Goat and Sheep Thread!

[WingItRanch]

Does anyone have both goats and sheep? Which do you like best when it comes to personality and ease of care?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Does anyone have both goats and sheep? Which do you like best when it comes to personality and ease of care?

I used to. Personality is usually goats, and ease too. My 4H leader joked that any sheep was a dead sheep walking until it figured out how to off itself, and she wasn't really wrong. Bottle lambs generally grow up to be friendly or at least less skittish, but generally our sheep were much less 'pet me, love me' than our goats

 

[WingItRanch]

I used to. Personality is usually goats, and ease too. My 4H leader joked that any sheep was a dead sheep walking until it figured out how to off itself, and she wasn't really wrong. Bottle lambs generally grow up to be friendly or at least less skittish, but generally our sheep were much less 'pet me, love me' than our goats

I have also heard sheep manage to kill themselves! Crazy. Ok thanks for the response. My partner wants sheep but I'm pretty set on goats. I like how mischievous they are... I also think they'd be well suited to the variety of grass, weeds, brush, and woods we have.

And since you mention 4H... would it better to have registered or unregistered if I want to sell kids? There's a huge 4H and FFA community where I'm at but I was never involved so I don't know if registration is important when selling.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I have also heard sheep manage to kill themselves! Crazy. Ok thanks for the response. My partner wants sheep but I'm pretty set on goats. I like how mischievous they are... I also think they'd be well suited to the variety of grass, weeds, brush, and woods we have.

And since you mention 4H... would it better to have registered or unregistered if I want to sell kids? There's a huge 4H and FFA community where I'm at but I was never involved so I don't know if registration is important when selling.

I think registered/not depends on the buyer. There are some breeds I'd want registered and some I wouldn't really care personally.

You can always keep a mixed flock if you're not breeding/ or can separate when you are breeding

 

[HollowOfWisps]

Does anyone have both goats and sheep? Which do you like best when it comes to personality and ease of care?

We had both on the family farm growing up. I personally love sheep, but I am not a fan of goats. My aunt and uncle also had a 100+ Katahdin sheep farm down the road from us. The Katahdins were pretty easy to take care of, hardy and the bottle lambs were like big puppies. Their sheep roamed the pastures all day and the only time they had to really do extra work was lambing season. The goats would get into everything and try to eat anything. I found them annoying to take care of and much more destructive. One thing to consider is the breed hardiness. Hair sheep breeds are pretty hardy and can pretty much just be pasture raised, but wool breeds tend to be more high maintenance both because of the wool and for health reasons. Also rotational grazing will cut down on your parasite load and keep pastures healthy. It’s better for the animals and the land if you can manage it. I recently visited a farm that had babydoll sheep and oh my goodness! They were not just cute, but very very friendly. Usually I avoid rams, but their ram just wanted his ears scratched the entire time I was there. I had a hard time leaving that little guy he was so sweet!

 

[WingItRanch]

We had both on the family farm growing up. I personally love sheep, but I am not a fan of goats. My aunt and uncle also had a 100+ Katahdin sheep farm down the road from us. The Katahdins were pretty easy to take care of, hardy and the bottle lambs were like big puppies. Their sheep roamed the pastures all day and the only time they had to really do extra work was lambing season. The goats would get into everything and try to eat anything. I found them annoying to take care of and much more destructive. One thing to consider is the breed hardiness. Hair sheep breeds are pretty hardy and can pretty much just be pasture raised, but wool breeds tend to be more high maintenance both because of the wool and for health reasons. Also rotational grazing will cut down on your parasite load and keep pastures healthy. It’s better for the animals and the land if you can manage it. I recently visited a farm that had babydoll sheep and oh my goodness! They were not just cute, but very very friendly. Usually I avoid rams, but their ram just wanted his ears scratched the entire time I was there. I had a hard time leaving that little guy he was so sweet!

Yes! I plan on rotating pastures for this exact reason! And the health of the ground.

Funny, I can't seem to decide between the 2 animals but I did narrow down the breed. If I get goats, I'll be getting Nigerian Dwarf. If I get sheep, I'll be getting Dorper.

 

[StinkyAcres]

Hi! I just found this thread. I've been dreaming of getting Nigerian Dwarf Goats and have the room for them but don't have the time (yet). I plan on using them for dairy so I don't want to get them until I can dedicate the time to regularly milk them. And might as well breed them to sell the kids for extra income.

For now, I'm just doing a ton of research and making notes. I also need to cross fence my property. Question for folks that have small goats... how do you handle predators? I have 10 acres. Part grassy field and Part dense woods. I can't reasonably run electric fencing over those distances. The predators I've seen in person and trail cams are: hawks, bald eagles, large owls, bobcats, coyotes, foxes.

Would they be safe if I let them forage all day but lock them in the barn at night?

Another idea is a livestock guardian donkey.

PLEASE watch this entire video before deciding on getting goats. Also read up on proper deworming and parasite preventative methods. That is the main thing most people don't get right. Goats really aren't grazers and shouldn't be allowed on pastures, especially those with short grass.

Does anyone have both goats and sheep? Which do you like best when it comes to personality and ease of care?

I had both, Nubian goats and Katahdin Sheep. The Katahdins were far and away the better of the two. Katahdins have high parasite resistance (we didn't need to deworm for YEARS), are friendly but not rude, are much easier to keep inside a fence, and are much less expensive to keep. Most of my goats died of parasite overload (due to keeping them on pasture). My last Katahdin sheep died from old age at 16 1/2 years old.

 

[WingItRanch]

PLEASE watch this entire video before deciding on getting goats. Also read up on proper deworming and parasite preventative methods. That is the main thing most people don't get right. Goats really aren't grazers and shouldn't be allowed on pastures, especially those with short grass.

I had both, Nubian goats and Katahdin Sheep. The Katahdins were far and away the better of the two. Katahdins have high parasite resistance (we didn't need to deworm for YEARS), are friendly but not rude, are much easier to keep inside a fence, and are much less expensive to keep. Most of my goats died of parasite overload (due to keeping them on pasture). My last Katahdin sheep died from old age at 16 1/2 years old.

That's too funny you linked that video because I've seen ALL of her videos recently! I definitely don't jump into animals until I have a full understanding of their needs. I researched chickens for 2 years before getting them!

I'm still working out the ins and outs of goat keeping but I'm attempting to purchase the land next door so I would have a total of 20 acres to set up rotational pastures. I don't plan on getting a huge herd or anything because I just need milk and cheese for 2 People but I figured I might as well breed and sell the babies. Can't have milk without babies!

I'm sorry about your losses with your goats! That's really tough! I'm always open to advice!

 

[StinkyAcres]

That's too funny you linked that video because I've seen ALL of her videos recently! I definitely don't jump into animals until I have a full understanding of their needs. I researched chickens for 2 years before getting them!

I'm still working out the ins and outs of goat keeping but I'm attempting to purchase the land next door so I would have a total of 20 acres to set up rotational pastures. I don't plan on getting a huge herd or anything because I just need milk and cheese for 2 People but I figured I might as well breed and sell the babies. Can't have milk without babies!

I'm sorry about your losses with your goats! That's really tough! I'm always open to advice!

That is wonderful you do so much research before acquiring new animals. There was not a lot of good info out there when we raised them. Even the vets were clueless. I was so happy when Anne came out with that video because everything she said was spot on.

The thing is, you have to make sure you don't run out of browse for them so they don't turn to eating the grass (or escape to find better food). They killed all the bushes and some trees in my pastures. During wet years when snails were abundant, meningeal worm was difficult if not impossible to prevent. My sheep had no issues with it, but the goats had to be dewormed regularly and we eventually ran out of effective dewormers.

As you can tell, I honestly don't think it's worth keeping goats unless they are kept on a dry lot, which, of course, is expensive because you have to buy their feed. But this is coming from someone who hates the taste of goat milk.

 

[WingItRanch]

That is wonderful you do so much research before acquiring new animals. There was not a lot of good info out there when we raised them. Even the vets were clueless. I was so happy when Anne came out with that video because everything she said was spot on.

The thing is, you have to make sure you don't run out of browse for them so they don't turn to eating the grass (or escape to find better food). They killed all the bushes and some trees in my pastures. During wet years when snails were abundant, meningeal worm was difficult if not impossible to prevent. My sheep had no issues with it, but the goats had to be dewormed regularly and we eventually ran out of effective dewormers.

As you can tell, I honestly don't think it's worth keeping goats unless they are kept on a dry lot, which, of course, is expensive because you have to buy their feed. But this is coming from someone who hates the taste of goat milk.

I feel ya! I was actually planning on supplementing with some feed on a regular basis. Do you think that would help with the parasite issues?

I like goat milk but I LOVE goat cheese.