[RUSTYME]

I have been pondering with the idea of a couple of goats for milk .
They would fit in with the horses on the land fine , clearing up the rough weedy areas that horses seem to create  .
Although i have never kept them , my late mum had quite a few , but that was 35 years ago and i just helped feed and milk them , trim feet etc etc , and remember little about them really .
I know mum kept them on grass , hay and a small amount of straights (barley and oats) , along with various veg .
This would be the way i would like to keep them rather than bags of 'goat food' from the agri co op .
Mum had anglo nubian . Saanan , toggenberg and something else i can't remember now .
 We were swimming in milk but as there were 7 of us 'kids'  and mum and dad , that soon went .
I don't need the best pedigree milkers just something that will give the 12 pts of milk i have to buy per week atm .
 The main thing i need to know before i get any , is a rough guide to qty of hay , straights and veg a goat would go through .
Back in the day the surplus kid problem wasn't a problem then either with 9 of us in the house , but how easy is it to either sell , give away  surplus kids ?
 I have been offered free milkers , but wasn't ready for them at the time , so is there a standard sort of ball park figure that a young kid/milker costs ?
Cheers Russ .

[HappyHippy]

Oh you'll like goats Russ 

I'm relatively new and inexperienced but I can tell you that we've got a British Alpine and a Golden Guernsey - the BA gives way more milk than the GG - you'd easily get your 12 pints of milk from her every week (though I'm not sure if yields tail off a bit in winter ? haven't had them long enough to know)
Our little Shetland mare HATES the goats  (she's scared of everything else, including her own shadow  ) so you might need to just keep an eye on how your horses react. And you'd need a horse proof shelter in the field for them 

For hay - our 2 go through about a bale every week, and they get a little bit of sheep mix (approx. 1-2lbs per day for the BA, as she's the only one I'm milking atm - the GG gets a couple of handfuls) and they have access to red rockies for copper.

Ours were 'free to good home' so I'm not much help with costs - but I'm sure others will be along soon with much more info than me.

Good luck 

[happygolucky]

  , you can have cheese as well.......brilliant!!

[plumseverywhere]

My in-kid milker cost me £150 including transportation here. Shes a pure togg.    My maiden milker came with a batch of 3 other goats (2 togg wethers and their togg nanny mum)  I think I paid about £250 for the lot.

Ours love brambles, branches, pea and bean shoots, carrot tops, docks, nettles, thistles etc  hay wise, probably a bale and a half a week but in the spring when their paddocks are abundant with new growth and branches I knock the hay off for a bit and only feed on very rainy days.
concentrates - milker gets 2lbs while she's on her top load of milk and its reduced as she reduces. the nanny who kidded 18 months ago gets more than the others as she's just about back into peak condition but its taken her a while as I left her kid on her.
electric fencing and you are sorted!

[Anke]

If you are purely after about 6 ltrs of milk per week it will be cheaper for you to buy that in the shops, I am afraid. Once you add up hay costs, building a shed for them, straw for bedding and they will need concentrate feed of some sort, plus licks. I am not just talking about money - the time you need for building/fencing work, milking twice a day (do you have a functioning fridge on your holding, or would you be carting the milk back to your caravan twice a day?)
 
You will need some sort of transport to get them to the billy to get them in-kid.
 
I would think that maybe you need to do a lot of planning, and if you don't live in-site it will be quite difficult to make it work.

[RUSTYME]

Yes points taken Anke , but i won't be getting them till i am down the land full time , that's the reason i didn't take the ones i have been offered free  .
Carrying wouldn't be a big problem really , as i carry 50-100lbs of stuff there most days anyway , tools etc , but the twice a day milking would be a problem , hence not getting them yet .
Housing isn't a problem , i can build various types free , as i have all materials needed already .
Once there , hay won't be a problem in small amounts , the same with the hard feed , i will be growing my own , and therefore the straw will be sorted too .
There are people round here with goats , including billy goats , and my nephew would help me shift any that needed moving if need be .
 

[RUSTYME]

Cheers Karen , plums Sandy , yes cheese will be on the list and yogurt too .
Plenty of brambles and weeds here , do they eat comfrey ? , plenty of that to .
No fridge down there , but have lived without a fridge many times including 2 years when mum had her goats .
Got the river down there though , so can make a cool house for dairy etc , if i want one .
 

[Penninehillbilly]

MY 2 Togs eat a bale a week in winter, less than half a bale in summer (in at nights).
This year I left the kids on, just milk in the morning, getting 3Ltres a day between 2 of them, even tho one is now without her kid, I still milk once a day, less messing about milking but still plenty of milk. They get some whole grain, a mix of goat and ewe ration and Caprivite + red Rockies.

[RUSTYME]

I have an old transit horsebox that has the usual horse bit at the back , with doors and a ramp , and the small living area behind the cab  with sink , cupboards and double bed above the cab .
I was thinking  that it may do as a temporary goat house and dairy . The living/dairy area is 7' (side to side) x 5' long and the horse/goat area is 7'x7' . 
Is that too small to even think of using  ? 

[Anke]

My pens are 8 x 5, and some of them have three BT's living together in them (family group), they always lie together, but are outside whenever the weather allows.
 
How warm and waterproof is it? Also needs good ventilation over their head height, otherwise you will have coughing goats very soon.
 
I think your biggest issue may be ventilation, but it should be do-able.

[RUSTYME]

The inside height is 7' and there is a window on one side ,with a metal bar grill over it . Any amount of window or vents can be added .
It is completely dry inside  , the outside is aluminium and the inside is insulated with fibre glass lined with plywood interior walls .
The floor is solid and at the moment has rubber matting on . This can be removed , the floor lined with ali and then either covered with ply/timber and or the rubber mat put back down  ?
The timber on the ramp has rotted and been taken off , but i have timber to redo this .

[cans]

Hi Russ,
Dont want to put a dampner on things but I think know the goats may will chew the plywood thereby getting at the fibreglass! 
You say the floor is solid at the moment, can I ask solid what? Rubber matting sounds good but you have the age old problem of where does all the liquid waste go!!   

[shygirl]

there are usually goats free in the paper here.

[RUSTYME]

Can't for the life of me remember what the floor is , but i think it was 3/4" marine ply .
I know what you mean about the liquid on the floor which was why i  thought of laying down sheet aluminium (1/4" thick trailer flooring)  and then either 1"  boarding or water proof ply . The rubber mat is proper stable stuff , but can just be taken out if it would be better .
The walls can be lined with ali , galv sheet or 1" timber boards , all of which i have .
The living area walls are covered in carpet atm , helps against condensation , but this can be pulled off and the area tiled with bathroom tiles for a dairy room , only need a tub of glue , already have the tiles . Also have enough bathroom tiles for the floor .
The horsebox won't be being used as a hb again , was just going to use it as a shed/store , so i can do what i want with it to convert .

[cans]

Hi Russ,
The timber boards on the wall should be ok although the goats will eventually chew through this. Also it is best if the timber is untreated otherwise this could cause health problems as a result of chewing.  Something to do with the stuff the wood is treated with.
Regarding the floor....depending on whats there already what about rubber matting on half/two thirds, for them sleeping on, and the rest with straw bedding?  If the floor is aluminium then a thick layer of sawdust under the straw would help with the liquid waste.  Sods law that the goats wouldnt sleep on the matting!  Aluminium floor also makes it easier for scrubbing down after mucking out.
Where would you be milking?