COMPARING THE FIVE BEST BACKYARD ANIMALS
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For all these reasons, many new homesteaders think a goat is the first animal they should have for their farms . . . especially after they've had a chance to play with one. But before you run out to purchase your own mid-sized milker, it's best to be aware of the disadvantages of keeping the beasts. First off, a dairy goat must be milked twice a day, seven days a week, through her entire tenmonth lactation period . . . a caretaking requirement many homesteaders might find too confining. What's more, although goats don't require much space, they are difficult to keep penned . . . and in addition to their fence-attacking tendencies, some of the little bleaters are pretty good noisemakers. (Neither of these last two qualities will endear you or your goats to the neighbors next door.)
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And bucks are another matter entirely. During fall breeding season, the male of the species will spew his odor far and wide, letting people for blocks around know there is a billy goat in the area. This isn't an ordinary country smell we're talking about . . . it's foul, rank, and—to some folks—even nauseating. So if you're thinking of getting into the goat-breeding business, plan to live far away from the nearest human nose . . . or, perhaps, talk some farmer friend into keeping your buck for you.
If you intend to get the most (and most economical) milk production from your goat—or any dairy animal, for that matter—you must have a good understanding of its nutritional needs during lactation and dry periods, and provide good veterinary care. You should know, too, that the tiny fat droplets in goat's milk—unlike those of cow's milk—are mixed throughout the liquid. The butterfat thus doesn't rise naturally to the top (it can be separated mechanically), which means that making butter or cheese is a bit difficult.
Probably the hardest aspect of goat raising, though, is culling a favorite doe—no matter how poor her milk production is—because the creatures are so lovable to have around. And it you're not will ing to "harvest" your caprine companions, it won't be long before one cute doe—at two or three kids per year—multiplies into a yardful of bleaters that need to be milked and fed . . . twice a day, seven days a week.
PIGS
Among the best waste-to-meat converters, pigs will turn kitchen scraps, garden greens, grains, roots, surplus eggs, or offal from other butchered livestock into hams, pork chops, bacon, and fresh side meat. In other words, a swine can be the finest garbage disposal available. (Alternatively, when fed a well-balanced store-bought diet, a good hog will gain a pound for every 2-1/2 to 3-1/2 pounds of feed.)
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