Meat Goat Production

Welcome to the Penn State Dairy and Animal Science Meat Goat Marketing and Production Web site. This site is designed to encourage sound production and marketing plans for Pennsylvania producers looking to capitalize on the rapidly expanding demand for goat meat.

Within this site you will find links to relevant research, marketing models and information, production overviews and much more. In addition, we hope to increase producer participation in the PA meat goat industries through workshops, producer meetings, symposia and publications.

Vaccination Protocol for a Goat Herd

Recent surveys conducted by researchers at Alabama A&M University indicated that 80 percent of Alabama and Tennessee goat producers reported that they do not vaccinate their herds. However, vaccination is a precaution that goat producers should adopt to prevent infectious diseases.

Read more about establishing a vaccination schedule for your farm in the publication Vaccination Protocol for a Goat Herd, on the Alabama Cooperative Extension Web site.

Why Pasture?

The economics of large, mechanized farms don't necessarily apply to smaller farms, and especially hobby operations, where pasture can provide excellent low-cost feed, savings in hay and manure handling, reduced use of chemicals and fertilizer, a healthier environment than the barnyard or feedlot, less storage of feed and manure, extra-clean wool or grass-fed lamb or beef for specialty markets, long-term benefits to the land, retention of nutrients in the soil compared with haying, reduction of water pollution problems from nitrate and manure run-off, high productivity on aggressively rotated pastures, and the pleasures of watching foals or lambs gambol on a grass field.

Read more frequently asked questions about pasture at www.sheepscreek.com

The Dot Com Approach to Selling Goats

OK... so you finally have a kid crop and some extra nannies to sell. Your original idea was to raise these goats to sell but just how do you start?

The Internet is undoubtedly the most active and most cost effective tool for advertising everything from Mother's Day flowers to market goats.

To learn more about internet advertising, see this information at boergoats.com.

Selective Breeding in Goats

Some characteristics that are passed on genetically (inherited) from parents to offspring can be identified as distinct types. For example, you can wonder what color eyes or texture of hair a baby is going to inherit from its parents. When the baby is born you can describe these characteristics as blue eyes, brown eyes, kinky hair, curly hair etc. However, many of the most important characteristics or traits that affect how well we perform in life can’t be named by type. Instead, they are a matter of degree. Some examples in humans might be differences among us in height, weight, running ability or reading ability. Some important examples in goats might be the amount of milk a doe produces, the birth weight and weaning weight of a goat kid, the amount of fiber or fleece on an angora goat.

Read more about selective breeding, see this article, "Who's Your Daddy? - Selective Breeding in Goats," published by Cornell. 

Preparing Meat Goats for the Breeding Season

Breeding is a very important aspect of any meat goat operation. But, preparing the breeding does and buck(s) for the breeding season could have a large influence on the outcome and the profitability of the operation.

As the breeding season approaches, producers should be concerned with the body condition of their breeding does. Goats should not be allowed to become too thin or too fat. Failure in reproduction, low twinning rates and low weaning rates will result if does are too thin. Overly fat does can suffer from pregnancy toxemia (ketosis) or dystocia, but fat does are rarely a problem.

Learn more about preparing for the breeding season in the fact sheet Preparing Meat Goats for the Breeding Season, published by North Carolina State University.

External  Parasites of Sheep and Goats

Arthropod pests limit production in the sheep and goat industry in many ways. External parasites feed on body tissue such as blood, skin, and hair. The wounds and skin irritation produced by these parasites result in discomfort and irritation to the animal. Parasites can transmit diseases from sick to healthy animals. They can reduce weight gains and milk production. In general, infested livestock cannot be efficiently managed to realize optimum production levels.

Lice are external parasites which spend their entire lives on the sheep or goat. Both immature and adult stages suck the blood or feed on the skin. Goat lice are host specific and only attack goats and their close relatives such as sheep.

Hoof Trimming in Goats

The trimming of hooves of goats is a simple task that can be easily learned,however, the hard part comes in committing oneself to follow through in a timely manner. Many foot and leg problems in goats are either caused by a lack of trimming or improper trimming techniques. The amount of time between trimmings depends on many factors, such as type of terrain, the goat's age, level of activity, nutritional level and even breed. Goats raised in relative confinement and on small acreages may also require more frequent trimmings than goats raised in vast pastures. Generally, foot trimming should be done on an as needed basis. Once you become familiar with how the hoof is supposed to look, this will become obvious to you. A properly trimmed hoof should look like that of a newborn kid.

For more information on proper hoof care, see this publication by goatworld.com.

This way for more information on proper hoof care.

Marketing Meat Goats

The economics of goat production is important to most people who raise goats. The price of market animals dictates what can be spent on the practices associated with production. Meat goat production is one of the oldest and most widespread of the animal enterprises in the world. At this point, it is the fastest-growing animal enterprise in the U.S.

Most producers will not tolerate a nonpaying hobby operation. The enterprise must sooner or later become a paying operation or it will cease to exist. A producer who cannot successfully market what he/she grows will not be in business for an extended period of time. A few people keep goats as pets and companion animals; however, the economics of goat production is such that most producers sell the animals, either for meat or breeding purposes.

Learn more about marketing basics in the the factsheet Marketing of Meat Goats, published by the University of Arkansas.