Dairy Goats
Cornell University: NYS 4-H Dairy Goat Program
Langston University: Grade A dairy goat farm requirements (for Oklahoma; contact your State Department of Agriculture)
Pennsylvania State University: Goat Housing and Equipment (includes milking barns/milk house plans)
University of California: Raising Dairy Goat Kids (PDF)
Washington State University Extension: Your Dairy Goat (PDF)
Feeding and Nutrition
Alabama Cooperative Extension System: Nutrition Requirements of Sheep and Goats
Langston University: Nutritional Requirements (Calculator); Body Condition Scoring; Goat diet/feed examples
Tuskegee …
Accessibility Statement
We want everyone who visits this website to feel welcome and find the experience rewarding. To help us make this website a positive place for everyone, we use the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0. The guidelines have three levels of accessibility (A, AA and AAA), and we’ve chosen Level AA as the target for this website.
While we strive to adhere to the accepted guidelines and accessibility and usability standards, it is not always possible to …
Goats for Custom Brush Control
Using goats for custom brush control is at times referred to as a “rent-a-goat” operation. Many landowners that need goats for vegetation management may not want to get into the goat business due to a lack of expertise, capital, time, or other resources. This provides potential for goat producers to capitalize on free grazing and/or get paid for grazing. Landowners needing these services include the federal government, such as the Forest Service or Army Corps …
Very few medications are approved for use in goats and sheep. Indeed, “a critical shortage of approved animal drugs for minor uses and minor species exists because of limited sales opportunity, low profit margins, and the high capital investment necessary for bringing a drug to market.”(1)
What then are small ruminant producers to do when their animals need treatment? Without proper treatment, animals will experience pain and suffering, and some may die; producers will experience increased expenses, decreased revenues, and …
Jodie Pennington is small ruminant educator in the SW region of Missouri. He is employed by Lincoln University in Missouri and works in partnership with the University of Missouri Extension in areas of goat and sheep management, production, and marketing. His primary audience is producers of sheep and goats who have small acreage and limited resources, but he works with all audiences. As part of the mission of Lincoln University, minorities of Hispanic or Hmong origin and native Americans with …
“Smart Drench”
The most important aspect of using dewormers is to conserve their effectiveness for use in animals that truly need them. This can be achieved by using them as little as possible and only when infection levels dictate that intervention is necessary. The old concepts of treating all animals when only a few show signs, or all animals at regular intervals—shorter than every three to four months—is no longer warranted because it promotes dewormer resistance. Even if new dewormers …
Sheep and goats are an excellent way for new and beginning farmers to enter livestock production. They are also especially well-suited to small farms. A profitable sheep and goat business will consider many different aspects including marketing, stewardship, animal care and production.
Materials for Teachers and Extension Staff
The following materials were developed for teachers and educators to use in their classrooms and programs. The target age range is high school, jr. college and beginning farmer groups.
Instruction Guide …
The Role of Farm Business Planning
Marion Simon, Ph.D., State Specialist for Small Farm and Part-Time Farmers, Kentucky State University Cooperative Extension Program.
Mission Statement
Farms need a written mission statement to show why the farm business exists, its values, what the business will be, and what it will accomplish. Its mission statement describes the purpose of the farm business and its targeted products, services, and quality. The mission statement provides the basis for developing the farm business’s long-term plans, …
