One of my favorite barns at the 4 H Fair is the goat barn. This year, however, I was disappointed that there were no Angoras, but I guess we already know what those look like. This year there were many Boer Goats, they have such soft eyes and gentle faces. Boer Goats are meat goats, they are large with a stocky frame. I've read that goat meat is in high demand these days, many cultures eat goat meat as a tradition to yearly celebrations and it's hard to acquire, also with the Foodie movement becoming so popular, un-traditional meats are coming of interest. I've never had it but I've heard it tastes like a less "wild" venison.
These are Nigerian Dwarf/ Pygmy cross. Yes the black one is actually sleeping on the tan and white. Zach wants a small goat in the worst way. It took every ounce of willpower not to get him one for his Birthday at the end of July. I got him a smoker instead. Maybe in a couple years? You can milk the smaller goats and they will provide enough milk for a family, however, you don't get milk without Kids. I'd really like to breed our Angoras before we start all that. You can't milk Angoras because it takes so much energy from the goat to produce all that wool, that there would be nothing left for the Kids.
Next to Angora's, these are my favorite goat, the Nubian. It's the ears! They are a great dairy goat but some say a little more temperamental, but they also say that about Angoras and our girls are sweet as pie. When they're babies they're all legs and ears, like a fawn with knobby elbows and knees. Uh, pulls at my heartstrings!
These are Alpines which are a great dairy goat. They have a smaller frame than Nubian's and aren't as temperamental. They produce 1-2 gallons of milk per day. To think of all the delicious cheese I could make! Goat milk is also something to look into if you have dairy issues with cows milk. Goats milk is more gentle on the digestive system.
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