Kidding Schedule
To learn more about each dam and sire, click on his or her name.Pricing
Doelings out of first fresheners are sold at $300. After a doe's first freshening, pricing may go up or may stay at $300, depending on our evaluation of the doe's mammaries, milk production, and show quality. Bucklings are available only out of does who have good production, good mammaries and are easy to milk; otherwise, they are wethered and sold as pets for $75 each. Bucks out of first fresheners are almost always wethered because the dam has not had the time to prove herself in the first month after her first kids are born. We will not sell a buck as a buck unless we would be willing to use him in our own breeding program, which is why we castrate most bucklings and sell them as pets.
Bottle babies vs. dam-raised
Please note that all of our kids are dam raised. It is simply against our philosophy to take babies away from their mothers and raise then on a bottle, unless there is some extraordinary circumstance, such as a premature birth, hypothermia, dam rejecting baby, etc. These types of situations are truly extraordinary, as one of the things we like about Nigerians is their excellent mothering ability. We do not usually have more than one or two babies per year (out of 40 or so) that requires bottle-feeding. We realize that some people believe goats must be bottle-fed if you want friendly goats; however, we disagree. Our herd includes both dam-raised and bottle-fed adults, and we'd challenge anyone to be able to tell them apart based on their personalities. Some people think that if they have children, they should get bottle-fed goats, but we disagree, since bottle-fed kids are more likely to jump on people and have annoying, possibly dangerous habits, such as sucking on people's fingers. If you want friendly goats, you need to spend time with them, and if you don't have time to spend with them, then you shouldn't be getting them in the first place.
Registration
All breeding quality animals are sold with registration papers or with a registration application with AGS and can be registered with ADGA and NDGA. Some of our goats are also registered with ADGA and/or NDGA. Our tattoo sequence is registered with all three registries. All goats are disbudded or polled (hornless).
Naming goats
Like most serious goat breeders, we name our registered kids based upon a pattern or system. People have all sorts of systems, but in our case, each doe has a theme. Carmen is named after the opera, and all of her babies are named after opera characters. Carmen got her name because her mother, Dancy, had a musical theme, so all of her babies were named after something musical. One of Carmen's daughters is Lizzie Borden -- yes, there was an opera about Lizzie Borden. Lizzie's babies are named after outlaws. One of her daughters is Bonnie Parker, and Bonnie's babies will follow a Great Depression theme. Get the idea? Why do we do this? To keep everyone straight! People are always commenting on how they don't know how I can keep all the names and pedigrees straight on nearly 30 goats. Well, I wouldn't if I didn't have some sort of system. Not only can I keep straight who's who on the farm, but I will also recognize names of goats that are sold. So, if someday I see one of my goats on a show list or a milk test list, I'll immediately know who the parents were just by looking at the name. Of course, you can call your goat whatever you want. We have bought a few goats that had such odd names, we just couldn't bring ourselves to call them that -- like Thrill and Red's Hot Rod. If you feel strongly about a goat's name, please be sure to inform us when you first contact us. We are always happy to have help coming up with names, and we've been very happy with some of the names that buyers have selected. If you'd like to help name your goat, just let us know, and we'll tell you what the dam's theme is, and you can do all the research to find a suitable name.
Testing
If you want testing performed prior to purchasing an animal, please let us know when you first contact us, because testing may take as long as three weeks to accomplish, depending upon the vet's and the lab's schedule. You are responsible for all costs associated with testing, and prices will start around $50 for one test. All of our goats have tested negative for CAE, CL, and Johnes in 2009, and we have had a closed herd since one year prior to that test. Illinois is a certified TB-free and brucellosis-free state. We take our goats' health very seriously as they are our primary dairy source.
2009 Kidding Schedule
| Dams | Sires | Due/Birth date | Kid price | Kid Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARMCH/CH Scandal 3*D | Draco | April 13, 2009 1 buckling 2 doelings |
$500 | polled buck available |
2010 Kidding Schedule
Bucks may change for does that have not been bred yet.| Dams | Sires | Due/Birth date | Kid price | Kid Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARMCH Carmen *D VG | Draco | Feb. 20 2 does |
$600 | 1 doe available |
| Anne | Pegasus *S VG | Feb. 20 2 does 1 buck |
$300 | none available |
| Coco *D | Pegasus *S VG | Feb. 27 2 does 2 bucks |
$350 | none available |
| Cinderella | Pinkerton *S | March 17 1 buck |
$75 | wether available |
| Andromeda | Pegasus *S VG | March 17 2 does |
$300 | 1 doe available |
| Jo | Pinkerton *S | April 5 | $300 | - |
| ARMCH/CH Scandal 3*D | MCH Frankie | April 8 | $550 | - |
| Bonnie | Pegasus *S VG | April 9-14 | $300 | - |
| Cleo | Tennessee Williams *S | April 10 | $300 | - |
| Cicada | Draco | May 8 | $300 | - |
| Athena | Draco | April 16 to May 12 | $300 | - |
| Sherri 3*D AR | Pegasus *S VG | May 9 | $350 | repeat breeding that produced Jo |
| Lizzie 2*D | Pegasus *S VG | May 17 | $350 | - |
| Ethel | Lil Outlaw *S | Fall 2010 | $300 | - |
| Caboose *D VG | Pegasus *S VG | Fall 2010 | $400 | repeat breeding that produced Annie |
| Giselle | Pegasus *S VG | Fall 2010 | $300 | - |
| Charlotte | Tennessee Williams *S | Fall 2010 | $300 | - |
| Annie | Tennessee Williams *S | Fall 2010 | $300 | - |
‡ Bucks out of first fresheners are generally sold as wethers for $75.