CHOOSE YOUR GOALS AND MENTORS CAREFULLY

Every goat rancher needs to set goals and put into place management policies that can realistically permit achievement of those goals. Circumstances that need to be evaluated and re-evaluated at regular intervals include the availability and suitability of land (quantity of acreage and type of forage/pasture); pens, fencing, cross-fencing, and other facilities in existence or that must be constructed; the number of goats being raised; the climatic conditions in which the goats are living; the amount of money available to spend on the goat-raising venture; the availability of a market for the animals being raised; and a host of other items not cited herein. If you don't understand the terminology or the importance of items mentioned here, that should be a *red light* for you to stop and learn more before investing money in goats.

There are abundant websites and discussion groups on the Internet that give out information about raising goats. Do not assume that all are equal. Some of the advice is incorrect and possibly dangerous to your goats. I have seen messages that recommend doing everything from giving CD/T injections to kids at birth (won't help - kids don't have an up-and-running immune system of their own at birth but instead operate off their mother's transferred-via-milk immunity for weeks) to giving an oxytocin injection to a doe if she has not passed her afterbirth within an hour of kidding (this is unnecessary and possibly harmful - a placenta is not considered "retained" until 12 hours after kidding, per Dr. Mary Smith in GOAT MEDICINE). Each of these recommendations is a waste of money and time. What they have in common, however, is that both items of advice were offered over the Internet as accurate by people who raise goats -- and the information is wrong.

Sad to say, this even extends to a few of the university and other professional-level sites. Some years ago, a goat vet at Texas A&M's Large Animal Clinic told me that "you folks in the field often know more practical information about raising goats than we do" and she made an effort to interact with people who are on the front line of raising goats on a day-to-day basis. The meat-goat industry, both organizationally and informationally, is in its infancy in the United States. We need to share information with each other, but we must be sure that what we say is accurate before we present it as such. Producers who have "been there, done that" can be helpful to the rest of us by telling us of their experiences. Learn from those who have experience that you don't have; don't waste time "reinventing the wheel."

I am particularly concerned about information given to "newbies" -- people just beginning to raise goats. These folks need our help and they need to have confidence in the accuracy of what they are being told.

Folks, you can over-manage and over-medicate your goats. If you have any desire whatsoever to make a profit by raising goats, you cannot waste time and money on unnecessary or unproductive activities. If you care about the health of your animals, which I believe most of us do, you can do harm by over-medicating and over-managing. A goat needs a healthy immune system in order to survive and thrive. A healthy immune system is predicated on there being some challenge to it environmentally in order to cause that immune system to be stimulated to produce antibodies that protect the goat.

The main things that goats need to live and grow healthily are simple: lots of space, shelter from severe weather (strong winds and rain and extreme cold), fresh clean water, and adequate forage and/or grass hay and minerals. The more goats are managed, the more they lose adaptability -- the ability to survive and thrive in their own environment.

Studies have been done on humans living in cities versus living in the country (suburbs do not qualify as "country"). People living in the country are generally healthier than those living in cities, and a major factor influencing this is that their immune systems get challenged to do their job to protect the human body. The repeated and routine use of anti-bacterial handsoap is a good example of how we humans unintentionally suppress immune system function. I call this the "boy in the bubble" syndrome, named for the young boy in Houston during the 1980's whose immune system didn't function so he lived out his life in a plastic bubble in a hospital in the Texas Medical Center, unable to interact with anyone for fear of infection. While this young boy had serious immune system problems and his case is not entirely analogous, my point is that we don't want to develop goats with immune systems as non-functional as this boy's was. Goats must be able to live, survive, and thrive in their natural outdoor environment. Don't do things that corrupt or take away this ability from them.

Before accepting advice on how to raise, feed, and otherwise care for your goats, check out the person giving the advice. Find out if he/she is successfully raising goats. Learn about his/her background. Successful people will always have a few detractors, so use your good judgement when making your evaluations. Be suspicious of anyone who constantly speaks negatively of specific individuals and their animals. Responsible and respectable producers do not disparage other goat raisers as a matter of proper conduct and ethics, and they don't have time to be caught up in such bilge.

Raising meat goats is a wonderful adventure and can be an excellent business. Use good judgement in all aspects of your goat-ranching venture and you will enjoy it and make money at the same time.

The author, Suzanne Gasparotto, hereby grants to local goat publications and club newsletters, permission to reprint articles published on the Onion Creek Ranch website under these conditions: THE ARTICLE MUST BE REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY AND THE AUTHOR'S NAME, ADDRESS, AND CONTACT INFORMATION MUST BE INCLUDED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE REPRINT. We would appreciate notification from any clubs or publications when the articles are used. (A copy of the newsletter or publication would also be a welcome addition to our growing library of goat related information!)

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