Raising Goats For Meat – Tips to Help You Raise Goats For Commercial Purposes
Image by davosmith
Part of the annual Puck Fair festival – raising the goat – ‘King Puck’ to the top of his tower, where he spends the next 3 days.
Article by Ted Allen
Raising goats for meat can both enjoyable and profitable. It only requires very simple pieces of equipment and only the basic concepts of management. Here are a few pointers that you may follow to raise goats for commercial purposes.
First, you need to protect your goats from predators and from harmful elements. Use woven wires to build a fence around the pasture and the grazing area. Make sure that it is high enough to prevent the goats from jumping over them. You also need to build a shelter that will protect them from the rain and from too much heat if you plan on raising goats for meat. Make sure that the shelter is big enough to hold the goats that you are planning to have. Install a good water system inside the shelter and around the area. Ensure that the feeding bunks are spaced far away from each other to avoid overcrowding during feeding times. Next, you need to choose which breed of goats you want to raise. Decide whether you primarily want to produce milk or dairy? Different breeds produce meat and milk better than others. Ensure that you have the right proportion of female and male goats. Have a veterinarian check your goats every once in a while to ensure that they are breeding properly and that they are free from any illness. You also need to decide how you want to breed your goats if you plan on raising goats for meat. There are artificial insemination options that you may look into if you feel that they will benefit your business more than normal insemination will. Build a pen around the buck, which is the male goat, to isolate him from the rest. Be sure to closely monitor pregnant goats. Have them checked by a veterinarian to ensure that the pregnancy is going well. Build a pen for the younger goats to keep them from getting hurt by the bigger ones.Finally, learn how to market your products properly. If you feel that you can no longer support the number of goats that you have, consider selling a few goats on a livestock auction. Just make sure to keep the younger females in your possession so that you can continue on with raising goats for meat.
