2015 Boer Goat Kids for Sale

Well, our kidding season is over – 12 kids from 5 does! – and all are growing healthily.  At the Flying T, we prefer to allow these kids to nurse on their moms for a bit over two months ’till weaning, so we are taking deposits for June transfers.  All may be registered with ABGA either as Fullblood (100%) or American Purebred (at 99%).  You can check out more information (including contact info) on our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/TheFlyingTRanch or our website: http://www.flyingtnh.com

First is Phoenix, an all-red girl with dark highlights, born 3/25, offered at $350 obo.  Her sister, Chili (looking at the camera), is Reserved until after the Hopkinton Fair on Labor Day

 

Their brother, Turbo, is offered at $300.

Tweet, born 4/1, is a traditionally-marked female, offered at $325.  Her brother, Hercules, is our best buckling of the season and is offered at $350.  (UPDATE: SALE PENDING on Herc.  We are taking backup offers).

Raptor is a male born 4/9 with a half-blond face (hard to see in this pic).  He and his brother Orion (hooded) are offered at $300 each.  (UPDATE: SALE PENDING on Orion, Backup Offers are being taken).

Kiowa, born 4/9 is traditionally-marked American Purebred, offered at $300 (UPDATE: SALE PENDING, backup offers will be taken).

Her fellow triplets are brothers, Hawkeye (paint with spot on back) and Tomcat (Traditional), also offered for $300 each.

Piper and Dragonfly, born 4/13 are American Purebred females and are reserved until after the Hopkinton State Fair.

2015 Kidding Season Begins

The kidding season is upon us.  One of our does, Jessie, has given birth and Ruby, Samy, Gracie, and Macie are waiting to follow.

Jessie gave birth, unassisted, to quadruplets.  Unfortunately, #3 – a traditionally-colored doeling – was stillborn and could not be revived.  However, the other three – a traditional buckling and two full-red doelings – are doing very well.

Kids will be available for sale, ready to be picked up in the May-June timeframe when they are weaned.

Why Boer Goats?

Gracie (left) and Jessie (right)

The most recent additions to our farm were our Boer Goats, Gracie and Jessie.  They are both full-blood Boer doelings, and our hope is to use them as the foundation of our herd.

Boers are relatively new to the US (introduced in the mid-90s), and meat goats in general aren’t nearly as common in New England as are those raised for milk and fiber.  So, why did we decide to go with them?

Well, the first answer is they just haven’t invented a 5-day-a-week milking goat, and until we’re able to farm full-time, milking animals are out of the question.

The other reason was that we did want to start on some larger meat animals (beyond chickens and muscovy ducks).  As we researched our options, we found that goats can be raised on about 1/4 to 1/8  the land and feed as cattle while reproducing twice as often (usually with twins, so 4 x the production overall) while requiring less maintenance.  Being browsers that favor taller, brushy forage, they also compliment grazing animals like our horses as we manage our pasture land.

Although goat meat isn’t nearly as popular in the United States as beef and pork, it’s one of the most widely-consumed meats worldwide, and I in particular am a big fan.  Plus, with our proximity to certain ethnic centers, we realized there was a good, largely unmet market for goats.

Another advantage is the the nutritional value of goat meat.  Goat meat (sometimes called chevon) is an exceptionally healthy and lean red meat.  Compared with beef, pork, lamb, and even chicken, it is lower in calories, cholesterol and fat.  Even better, the low ratio of saturated fats to unsaturated fats in goat meat makes it healthier as well, as unsaturated fats tend to increase the High Density Lipoprotein (HDL, often called the “good” cholesterol) counts in one’s bloodstream.

(source: Alabama Extension Office: http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/U/UNP-0061/)

Finally, Boer Goats in particular tend to have a gentle nature (though they are still goats, and when they get a hankering for chicken feed, for instance, they can be pretty hardheaded).  That gentle nature is what we hope to foster on our farm.