backyard goats
"My backyard is tiny! There's no way I can raise goats." Don't be in such a hurry to rule out backyard goats, even if your place is small. Even if you don’t have a big farm or a lot of acreage, you can still start raising goats in your backyard. In fact, our family got started raising goats years ago with our first two goats which we kept in the backyard behind our house. Later we expanded from there to our current farm, and now we have more acreage and a sizable herd of goats.
We had no idea what we were doing at first. So if we can start a successful farm from a small backyard operation, you can easily do it too. These are the first two goats we ever purchased. We found them on Craigslist and picked them up as we were driving back home from a vacation road trip. You can see our old backyard in the background where we kept them, until we moved to our current farm. Our dog, Turner, here is making sure the new goats pass inspection. You can successfully raise goats in your own small backyard by following these 5 easy steps.
Maybe you want goats simply as pets, or as an educational project for your kids. Goats are one of the best animals for this purpose because they are small. They are easy to manage in a regular backyard and very people-friendly. If you spend time with goats when they are young, they grow up learning to follow you around and nuzzle-up against you. They can even be trained to do tricks if you take the time to work with them.
Living With Goats: Everything You Need To Know To Raise Your Own Backyard Herd: Hathaway, Margaret: 0660813784407: Amazon.com: Books
Maybe, like us, you want to raise pure-bred registered goats so you can show them competitively at goat shows. If you do that, and begin winning awards, your goats can become more valuable. Then they can bring a higher price when you breed them and sell the new kids.
We raise dairy goats just like we did when we first got started in a small backyard. They provide the wonderful benefit of free milk for your family. And goat milk is a lot tastier and healthier for your family. Producing milk can also give you the added benefit of being able to make goat cheese which is in high demand. Another benefit of goat milk is that you can produce goat milk soap and other products. Many small backyard goat owners sell their goats milk soap for a good price at local markets and online. Beyond cheese and soap, you can even get into making yogurt, fudge, and other good products. These are great to eat, share with friends, and sell to others. Keep in mind that if you sell milk, cheese or other products for human consumption, you will need to comply with various legal requirements and get licensed before you can do that.
Although it’s hard for some people to think about, many goat farmers breed goats to be used for their meat. Certain breeds of goats are better suited for producing meat than others. Goat meat is in big demand for certain ethnic holiday celebrations. You can start raising meat goats even if you're just starting with a small backyard operation.
Valetin With The Backyard Goats.
You may not realize it but many leather products are made from goat skin. It is considered more supple and durable than other leathers. Because of this, some small backyard goat farmers raise goats to sell at auction for their skins. The benefits of raising goats in your backyard, listed above, are just some reasons people choose to keep goats. Now let’s take a look at the responsibilities that go along with your new backyard goat farm.
Here are some of the responsibilities you will face if you raise goats in your backyard, which will be discussed in more detail below.
Those are just some of the basic responsibilities of keeping goats in your backyard. There are plenty of other things you will need to do later if you plan to sell goat products, show your goats competitively, etc. But it’s best to focus on the basic stuff for now. You can start off small and simple in your backyard, and then you can learn more about those other things later as you decide which direction to go in with your backyard goat farm.
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