The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Goats => Topic started by: mistryer on April 01, 2012, 03:40:07 pm

Title: Larger dairy breeds slaughter age
Post by: mistryer on April 01, 2012, 03:40:07 pm

I am new to goat keeping, and want to keep some dairy goats for the milk and dairy produce. I will keep the kids for our own meat, and was wondering what the best age for slaughter would be, for these bigger breeds?

Title: Re: Larger dairy breeds slaughter age
Post by: Skirza on April 01, 2012, 03:49:41 pm

we sent our BT and Saanen boys off at around 7 months last year. Butchered weight came in around 20kg each. Having said that, we left them on their mums during the day and took them away over night so we were on once a day milking. Not sure if bottle feeding would alter the slaughter age.

Title: Re: Larger dairy breeds slaughter age
Post by: chickenfeed on April 01, 2012, 07:48:23 pm

we usually send the boys off 6-7 months killing out 38lb -50lb depending on breed

Title: Re: Larger dairy breeds slaughter age
Post by: jaykay on April 01, 2012, 10:02:05 pm

I took my two boys at 8 months, killed out at 20kg. Old English though, so full sized but not as big as the bigger dairy breeds. I kept mine as Skirza describes too.

Title: Re: Larger dairy breeds slaughter age
Post by: mistryer on April 02, 2012, 08:40:48 am

 Thanks guys - that's a good guide. Has anyone bottle fed the kids to slaughter weight, to know if it makes a difference? Would like to be able to take the kids off and bottle them, as want to use the milk for dairy produce. Any advice gratefully received  :)

Title: Re: Larger dairy breeds slaughter age
Post by: chickenfeed on April 02, 2012, 08:55:32 am

never bottle fed to slaughter weight.

Title: Re: Larger dairy breeds slaughter age
Post by: Lesley Silvester on April 03, 2012, 12:18:10 am

My goat, Curry, hasn't reached a decent size at nearly ten months.  I thought he would be as big as his mum.  She is Sanaan and his dad is BA.

Title: Re: Larger dairy breeds slaughter age
Post by: Roxy on April 03, 2012, 12:37:34 am

I have Primrose, whose dam is sanaan and father was a BA, and although she is white like her mum, she has taken after her dad in size, and is about twice as big as her mum was.

Re bottle feeding.  One of my smaller females had twins - one male and one female, a few weeks back.  She refused to feed the male kid, so I bottle fed that, and the other was left on her during the day, taken away at night.  This female had no milk  overnight, as she refused a bottle.

I have noticed the female (who stayed on the dam) is fatter than the male who was bottle fed.

Title: Re: Larger dairy breeds slaughter age
Post by: mistryer on April 03, 2012, 10:28:37 am

Quess that answers the question Roxy. How much milk would I get on average, if I just milked once a day, and left the kids on through the day, after milking? Maybe there's a compromise.