Nothing to report.....no lambs, just sleepless nights, tea-time at 4 a.m. again this morning after a quick check of the barn, some snow and slush, and exhaustion! I'm too old to be on baby watch, but I can't sleep when the temps dip to brrrrrrrr! I worry....I'm good at that!
We have decided to sell our yearling Oberhasli dairy goats. Just can't divide my time between the needs of the dairy goats and the needs of the sheep....I want to concentrate on the sheep. It drives me crazy when I go to get some sheep snuggles (with a pocket full of animal crackers) and I have goats dancing on my back! They are on the smaller side of the goat scale, but they are NOT pygmy or Nigerian dwarf, that's for sure! I have thought of Angoras and/or possibly pygoras...anyone's thoughts out there? Am I asking for more trouble? I know that the Angoras aren't nuts like the dairy goats...what about the pygoras? Maybe small enough to blend with the smaller Shetlands? HELP! I think I'm suffering from lack of sleep.....
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About Me
- Donna
- Ken and I live on a small farm in Center Sandwich, New Hampshire in an area surrounded by lakes and mountains. We have 30 Shetland sheep , 2 llamas...Sam and Tim, 3 dogs, 40+ chickens and an assortment of ducks, geese and guinea hens. Life is sometimes hectic, but always good at Kindred Spirit Farm!
Had I had easy access to angora goats I would have gone that route versus the Nigerians. They're somewhat hard to find around here. The few owners I've talked to said they are a little more delicate as far as cold weather than other goats. Other than that, I know nothing.
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteI am a worrier too and have my spring head cold to boot.
I have had Angoras....and my take on it is that I just don't like horned goats. Even though they never used them with intent, it was just inevitable that I would get a horn in the shin and watch your EYES! Goats being more aggressive about food...then add the horns. That being said the fiber was wonderful and I got 10 pounds of fleece off each one yearly (5 in the spring and 5 in the fall). You do have to shear them twice a year. I also had a cashmere goat and that is a lot of brushing for very little fiber (4 ounces a year) and then it is very expensive to get dehaired, and then the horns again. I got sick of picking Shetland wool our the goat horns. They were not very nice to my sheep so they had to go.
Hmmmm...I was thinking it would be great to have another fiber, but maybe not, huh? Anyone have thoughts about Pygoras??? I appreciate your input guys!!!
ReplyDeleteCan't help you with the goat thing, I am not a huge fan of them myself although the babies are cute enough. I do hope your sleepless nights come to an end soon though. Mine too lol.
ReplyDeleteI was SURE I posted a comment here earlier, but I don't see it! Anyway, pygoras are similar to cashmeres in that you have to dehair the fiber and don't get a lot of it. And they are pushy like all goats, and can have pokey little horns. If you want to have another fiber, I'm thinking an alpaca might be a better choice!
ReplyDeleteMy first farm animals were Nigerian Dwarf goats then I got my first LaMancha.....love my LaManchas...smart mouth, bossy, pushy goats that get themselves in trouble but I love them to death! I totally ditto Kara on the horned goats. Goats and horns just don't work for me either. Rethink the goats when you get some good sleep;) Can't wait to see some lambs!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the input...I think Michelle may be right, an alpaca is sounding like a better choice.
ReplyDelete