Meat Goat Blog

Llamas Can Protect Goats From Predators

We have friends who successfully use llamas to protect their goats from Oklahoma predators. Some people prefer llamas for protection. Although we have never used them, they are probably less expensive to keep since they can eat grass. Here is a website that contrasts the use of LGDs, donkeys, and llamas.

Be sure to check out our directory of Livestock Guardian Dogs for sale.

Can a Lazy Donkey Really Guard a Herd of Goats

Donkeys as predator protection. For real? Aren't donkeys those lazy, stubborn versions of an ugly horse?  Some people claim they guard their goats; we haven't tried them so can't say for sure. We found a website that likes the idea. One of the advantages is the donkey can eat with the goats and a separate food source ins't needed. We prefer LGDs, but we have big cats around and our goats tend to split up into separate herds during the day. If you want to know more, take a look at:  http://hubpages.com/hub/Livestock-Guardian-Animals

Be sure to check out our directory of Livestock Guardian Dogs for sale.

Back Packing with Goats!

Want some help lugging your pack up the trail, how about a goat. Donna Semasko of Edelweiss Acres says:

"Goat packing entails placing a pack on a goat. Then, you and this gentle creature embark upon an adventure with them carrying most of the gear. Not carrying as much on your back is a way to enhance your out-of-doors experience. Pack goats can be your best friend on the trail. They are willing hiking companions and enjoy the company of people. Proper training is a primary key to successful goat packing. Goats are intelligent and curious creatures but they need positive training to know what they are supposed to do for you on the trail. The more you work with your goat, the more bonded it becomes to you. Keeping a pack goat at home requires a time commitment - the reward is a less strenuous hike! "

Semasko contends goats are friendlier, work harder, and are less expensive than llamas and donkeys. They can also go places some pack animals simply can't climb.

If you are interested in more information, there is a goat packing seminar in January, 2010. You can call her at 360-481-0527 for directions, send her an e-mail, or just check out the web site. http://home.comcast.net/~edelweissacres/ewacres5.htm#Top5

Time to Teach Our Doelings to Eat Grain

Our doelings don't know what grain is. We have to teach them to eat it. When you tell people, some think we aren't telling them the whole story. We are. They truly don't know what to think about food in a sack.

We fed one of the horses this afternoon and have some doelings that aren't big enough to breed in the paddock with him. The comment was made it was about time to start teaching the doelings to eat grain. So we put some feed in flat pan near them. They ignored us so we rattled it. They took off the other direction a few steps before turning to see if we were chasing them. Not the first time we have seen this reaction.

After 10 minutes of trying to lure them over it started to grain; we just gave up and left. Now some of you are probably wondering why we want to teach them to eat bagged feed anyway. Real simple: (1) we do have to feed some grain in the second and third trimester of gestation unless we wait to breed in late December and (2) when we decide to work them or catch them if they get out, grain is far easier than running through the brush.

As an example, we lost some goats in July that found  a whole in the fence. They wouldn't come to a rattling feed bucket. With close to 2,000 acres of unfenced property around us, much of it brush, they disappeared. Probably eaten by the coyotes or big cats that wander around the area. The rogue band consisted of one Spanish doe and 11 or 12 doelings. None cared about the sound of rattling feed in the bucket.

So how do we teach them to eat grain.  The easiest way is by example. The good news is we will soon be in the middle of the winter and the natural feed sources are dying off. It is a lot easier to train them in the winter than the summer. The older does have been fed for 60 days in the winter when we breed early. The younger ones usually watch at first, then curiosity finishes the work. As silly as it may sound, the process takes two or three weeks.

The thought has come to us that we may just need to breed some smarter goats!

Goat Predators in Oklahoma

Goats have natural predators in Oklahoma that range from coyotes to mountain lions to packs of dogs. Horned goats can defend themselves against one coyote or dog to a certain extent, but have little chance against a pack of them. Cougars or mountain lions are impossible for any goat to deal with.

Livestock guardian dogs are one option to protect your goats. There are several breeds to available and mixed breeds do well. The best guardian dogs, "LGD's" are usually neutered. The mating season doesn't interfere with their work. However, there are intact LGDs that do an excellent job.

The dogs tend to develop primarily from a genetic tendency to guard livestock coupled with actual training from birth by working animals. Mother dogs can be seen with pups in the middle of the goat herd and often start training the pups at 8 - 12 weeks by taking them one at a time with the goats. Training by humans is almost impossible. The dogs either have the natural disposition or they don't. Training, to the extent it can be accomplished, comes from experienced dogs that communicate what should and should not be done.

A good LGD will sacrifice sleep, food, and the easy life in exchange for their own herd of goats to watch over. The good LGD's are worth every penny and are indispensable in larger ranches where it is difficult to monitor what may come over or under the fence. A protective LGD will fight off big cats, wolves, wild dogs, and coyotes, day or night. They work tirelessly 24/7 in scorching heat and bitter cold.

LGDs generally do not herd the goats. In fact, herding is a rarely seen trait. Some LGDs will occasionally try to lead or suggest a course of direction, but will yield to the herd leader and follow the goats wherever they roam. The dog's priority is protection, not herding.

These dogs bond with the goats and prefer living with them to people. We have seen one Anatolian female with pups also raise an orphan kid by nursing it with her pups. She raised the kid whose mother died a few days following its birth. We have a male Anatolian/Pyrenees cross  that we had to teach not to carry around the kids. He was taking such good care of them that he wasn't letting them nurse. It was hilarious to see the does screeching and bellering for their babies as he carried them all over the pasture.

Finally with some gentle conversation and carefully taking them out of his mouth, he started leaving them alone. But let some negligent mother, like some we used to have, wander away from her kids and he will have them under his watchful care.

If you are going to raise goats, you need to give some careful attention to predators or they will eat up your profits!

Be sure to check out our directory of Livestock Guardian Dogs for sale.

Goat: The Healthy Red Meat

Goat is the most widely consumed meat in the world according to Jacqueline Wilt, R.N., C.E.M.T. Seventy-five percent (75%) of the world's population eats goat meat. Ms. Wilt says, "

It has a good flavor and is very healthy. It is low in fat, cholesterol, calories, and saturated fat. In fact, goat meat is over 50% lower in fat than our American beef and is about 40% lower in saturated fat than chicken, even chicken cooked with the skin off!  The following meat comparison (per 3 oz. roasted meat) table is from the USDA Handbook:

    Calories     Fat (g)  Sat. Fat (g)   Protein (g)    Iron (g)

GOAT    122        2.58         0.79 23    3.2   

Beef    245   16.0      6.8 23       2.0

Pork    310   24.0      8.7 21       2.7

Lamb      235   16.0      7.3 22      1.4

Chicken  120      3.5   1.1 21       1.5

Since goat meat is so low in fat, this makes cooking more of a challenge. Goat meat must be cooked slowly and at low temperatures, or it will dry out and become tough. The best ways to cook goat are roasting (in the oven, in a smoker, or on the grill) or braising (cooking with added liquid such as water, wine, or milk). Marinating will help retain moisture and tenderness as well. Old-fashioned smoking has, in our opinion, produced the best-tasting goat meat of all. What I have had was even better than smoked beef or pork! Of course, most of us do not have the time required to smoke our meats daily, so I am including a few less time-consuming recipes for you to try. Enjoy!"

She also offers recipes in her blog post in Grits Rural American Know How.  http://www.grit.com/Life-at-Diamond-W-Ranch/Cooking-with-Goat-Meat.aspx

All Things Goats On Facebook

All Things Goats has a Facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/pages/All-Things-Goat/130484502022 If you are into social networking and like goats, it looks like the place to be. I thought about adding my photo, but just didn't see how another "old goat" would add much value.

From a marketing point of view, the more contacts you make in the industry, the easier it will be to sell your goats. As pointed out in earlier posts, you need to start your goat business from the perspective of who is going to buy your goats.

You definitely  want to make the acquaintance of the folks at All Things Goats!!

Spanish Kiko Cross

The Spanish Kiko cross is the meat goat cross we recommend. It's the best meat goat cross in the world as far as we are concerned! Nuff said.

If you'd like to know more about Spanish/Kiko crosses, check out our post: What is a Spanish/Kiko Cross Goat?

Fecal Counts - Zero is Perfect - Or Is It ?

Some goats have extremely low fecal egg counts - zero. These goats are parasite resistant and rarely need to be wormed. Anything below 250 is considered exceptional. Obviously goat breeders like to  see these low numbers and many of us tailor our breeding program to raise offspring with these characteristics. But, is it what we the industry really needs. Is it what we really want?

Recently, I had a conversation with a fellow breeder that I respect. He has top quality goats and also places considerable emphasis on low numbers in the fecal counts. During the discussion, he disapprovingly  mentioned some breeders seem satisfied with goats that have higher egg counts although unaffected  by the parasite load they carry. He was surprised to learn I agree with these other breeders to some extent.

Whether it is better to have resistance as opposed to resilience is an interesting question. As said, we breed for resistance, but we also breed for resilience. We believe both are important. Someone will undoubtedly point out that no eggs means no worms. This is the position my friend takes. In fact, he says owning goats that carry worms means you are infecting the rest of your herd as the droppings are spread through the pasture. It is a sound position.  After all, increased parasite levels will definitely infect the others.

So why do we care about resilience? Wouldn't it just make sense to stay focused on goats who don't have parasites? We don't think so. It reminds me of the 20 year old, never sick a day in his life,  who  suddenly dies of a simple virus. Over the weekend, I listened to one of those medical radio shows. The physician talked about increasing numbers of adults contracting whooping cough. He explained the vaccines given as  a child wear off and the immune system weakens when it is not periodically challenged.

Sooner or later the goat with a zero parasite level is going to come into contact with a new strain of parasites it never encountered before. When it happens, the animal whose immunity has never been fully developed  will not have the time to build  a working immune system. 

While we are big advocates of objective tests to measure attributes such as the buck forage tests. One of our criticisms  of these tests has been the lack of resilience testing. We have suggested tests in which parasites are introduced to the participants to determine the ability to ward off the attack. So far, we are not aware of any testing facility that has a resilience test.

One of the objections posed by test facilities is breeders of expensive, registered stock will not be willing to participate for fear of the animal dying.  Our response is the tests are designed to objectively prove  that what is being sold is truly there. Sort of like, "put your money where your mouth is." If you hear of a facility conducting resilience tests, send us an e-mail and let us know.  

Boston Suburb Uses Goats

We like government officials who use sound judgment to cut expenses. Andover, Massachusetts, a Boston suburb, is using goats to mow an overgrown public meadow. That's smart! It saves on tractors, mowers, and manpower to maintain the property. The story was reported by the Associated Press. For the full article, see http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hEBIsHkCYEg1CwLJKP9LS_UtHKzwD9BD1K3O1

We say the Andover officials deserve a big pat on the back!!