I admit I was a goat ‘newbie’ back then, but my passion for them did nothing but grow and so I set out to learn everything I could about their health, care, husbandry, and conformation. I’ve been working our small farm since the age of 11 or so, when I got my first goat, Daisy. The herd they joined is also disease tested and CL Abscess free, and is an ADGA plus herd. I am hoping to have a rental farm house that allows me to have my goats on my own farm in the next year or two. Brazen, a 2021 Red x Legacy AI kid, managed to break her pastern in the trip or shortly after, so she gets to wear a splint – but otherwise the move was relatively smooth!Ģ018 UPDATE – my goats have joined my friends dairy herd, Quarter-Mile, in Hudson, MI! My father (who was doing the bulk of the work) is sick of milking 2x per day every day, and I currently rent a town home in the city I work in, so cannot have the goats here. The whole herd – 8 does in milk, 1 dry/due in May doe, (1) 14yo pet wether Tux (yes, he’s still around!), and 7 babies from 2021 made the trip. My fiance and I have purchased 10 acres with 2 barns and a farm house for us to start our new adventures. For more information about our biosecurity protocols and past test results, please see the Biosecuritypage!Ģ021 update– On 4/22/21 the herd moved out of where they were crashing at Quarter-Mile Farm in Hudson and into their new digs in Six Lakes, MI. Often and whenever possible, the initial test is prior to animals ever setting foot on the property if they are over 6 mon at time of purchase. In the rare cases we purchase animals, they undergo a 90 day isolation period, during which they are tested TWICE for CL, CAE, and Johnes – once at the beginning and once at the end of the biosecurity period. We have also never had a positive CL test. Unfortunately the blood test is not terribly accurate or reliable so we do not routinely run it on the base herd. We also did originally start out whole herd blood testing for CL for many years, and still utilize it on purchased animals, twice pre and post biosecurity isolation period. ![]() Our herd is also CL abscess free. The few random non-CL abscesses we have had through the many years of goat raising have always been very non-classic for CL (not correct locations) AND were cultured (gold standard testing method) and have always been negative. In April 2022, we also are entire herd NEGATIVE for TB and Brucellosis. We generally test yearly in the fall/winter, pre-kidding. "Maybe I'll start a Goat-Fund-Me campaign." And she chuckles softly as the freshly trimmed goats continue their dance of fig bar-fueled joy.We maintain a CAE and Johnes NEGATIVE herd AND we are a CL abscess free herd. ![]() I don't realize that the punch line is coming until it comes. But getting started with a dairy goat herd is an expensive proposition," she says sadly. "You know," my sister says thoughtfully as she sets down her hoof trimmer, "I want to have a dairy goat operation sometime. The first goat runs around, wailing, because his best friend is on the stand and he's not-plus, he already ate his fig bar and now he is mad. ![]() In a few minutes, we finish the first goat and start on the second goat. I scratch the goat's chest, I talk to him, I feed him fig bars, which he promptly devours. I'm in charge of encouraging each goat to hold still during the trimming process, and this feels like a big responsibility. Obviously, I have not spent enough time around goats, because I'm not feeling quite as calm about the situation. In the midst of all of this caprine chaos, my sister calmly trims each little hoof with the patience and serenity that comes, I'm beginning to understand, from spending time around goats. Repetitions of "mehhh, mehhh, mehh" echo down the barn aisle and it's apparent that the mehhs translate to something like "What-are-we-doing-what-is-that-thing-oh-you-are-holding-my-hoof!-this-is-so-fun-I-love-having-my-hooves-trimmed-I-love-you-people" and on and on and on.īut the palpable excitement of the goats-while endearing-adds an element of unpredictability to the project. Oh, she has all the equipment-the special tools and the special stand and some special goats-and the goats are surprisingly enthused about having their hooves trimmed. My sister has enlisted my help on a project today, and it's a new one for me: she's trimming goat hooves, and this time I am her helper.
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