Meat Goat Blog

Goat Meat - The Best Meat

Goat meat - is it really good for you? The following link lists the nutrients in roasted goat and provides a list of the benefits.

http://seekthat.net/blog/2009/04/09/goat-meat-nutrients-and-benefits/

Meat Goat Production and Marketing Video

Meat goat production  -  click on the link below to see a video. It was well done. However, we disagree with the need for boer genetics to increase the amount of meat on the carcass. Sure boers are larger, but a lot of the size is bone and otherwise non-usable.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEnLEq7jLpA

Oklahoma Goats Go To Work Clearing Property

Ok Goat Clearing is a new Oklahoma brush removal business using goats rather bulldozers, chemicals, or other unnatural methods of controlling problem plants. The web page for them states:

         Poison Ivy? Poison Oak? No Problem! Goats eat a wide variety of noxious weeds and plants, such as star thistle, poison oak, blackberries and dock. Although the goat's digestive system is similar to that of other ruminants, such as cattle and sheep, who are "grazers" and eat grass, goats are more related to deer, who are "browsers". As browsers, goats are designed to eat, and prefer, brush and trees more than grass. It is natural for them to nibble a little here, and a little there. Because of this, even if you have poisonous plants on your property, if they have plenty of "safe" browse, they rarely eat enough bad stuff to cause any real harm.

How It Works:   Clearing Land With Goats

With their four-chambered stomachs and insatiable desire to nibble on anything even resembling a plant, goats have gained credibility as land clearers among Oklahoma-area government agencies and private developers. Skeptics, we've found, quickly become converts. Once the hooves hit the ground, few can question the tenacity of these ruminants to devour unwanted foliage.

Bringing goats into the city to do what they do best has its advantages: They're cheaper than manual laborers, chemical-free and popular with parents and children. Even the critters' droppings are in demand.

When it comes to steep slopes covered in blackberry vines, goats are faster and cheaper than human crews or heavy equipment. Goats can't compete with herbicides for speed, but can work in wetlands and along stream banks with minimal threat to water quality or fish habitat. If allowed to return to an area for a couple of years, they can almost entirely remove English ivy, Scotch broom and blackberries.

Unlike people with weed-whackers, goats can clear vegetation from steep hills and other hard-to-reach places, and they'll eat the seeds that pesticides leave behind, keeping next year's generation of weeds at bay.

If you need some land cleared or just have some pasture that needs a little weed control, you can find them at www.okgoatclearing.com.

Meat Goats Give Live Demonstration Of Brush Clearing Skills

Goats breeders make a point about the benefits of brush control with goats in a live demonstration that will take place August 2nd from 1:00pm to 4:00pm where visitors can watch them work. Nicole Fuller of The Baltimore Sun Reports on the munching power of 40 goats. She goes on to say,

In the past, county officials had used manpower and heavy machinery to clear undergrowth and vines and allow for the growth of the native oaks and hickory trees on the site, but they wanted to use a more environmentally friendly method, said Karyn Molines, supervisor of cultural resources at the county Department of Recreation and Parks. Molines described the area where the goats will graze as "very challenging."

Isn't it great how people are using fancy, new ways to address problems with goats!! Who would have thought about using goats to control weeds!!

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/anne-arundel/bal-md.ar.goats21jul21,0,5192596.story

Oklahoma Goat Production - 3rd Largest Producer

Oklahoma is ripe for a meat goat processing plant of its own, Purcell ag producer Mike Perschbacher said. He's expecting to conclude negotiations with a California investor group for a plant on initial demand of at least 40,000 pounds of meat per month.

"This won't just be a big deal for me. It'll help everyone in the goat business in Oklahoma," he said. "There's a lot of people here in the state who just aren't making what they could be because they don't know where to sell what they're raising. And there's a lot of potential in this market right now" according to an article written by Brian Brus in The Journal Record, April 21, 2009.

He also said, according to the National Agricultural Statistical Service's latest figures, Oklahoma is the third-largest producer of meat goats in the country, with about 115,000 head, the same figure as last year. Tennessee has 133,000 meat goats, up slightly from 2008, and Texas has 980,000, down slightly.

Most meat goat production is in the southeastern part of the country, with the exception of California, which is rising to challenge Oklahoma's position. That's largely due to the immigrant cultural diversity on the West Coast, experts said - goat meat is a mainstay in many countries and more goat's milk is consumed worldwide than cow's milk.

It all  sounds really good to us! http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4182/is_20090421/ai_n31575925/

Minerals Are Essential To Goats

Goats like all animals require minerals for good health, but  mineral supplements for other types of livestock probably won't meet their needs. Horse minerals probably don't have ample copper to provide the needs of your goats. Many new goat breeders ( including us when we started ) do not realize how important certain trace minerals are. Goats need considerably more copper than most other animals and will often develop a weakened immune system without it.  We provide minerals in granules year round free choice for our goats whenever they want. There will be months go by when hardly any minerals are touched, then suddenly a bag a day is consumed for a few weeks.

When our goats are hungry for the nutrients in the minerals; they eat them like feed by taking mouth fulls at a time. Strangers watching them would think it was goat candy or some special treat. It's just the way our goats eat them.

The first year, when we didn't know how important it was to purchase minerals specially intended for goats, ours did not do nearly as well. A friend who breeds show boers suggested we were making a big mistake and brought over one of his mineral feeders and several bags to get us started. We have yet to encounter a breeder in the business for more than four or five years that doesn't agree goats have special needs when it comes to trace minerals.

The topic came up during the AKGA seminar in June, we didn't hear anyone indicate minerals were a waste of time. One of the guest lecturers mentioned minerals need to be purchased fresh and used promptly because the mineral values decreases with time and heat. He specifically advised against leaving the minerals in the trunk of your car during the summer as the heat will ruin over half the value in 24 hours.

In conclusion, you must provide minerals from some source for healthy goats and if you use bag minerals, buy them as you need them.

Goat Parasite Workshop

Parasites, the goat rancher's worst enemy is under siege. There is a a parasite workshop scheduled July 18, 2009:

Okfuskee County Goat Parasite Workshop

Registration 8:30 a.m.-9:00 a.m. Class size is limited to 35 participants.  Registration fee of $10.00 was due by July 10, 2009.  But they might let you register late if you ask real nice.  For more information please contact the Okfuskee County OSU Extension Office at 918-623-0641

http://oklagoats.com/Documents/Okfuskee%20County%20Goat%20Parasite%20Workshop.pdf

CBS Reports Iranians Clone A Goat

CBS News recently reported Iranian scientists cloned a female goat. We don't like the idea of cloning and many of the other means of reproduction. Each to their own, but we believe God did it His way for a reason. We'll just respect it - besides it seems to have worked for quite a while.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/04/16/tech/main4949586.shtml

Highest Selling Kiko at 2009 AKGA Sale

The highest selling Kiko at the AKGA Showcase Sale was a doe consigned by Bill Sheehy. TNT Loverboy's Golden Girl sold for $3,600.00. She was 100% New Zealand and extremely pleasant on the eyes. It was an interesting sale to watch with some goats selling at bargain prices and others selling for more than we thought was fair market prices. Memories aren't always accurate, but the overall quality of the goats sold didn't seem quite as good as 2008. Still, it was fun to attend. 

Live Goat Confirmation Clinic

A live goat confirmation clinic was held Saturday, June 27, 2009, as part of the AKGA convention activities. Dr. Dave Sparks, Dr. Steve Hart, and Dr. Richard Browning inspected and commented on a group of does and pointed out the good as well as the less favorable characteristics. The does were not part of the sale and were selected to show the audience what to look for. All of the speakers/judges agreed a small, tight udder as opposed to a large, over-extended one was required. Does with large bags often cannot nurse their offspring and also have other mammary problems such as mastitis.

The clinic was well attended with the bleachers packed full. Those attending were allowed to interpose questions during the middle of the talk and readily answered all the questions which people asked.