The difficulty with goats is that milk, fiber, and meat breeds are all pretty separate. You'd have to find a good crossbreed of the first two (of which I have a handful, but that's neither here nor there).
Secondarily, in order to get milk, you'd a) have to have a doe, and b) breed her. Which then gets into the question of what to do with the offspring--keep, sell, eat, etc. Not to mention finding a buck and what type, depending on whether you want to do anything but eat the offspring.
Then, you'd have to milk the goat 1-2x a day, plus deal with the supplies for milking, whether or not to keep the kid on the doe, whether she will let her milk down for anyone other than the kid if it's on her, and what to do with the milk afterwards (raw? pasteurized?), and how to deal with a surplus.
Not to mention, if the doe's raised for fiber and depending upon the breed, you have to comb out or shear her (hand or clippers?). Combing out is for goats carrying the cashmere gene; Kit's allergic to mohair (Angora breeds), so that's the only kind of use to her. Which means that the offspring may or may not carry the same gene--there's no "cashmere" breed. Shearing is a twice-a-year effort, but combing requires regular upkeep, and the yield is not nearly as great as on angoras (which is one of the reasons for the high price of cashmere).
Once she gets the fleece, there's still washing (usually 2x), combing out to remove vegetable matter and align the fibers (creating roving), and spinning it up to create yarn, which then can be dyed. Alternatively, she can comb out and send the whole thing off for processing, but she'll have to find a reputable processor and then pay for it.
In the meantime, there's upkeep for the goat--supplemental feed, shelter, deworming, mineral blocks, baking soda, hoof trimming and the required equipment for that, as well stud fees and vet bills for any delivery complications if bred. Not to mention--zoning laws may easily prohibit the keeping of any livestock, including goats.
Trust me, livestock can be a total PITA and money sink. *laugh* Looking at all of the above, I wonder what the fuck am I thinking with all these critters?. Were Kit not allergic to mohair, I'd suggest she keep an Angora rabbit for her fiber jones. :P
Valkyrie
Memento Mori |
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