By Erin Link, EB Ranch LLC
The answer is all of them, of course!! Who doesn’t want to keep adding these wonderful goats not only to their own personal herd but also to the world population?
Part of managing any livestock or poultry breed requires us to ask WHY are we raising that particular animal or breed. If it’s for profit, is there a demand specifically for SCI goats? If so, what are people looking for in this breed? I think the answer at large is that people are looking for doelings or mature does. SCI goats make wonderful homestead animals; they fit into meat, dairy or fiber production, brush clean up, pack animals, pets, etc. There isn’t a huge demand for bucks, even though they play a very important role in keeping the SCI goat breed diverse and healthy.
A Bucky Topic
With rare breed animals, be prepared to perhaps keep multiple bucks, or if you are near other breeders perhaps set up trade agreements or use AI (Artificial Insemination). Long-term plans are really important when it comes to rare livestock breeds. For example, sturdy buck housing is a must to prevent accidental breedings, although goats have strong wills and even our best intentions can be knocked down and laid flat when it comes to those strong breeding instincts.
While we figure out our short and long term plans, we also need to think critically about the maximum number of goats we should have. What can our land and finances support, both short term and long term.
Be creative and find ways to help you save a couple bucks. My friends gave me their old camper. I gutted out the camper, put a milk stanchion inside and now use it as portable goat housing. While investing in a new jack and using old materials to make a partition.
What About the Money - Obtaining Goats
The initial cost of obtaining SCI goats or any livestock needs to be taken into consideration. Often it’s not only the cost of the goats but also transport costs. With goats ranging from $250-$600 on average and transport costing around $600+ depending on transport distance, you could easily spend $3,000 on a starter herd of SCI goats, and that is just for goats, not for fencing and housing.
Feed Cost
Figuring out feed costs is vital as well. For example, will you be feeding hay and grain year round or using your goats strictly to clear brush or even rotationally pasturing your goats? Choosing goats that are coming from a similar management style will be helpful in these cases. Choosing your management style will help you determine some of the cost of what it takes to keep one goat fed and healthy for one year. It can cost roughly $100-$300+ to keep a goat per year or per month, depending on hay and feed prices in your region. Resource here.
If you are exclusively feeding hay and grain to your goats (also called Dry Lot), the number of goats you should have is set by being able to financially care for that number and also making sure you are not overcrowding your animals, which can lead to chronic illnesses and disease. One rule of thumb is providing 10-15 square feet of space per goat. Resource here. Also a resource here that also comments on 10 square feet of indoor space per goat. This resource goes into other details about indoor space management. In my opinion, this amount of space seems small. Look into goat friendly housing situations. Goats need to easily get away from another more aggressive goat. Creating hiding spaces or added some kind of enrichment in housing for goats is important. This resource is here.
When putting your goats on rotational pasture and browse you need to monitor if your goats are getting the proper nutrition that your land has to offer. Taking soil and forage tests will help you determine the actual nutrition content. Taking hay quality tests is also good to know for the same reason. After you get a better understanding of what nutrition your land holds for your animals, it’s time to determine how many animals your land can sustain. Generally speaking, a person can raise 6-8 goats per acre. Resource here. It is also a good idea to find out what your County’s limitations are for the property you are on and it’s zoning.
Some of the SCI goat bucks enjoy luscious, long grass. This area housed pastured poultry just a month prior to them grazing in this spot. That nitrogen made the grass grow back quickly and more lush than before!
Infrastructure Costs
Fencing and suitable shelter can be its own topic. The short end of this is that you absolutely need to have both shelter and fence up before getting goats. Goats are hard on fences, they scratch themselves on it and are climbing masters. Solid fence is a must. Consider what your water situation is and how your infrastructure will do in your region. Think about extreme cold or heat, rain or natural disasters. When I worked with my Technical Service Provider they gave me a management plan that included fencing that I needed, as well as a highly improved water system. Just these costs alone for about 5 acres ran about $20,000. I could cut costs by half if I used a 6 strand electric fence instead of a field fence for my perimeter fencing. I currently have a “winter paddock” secured with a solid field fence. For the rest of my fence in the summer I use a portable electric net fence through Premier 1 Supplies electric poultry net fence. I use poultry type fencing as I keep poultry in my rotation. The goat and sheep specific fence have really large holes that my poultry can get out of. I urge people to do research on proper fences for your own set-up. Find a mentor in your area or visit other farms to get different ideas. Remember, for an electric net or any electric fence, take time to properly train your goats. This resource is a wonderful blog from a friend and fellow pastured goat farmer.
Some of the SCI goats on pasture.
Using the Land
In my case, I hired a land/animal grazing management specialist or TSP (Technical Service Providers), and I worked with a nutritionist from a local feed mill to determine the number of goats my land could support and make sure they got the nutrition they needed. I have roughly 7 acres of open pasture with another 2 acres of possible browse. Two years ago when I hired my TSP my pasture quality was poor. The woman created a pasture mix for me to plant using a no-till drill as well as amendments to apply. I followed her instructions, and this year I saw massive improvements in my pasture quality and diversity, although we had drought conditions for more than half this summer. If it wasn’t for the plants I seeded in, I think our pastures would have completely dried up.
With all of this, I have figured out a rough estimate for the number of animals that my land can sustain, and what I can financially provide. During the summer months keeping 40 goats is my rough limit. During the winter I do not want to keep more than 30 goats but would prefer even less. This number is determined by the size of my winter shelters and the amount of hay I can afford and store on my property.
Another consideration is how you plan to properly handle the amount of goats you want to keep. You may need to invest in better handling equipment and create a system where you can sort and handle goats efficiently, such as milk stands or various other portable handling systems.
Chicory, plantain, red clover, alfalfa, and misc. grasses create a diverse and nutritional salad bar for the SCI goats.
Being Prepared for Medical Needs
Don’t forget medical costs. Getting a well-stocked goat medicine cabinet is a must, as well as forming a good relationship with a vet who is knowledgeable in goat care. You might have a SCI goat with a rare bloodline that absolutely needs veterinarian attention. Are you ready to pay $300+ at a moment's notice if something happens that is beyond your control? Or are you ready to make a possibly hard decision to euthanize a goat as it’s just not within your budget to spend hundreds of dollars in an emergency situation? There is no “right” answer, it’s just preparing yourself for unknowns and how you would deal with them.
Planning for Future Goat Population
I sell breeding stock and I also sell goats to go into the food chain. If I need to, I will always have an “out” if I need to decrease my goat population. I do make thoughtful choices as to which goats will make good breeding stock versus goats that go into the food chain, but I always have in mind that I need to offer healthy living conditions for my goats.
Every year I create a new farm business plan and figure out if these goats are at least paying for themselves. In a nutshell, they usually are, although I would like to start making a profit from these goats next year.
There are a lot of reasons why we raise SCI goats, and there are a number of breeders who breed SCI goats purely for conservation and without the thought of profit. Conservation breeders play a huge role in the future of the breed and are needed to preserve these goats and bloodlines. How do you manage your SCI goats? Do you have a business plan or budget for them? Do you have a maximum number of goats you want or should keep?
Helpful hints. I worked with my local NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service) to apply for a grant to pay for the TSP to come out and create a land management plan with me. One thing I am trying to figure out better is that SCI goats seem to be more thrifty with their forage intake. They are smaller than most meat and dairy goats, so there is a possibility that I could keep more goats on my property but for now I’m choosing to stick to what was prescribed.
Being critical about the goats I keep back for breeding purposes is an important process. I need to keep animals that fit into my management practices, and I want to breed healthy and vigorous animals for future breeders. I cull heavily or find a farm with different management practices where a particular goat may do better. Being critical about what goats to keep stops me from finding excuses to keep back every animal, otherwise, I would end up with hundreds of goats and be financially bled dry!
Any Plan is Better Than No Plan
What are your short and long term management plans for SCI goats? If you already have an existing herd, are a new breeder, want to get into the breed, this is a relevant question. Things change as time goes on, and that means our management plans may change and evolve over time as well. Do you have anything you would like to add or share your own story? If so contact the SCIGBA at scigbassoc@gmail.com
-Erin Link
www.ebranchllc.com
Other good resources in regards to this topic
https://www.qcsupply.com/blog/product-tips-and-how-tos/goats-vs-sheep.html
http://livestocktrail.illinois.edu/sheepnet/paperDisplay.cfm?ContentID=9808
Goat Handling Ideas- https://www.sheepandgoat.com/handling