Image by ephemerama
Article by Peter Hansen
Goat farming or keeping is a viable business venture. There are quite a number of considerations to think about when you want to start a goat farming business. The large demand for goat meat products like meat and milk only shows that goat keeping can become a profitable industry.
First, you need to decide what aspect of goat keeping you want to concentrate in. Would you opt to go into dairy goat farming which entirely focuses on the production of goat milk? Or are you thinking of venturing into meat goat farming which deals with meat production.
The size of your land area where you will be housing the goat is a very important detail that needs to be given much thought and enough research. The number of goats you will acquire largely depends on the size of your goat housing.
Some goat keeping techniques worth mentioning is providing the herd with a spacious area to roam around freely. The location you will be choosing should be away from main roads and highways. Take into consideration if there are viable grazing spot. Does the place have good irrigation system? Are there trees all around?
If you don’t have a piece of land under your name, you might want to consider scouting for feasible areas. Goat housing is a very important component in having a successful and profitable goat farming business.
It is important to make sure that the goat housing provides the herd with good ventilation, a large area or feeding, as well as proper drainage system.
If you want to make profits from your goat keeping business, you also need to ensure that the herd is given ample protection in order to grow faster and healthier. The herd’s growth and health conditions will be affected if the herd does not have sufficient food and water supplies, and a big enough space to run and walk comfortably. The more you relieve herd’s stress (yes, animals do get stressed too), the more these animals will grow healthier and bigger.
A goat keeping tip is not complete without mentioning that you need to choose the best goat breed. When you want to go into meat production, make sure that you get goat breeds that have the capacity to grow quickly. Also look into its milk production facilities if you are thinking of venturing into dairy goat farming. Likewise, you need to consider a goat’s fertility.
If you have already decided that you’re going into the goat keeping business, this article could help you in setting it up. However, these are just the basics, when you want thorough discussions about it, you can look up the internet for some online forum and community dedicated to this particular industry. Do a lot of research so that when you finally open up for business, you will definitely learn from experts.