Diary and meat goats are becoming common farm animals because they are smaller and easier to keep them other livestock. This means that they need less acreage and it also costs less to feed them. Because of this, they are more affordable.
A breeding program can become quite profitable, as long as you do it correctly. Here are some tips to have a successful goat breeding program.
- Some goats are seasonal breeders while others will breed year-round. Most of your dairy breeds such as Nubians, Saanen, Alpine, and more breed between August and December. Meat goats and miniature goats often breed year-round. You need to know and understand what breed of goat that you have so that you know when to breed them.
- This is also important information if you are milking goats. You will have to plan your milking carefully around their breeding season.
- Many breeders keep their bucks in the pasture with their does. By keeping your buck with your does, they are likely to catch her when she is in heat. If you have one that only has a short window, your buck will likely know that she is in heat and try to breed her.
- Though some prefer to breed them together or artificially inseminate their does. When you control the breeding of a buck and doe, you can really control when your kids come. Some need help to be bred. Many does don’t want to stand so they need some assistance in the process. Not everyone has a buck so artificial insemination may help. It can also help to add different bloodlines into your herd.
- Goats are pregnant for about five months. This is important so you can decide when you want to breed your goats to get the kids at the best time. If you live in a cold location, you are not going to want to breed your goats so that you have kids during the coldest month of the year.
Breeding goats can be a great way to start with livestock. It doesn’t take too much land to get several does and a buck to get started. However, it is important to know a little bit about breeding before you get started. You need to know if your goats breed year-round or seasonally. Then, you have to decide if you want to keep a buck in the field or just breed when they are ready. Then, five months later, your field can be filled with little kids!
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