would get him, breed the does, then sell him.


----------



## Ashley (Oct 25, 2007)

Are you educated on CL, did you ask the seller about it? Cheap goats always makes me extra concerned about disease. 

Too bad you aren't closer, I have a nice little nubian buckling.


----------



## dragonlair (Mar 24, 2009)

I love the Nubian/Swiss crosses, they milk great, have nice Butter fat% and have some interesting ears!


----------



## Cotton Eyed Does (Oct 26, 2007)

If all you want is to get your girl bred to have milk then yep, that's a good deal. Is his stock clean and healthy? You could look at this buck's dam's udder to see if any doelings might be something you could plan on keeping to milk in the future. By this I mean, if the dam's udder is high and tight, attached well, not hanging down, swaying back and forth when she walks, dragging on limbs and brush. Nice top line. If this buck's dam has pretty good confirmation then I would do it. If you don't intend to keep any of the kids then it doesn't matter really.


----------



## TSYORK (Jan 1, 2008)

They're goals are like mine, they breed for milk, so they can have cheese, milk for the table, baby calves, pigs, etc. He is emailing me pictures tomorrow, so I'll try to post here, to get your eval on the buck. From my understand he tends to throw offspring with extremely heavy milklines. The only reason their getting rid of him, is to change the genes in the herd for this fall's breeding.


----------



## hsmomof4 (Oct 31, 2008)

Be sure to ask about abscesses (CL) and if they have had any on their farm, as Ashley referred to.


----------

