General Overview of Meat Goat Production

Linda I. Spahr
York County Extension Agent

Market goat production is not new, however in some parts of the United States the profitability of market goats is just being discovered. Eastern regions of the United States are finding they are poised to efficiently produce and market goats in a wide variety of ethnic markets. Successful market goat production encompasses a wide variety of skills.

Goats have been used by humans for meat, milk, fiber and companionship for thousands of years. Goats arrived in the Americas with the second voyage of Columbus in 1493. Goats can be raised in very hot climates as well as in very cool climates. They are very adaptable and can be raised successfully in any part of the United States.

Breeds of Goats
A variety of breeds of goats can be found in the United States today. Angora and Cashmere goats are used for fiber. Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf breeds are used as meat, milk and companion animals. Boer, Kiko, Myotonic, and Spanish goats are used as meat animals and there are six widely accepted Dairy goat breeds. Information on breeds of goats can be found by visiting the Oklahoma State Goat Breeds Directory at
http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/goats/. Crossbreeding in goats combines the best traits in individual breeds into one animal. Breed your animals to maximize the traits you are interested in.

Type of Operation
Before you get started in the goat business, you will need to ask yourself whether you would like to run a purebred or a commercial operation. A purebred operation typically raises goats of one breed. Often a purebred operation will have all registered goats that can also be sold through purebred sales. A commercial operation may have unregistered purebred goats or they may have crossbred goats. Commercial producers have the benefit of hybrid vigor which is simply the ability of crossbred offspring to increase in productivity over the average of the breeds that were part of the cross. This means that a crossbred kid could grow faster than either of its parents.

Many purebred sales are held across the country throughout the year. Sales may offer only one or two breeds or they may offer a large variety of breeds for sale. Generally, goat sales begin with a show that allows the sale management to develop a sale order. The show is also helpful to prospective buyers who wish to select the best animals they can afford. Also, you will want to become familiar with trends in the goat industry when choosing breeding stock. Choose billies that will compliment the outstanding traits in your nannies and improve their weaknesses.

Nannies for a commercial operation can be bought at a purebred sale and then used in a crossbreeding program or you can contact individual producers to buy larger numbers of nannies that could be purebreds or crossbreds. Another option is to buy animals through an auction barn. Be aware however, that you are more likely to buy problem goats through an auction barn. Unless a producer sells all his goats through the auction, he may be selling only cull animals.

Goat Housing and Facilities

Goats can be raised in a much smaller area than cattle or horses and are popular among people living in suburban areas with one or two acres of land. Always check the zoning requirements before beginning your goat production enterprise. In some areas goats are defined as livestock while in other areas they are defined as companion animals. This definition can have a great influence on the success of an operation.

Some breeds of goats have louder voices than other breeds. If you are considering goat production in a suburban area you will need to take this into consideration. When producing goats you will need to consider accessibility to pasture, hay and grains. Goats need exercise, forage and shelter. Shelter for goats does not need to be expensive but must provide adequate protection from wind and precipitation. You will need to consider where you will market your goats. Is there a market to support the number of animals you plan to produce? Do you have a market for cull animals? Will you be able to produce your own replacement nannies or will you need to buy replacements? Good meat goat management begins before you purchase your first goat.

Goat shelters do not need to be expensive. Three sided shelters that protect the goats from wind and precipitation are adequate. Goats will need shade and protection from drafts. Greenhouse barns, calf hutches and even large dog boxes provide sufficient shelter for goats. Straw, shredded paper, shavings and corn cobs can all be used as bedding. Goats need about 15 square feet of bedded area per goat to be comfortable. Goats like to sleep with their heads uphill and take delight in sleeping on raised areas such as shelves or bunks. The biggest challenge in meat goat production is protecting goats from drafts. Cold, damp drafts will decimate a group of young goats more quickly than any other single factor. Do not confuse drafts with fresh air. Goats need fresh air, but fresh air needs to come from above the animal where it can mix with warmer air before it contacts the goat. Drafts blowing under doors and across floors can reduce healthy kids to animals with pneumonia and scours over night.

The second factor involved in housing goats is the fencing system. It has been said "if it won't hold water, it won't hold goats". There are times goat producers will tell you this statement is not far from the truth. Goat fencing can be any variety of systems or a combination of several systems. Goats often require a two fence system consisting of an exterior fence (perimeter) and an interior fence (cross fence). The perimeter fence will keep your goat in and predators out. High-Tensile fence is popular, but can be expensive. Most goats can be taught to respect electric fence,

however when panicked, a goat will clear or run through any fence. A permanent goat fence should have four strands of electric wire. The bottom strand should be no more than 6 inches off the ground. The next strand should be 12-14 inches off the ground, the third strand should be 18-22 inches off the ground and the fourth strand should be 30-34 inches off the ground. Many goat owners will electrify only 2 strands and will then alternate electrified strands to keep the goat from learning how to escape.

Short term fencing can be as simple as one electrified strand of wire to a more complex arrangement using livestock panels or net fencing. Remember goats love to climb. Regardless of the type of fence that you use, remember you must have the fence anchored well into the ground to keep the goats from pushing the fence over. Many people prefer fencing with vertical bars so the goats can not stand on the bars. This type of fence works well except with young kids who tend to walk through the vertical bars.

Goat manure should not be allowed to accumulate to the point of filth in a goat pen. Water and feed should not be contaminated by accumulated manure. Goat manure is produced in pelleted form and contains nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Goat manure makes a wonderful addition to a home compost pile or garden. Before you enter into large scale goat production, be sure the nutrient management laws in your area will allow you to handle the amount of manure your goats may produce.

Goat Operation Management

Management of a goat operation depends largely on the interests of the producer as well as the resources available such as land, feed, facilities, and others. Intensive management systems may confine goats year-round while other management systems may have goats on pasture year-round. Below are some management considerations for goat operations.

Feed Requirements
Goats will have varying requirements depending on their age and stage of production. Kids will need a higher level of nutrition to allow for their growth, while mature dry nannies will need a relatively low level of nutrition.

Kids can be creep fed before weaning by setting up an area accessible to only the Kids. The creep feed may contain grain, hay or both. Creep rations often start around 18% protein.

The protein level decreases as the kids mature. For example a creep ration for nursing kids would start at 18% protein. Near weaning time (generally around 60 days of age) the level can be reduced to 16%. This level can be maintained until you stop feeding grain daily. This will depend on what type of operation you have and how much importance you put on maximum growth.

Mature nannies should not need grain except for the last third of pregnancy and while they are nursing kids. The protein level for kids is not as important as the energy. Therefore, you can feed nannies straight shelled corn to keep energy levels high enough for the remainder of pregnancy and to keep body condition on the nannies while they are nursing kids. During breeding season, you can "flush" the nannies to increase their chances of having twins by feeding a half pound to a pound of grain per day. You can also flush nannies by moving them to a lush pasture.

Billies can be fed similar to nannies. When they are young and growing or while they are in production (breeding nannies) they will need a grain supplement. Billies should be in good body condition at the start of breeding season to insure adequate sperm production for breeding the nannies. Be careful not to feed a lot of alfalfa hay to billies or to whether goats because the high levels of calcium can result in kidney stones.

Breeding Season
Breeding seasons will vary depending on when you want your kids born. Many producers will breed nannies in the fall so that they can wean 40 to 60 lb. kids for the Easter market. Other producers may breed nannies in the spring so that they can wean 40 to 60 lb. kids for the Christmas market. Still others may breed to kid on pasture to take advantage of the spring growing season and large amounts of pasture.

When breeding nannies you will need to consider how many billies can cover the number of nannies you plan to breed. A mature billy out on the range will be able to cover up to 30 nannies, while a mature billy on a farm can cover up to 40 nannies. For young billies, decrease the number of nannies to 15 on range and 20 on a farm. In preparing billies for breeding season, their feet should be trimmed, and they should be in good body condition, not overly fat or thin.

Kidding Season
Producers have different methods of kidding out their nannies. In general, you will need to decide if you want to kid the nannies outside on pasture or inside the barn. The time of year that you kid will determine to some extent where you kid. Nannies lambed in the colder part of winter or during periods of cold rains should have those kids inside to decrease the chance of losing kids

During warmer times of the year, nannies can kid outside on pasture. Also, depending on your management system, you may need to place nannies and newborn kids in kidding pens for a few days. This allows the kids to identify their mother as well as the mother to identify kids. For single born kids this is not as important as multiple births. Keeping track of two and three kids can be difficult in large herds with large numbers of kids. Placing kids with their mother in kidding pens also allows you to keep a closer watch on the newborns to make sure they receive colostrum, the antibody rich first milk, and to make sure the nanny has milk and accepts the kids.

Kidding pens should be at least 4’ X 4’ to 5’ X 5’. For large nannies, you may want larger pens. Plan on having one to two kidding pens for every 10 nannies. Nannies and kids should be placed in the pens for one to three days after the kids are born. Allow nannies to kid in a larger area outside the kidding pens to prevent the nanny from lying on the first kid as she gives birth to the second kid.

Weaning Time
Most kids are weaned at 60 to 90 days of age. Before weaning though, you will want to prepare the nannies for slowing down their milk production. Several days before weaning, stop feeding grain to the nannies. Then, beginning on the day that kids are weaned, withhold water for 24 hours to help dry off the nannies. Watch nannies carefully for several days for signs of redness on their udder or nannies who are obviously suffering pain from full udders. In some cases, you can relieve some pressure on the udder by milking a small amount out. Do not milk the nanny dry as this will cause her to continue producing milk. In addition, nannies should be fed a low quality dry hay until they have completely dried off. Kids may continue to eat from a creep feeder for a few days after weaning. After that point, feed the kids by hand twice a day. Kids should receive a high quality hay to go with their grain.

Shortly after weaning you may want to sort billy kids from nanny kids and feed them accordingly. This will prevent any early maturing nanny kids from getting bred as well as help to prevent smaller nannies from being pushed away from the feeder by larger billies.

Where Can I Sell My Kids?

One of the easiest places to sell your kids is through a local auction barn. This is always a gamble because you never know what you will receive for your kids. However, sometimes that gamble can work in your favor as well as against you. When taking kids to the market, look for those times of the year when demand is high and you are more likely to receive higher prices. For example, Christmas and Easter are good times to sell your kids. In addition, kids are in demand during ethnic holidays such as Ramadan and Orthodox Easter.

Other options for selling kids are to develop your own direct market. This might be selling freezer goats, breeding stock, or feeder kids to a feedlot. Other options are to produce a value-added product such as goat stew or market your goat through your own restaurant. Producing a unique product can also develop niche markets. Or, you may want to focus on organic goat or range fed goat. Use your ingenuity to come up with your own special product.

Closing Thoughts

Whether you raise purebred breeding stock or commercial kids for market, you will need to sit down prior to getting started and make some decisions. Spend some time thinking about what you would like to do as well as developing a business and marketing plan. Developing the plans will help you to focus on the goals you wish to achieve as well as provide a valuable source of information to lenders if you plan to borrow money.

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