Goats - BIG and small...
..our pedigree Anglo Nubian and Pygmy goats
Our goat breeds couldn't be more different to each other in size and personality, body shape and patterns. Goats have featured at the farm long before we arrived and their are stories of them ranging across the common being relatively self sufficient, returning home for their evening milking. The first of the pygmy herd arrived in 2003, followed by the nubians in 2008. They are probably the most labour intensive of the species we keep at the farm in terms of husbandry, needs and management. But you can never have enough goats on a farm, can you?
The Anglo Nubian
Identified by the pendulous ears and distinctive roman nose, this breed defines charisma. They are a dairy breed and although it is not their primary purpose at the farm, they can be hand milked daily when required, giving us creamy raw milk higher in butterfats than other breeds. The coat colours and markings are stunning with a huge variety available, although colour should be immaterial to the quality of a good nubian. That being said we do prefer the spotties!
Our nubian herd was made with founders from Northcourt, Hurstpier, Ashdene, Braesland and Boscadjack animals, important herds for current and historic quality in the breed. We do not show our nubians currently but are keen to breed a quality animal that can thrive in a smallholding lifestyle. We have a couple of small batch kiddings in January and April each year. There will be limited female kids and goatlings available each year. These will be disbudded, vaccinated and registered with The British Goat Society (BGS). There may also be limited opportunities to hire our registered males for stud services.
Pygmy Goats
I would be lying if I said that I loved the pygmy everyday as that can be as infuriating as they can be endearing! They can be demanding, destructive and divaish. But they are mainly a joy to be around and we .can lose many minutes watching the antics of the kids as they discover the leaps their little legs are capable of!
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Many of the current herd can be traced back to the beginning and our mismatched little herd is starting to show a more uniform type thanks to the Marshview, Rosebank and Willowbrae genetics that we brought in with herd sires to improve the overall type of our animals. There is generally a waiting list for Pygmy Goat Club (PGC) registered female kids, however we may have pet disbudded wethers available. Stud services may also be an option, however our boys do get booked up, so plan early!
