[Anke]

If you want to be in control of your breeding you will need to keep the billy (and his castrated friend) away from the girls at all times, and only introduce the females when they come into season AND it suits your breeding programme (meaning letting female kids grow as much as possible before their first mating for example).

It adds to the cost of keeping goats but will reduce your vet bills as it means you know who kids when and you can prepare yourself and your females for it, and no unwanted kids from unsuitable matings for example.

[jinglejoys]

If you are stuck for space let the boys run out at night and the girls during the day

[Anke]

If you are stuck for space let the boys run out at night and the girls during the day

That's what I do and it works fine.

[Roxy]

I have a pygmy male and female who have lived together all their lives.  If the male is separated from her, he wrecks everything in his path until he gets to her.  The only time they are separate is when she kids, and they are in adjoining pens for a few days - and then he uses his large horns to batter the gate down.
 
The female usually kids Christmas week (twins). For the last few years she has only kidded once, but we did have Christmas kids, and then more in late Summer!!
 
Once my larger females have kidded, I let the AN male run with them for a few weeks,but  once he starts showing an interest in them (which is now) he is removed, and he goes out at night.  He has now taken an interest in his fat castrated pygmy x friend instead!!
 
I have a small female pygmy and she is already in season through the summer.

[lizzypeg]

so am I right in thinking that its better to wait until the doe is at least a year and a bit old to breed? as I go on a facebook site for pygmies and a lot of the American breeders seem to let there does mate in their first autumn but I thought this was frowned upon.

[Lesley Silvester]

I don't know about pygmies, but dairy goats are not fully grown in their first autumn so it isn't a good idea to get them in kid then. Their second autumn is far fairer to them.

[Brucklay]

I certainly wouldn't breed a pygmy in it's first autumn - they are way too small a 100 x's better to wait till they are 18 months.

[jinglejoys]

Pygmies have enough problems getting their kids out without being underdeveloped at the same time (you'd need an even smaller shoe horn  )