Toggenburg goats

[()relics]

So I have a percentage boer herd(goats). Alpinexboer does and purebred boer billies. They seem to do well enough..mothers are good milkers and wean early heavy kids..the billy lines I have throw alot of doelings and the wethers finish fast enough....BUT it was suggested to me last week by a friend, as he looked at my record book, that I should introduce some Toggenburg blood to my herd...OK thats his opinion...But as it turns out; I've read that is the new trend. They are supposed to help wean bigger kids and do it in a shorter amount of time.
Has anyone tried this? and if so What, if any, are the noticeable changes? Did you add a billy or a nanny? How are toggenburgs to keep?

I'll be keeping an eye on the responses...I'm looking at a toggenburg doe/kid(buckling) and would like some input.

 

[SheriM]

Admittedly, I haven't seen all that many Toggs, but the ones I have seen have been on the smaller side. I'm not sure that's going to help produce early heavy meat kids. Mind you, the Toggs milk well, and that's certainly a plus for raising any type of kids. I've had commercial and purebred Boer for about 9 years and my favorite commercial cross is a half Boer, half Nubian doe bred to a purebred Boer buck. The does are big-bodied and able to carry big kids and, generally speaking, have plenty of milk to raise them.

In my opinion, whatever breed of dairy goat you consider adding to your herd, make the dairy animal the doe and stick with a purebred or very high percentage Boer buck. I've seen lots of kids sired by a dairy buck on a Boer doe and the kids are never as big or meaty as the reverse cross.

 

[Chatychick]

Well the milk from Toggs is a aquired taste...its a taste all its own, so unless you like it then I dont know if I would drink it. The babies are very pretty and they can be large.