Goat Meat Farming

Besides owning goats as pets, the two most common reasons that people buy goats are for milk and meat. There are also some people and companies that purchase them for their cashmere. However, in this article, we will be discussing goat meat farming. Meat and milk goats are raised very similarly. If you were to peak in on a milk goat farm, and compared it to a goat meat farm, you would see a lot of the same things going on.

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One thing that might be a bit surprising to people who are not familiar with this type of farming (neither milk or meat) is that goats raised for meat are also milked, usually two times a day. This allows their owners to get even more benefit from them. They can consume the milk themselves or sell it for a profit.

Between the months of August and March is when goats are typically bred. A goat stays pregnant for four months. They are generally bred once a year and often give birth between January and August. Goats may have twins and will have between 1 and 5 kids.

Female goats can be mated as early as 7 months but should not be milked until they turn one year. Goats are one of those animals whose birthing process is pretty drama free. It should not require anything extra unless complications arise. When it is possible, have the kids nurse from their mother. If the mother is not available then they will need to be nursed with a bottle. Ideally, the baby goat will be nursed from the mother, where they are able to receive colostrum. Colostrum has a number of tremendous benefits. It has antibodies, vitamins and minerals. After a few days, it is ok to feed them a milk formula or it can continue to get its’ milk from mom. Kids can be weaned after 8-10 weeks.

Goats raised for meat should be fed hay (high quality), grain and pasture until they gain enough weight. The “right” weight will differ based on the goat. However, this is often somewhere in the range of 35 to 90 pounds.

On a goat meat farm fencing is just as important as it is on a dairy farm or even if you only keep goats as pets for that matter. This will help protect them from predators and keep them from escaping. I’m quite sure that you want either eat the meat from your goats or sell it. You won’t be able to do either if they make their way off your property or are attacked and/or killed by other animals. Fencing for goats is one of the more affordable types. You can even install it yourself if you are low on cash or simply know what you are doing. On the other hand, you can always pay someone to put it up.

In general, while there are some differences (primarily what goats bred for meat are fed) you will raise a goats bred for meat the same way that you would those used for milk. It is important that you provide them plenty of clean water, adequate fencing, plenty of room to roam and pasture and good shelter.

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Until next time,

Valik Rudd
Fellow Goats Raising Enthusiast
RaisingGoatsGuide.com

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