The last summer has been very long and hard. We decided to sale out a few lines from our herd, and greatly downsize the farm.
Last year we sold our purebred Nubians, as much as we loved them, they just ate way too much and didn’t give enough milk in return, to work for our budget.
This summer, we sold a doe who last summer had been rather sickly, and been suffering from hoof rot; of course, once we had a buyer for her she decided to be the healthiest, happiest goat, and be the best milker as a second freshener! like, WHAT!? So not fair.
We also had a doe whose health suddenly declined, causing her to kid early (losing her triplets), and nearly perishing herself. We’re still uncertain as to why she became so ill, as all our other Does have been very healthy this year. She was sent back to her previous owners, and seems to be doing better now.
We had more downsizing as well. We had 8 does bred our first year, 9 does bred last year (2 left as bred does). This year, we’ll be milking through 2 does, and breeding 3 does. So kids for next year will be few, but should be our very best for health and quality.
We’ve narrowed down the herd to 3 Senior Does, 1 two-year-old Junior Doe, 2 Yearlings and 2 Doelings. And of course we still have our 2 bucks (both of which are ready for stud services, check our stud services page for more details.
Right now, our girls are all very healthy, really the healthiest we’ve ever seen them! They are very happy, and their spirits are high, despite all the rain of recent days.
They are getting lots of food, helping them get their weight up for winter, and hopefully will up conception for breeding season. We’re very happy with the choices we’ve made in downsizing and being selective on who to breed for the next year.
We will be updating the Breeding Schedule soon.
