We have a small herd of Nubians that we primarily use for milking and 4H. Our boys have gotten pretty attached to all our goats and a few of the bucklings have stayed on our farm. We have weathered a couple and he plans to train them to pull a cart. We have two bucklings we still need to wether and plan to train them to pack. All our goats wear collars and we have been walking them on a leash around our property. What age and what type of pack is recommended for training?
Welcome! Nubians sure are sweet, aren't they! I think you'll have a lot of fun training them to pull a cart. We've had a blast training ours.
For driving goats it's important to get them started wearing halters so they are used to being controlled by the head. You can also start teaching them to drive from behind while you lead them by carrying a whip in your opposite hand while you walk. Every time you say "Walk on," give them a light tap on the hindquarters with your whip so that they learn that the "go forward" command comes from behind. That way you aren't stuck with a couple of "driving" goats who only pull when someone leads them.
As for pack training, as long as you keep working with your goats there's really not much training that needs to be done. Once they're old enough you can pretty much just saddle up and go. They won't be big enough for wooden crossbucks until they are at least two years old. There are different schools of thought on whether you should even saddle a goat younger than three years old at all. Personally, I think as long as you keep the loads light there's no harm in saddling a young goat. Ours start carrying a light pack at around 18 months. By then the boys are usually close to 150 lbs. Usually we just put a couple of sandwiches in there. It's more about the trail miles than anything else. I also think it's nice to get them used to the noise of the pack brushing against things, and also start learning that the pack makes them wider so they can learn to avoid banging it on stuff. Marc Warnke of www.packgoats.com sells a "Kid Pack" for younger/smaller goats that is really nice. We've used a dog pack with some success but you really have to watch the fit, and because they are treeless they tend to slide annoyingly from side to side. The plus side to a dog pack is that its size really limits the amount you can put in it, which helps keep you from inadvertently overloading a youngster. It pays to get a hanging scale and weigh your pack and panniers before going out so you can make sure you're not overdoing it. Have fun and keep us posted on your adventures!
In my experience, putting the pack on a goat and having them carry it is usually a non-event. Teaching good manners, which I assume you are already working on is most important. Then get them used to walking on trails off your property, with a halter and lead.
Then how well to they follow you off your property when they are not on lead? Do you want them to stay behind you? Do they? Do they stay pretty close to you? If they stop to nibble, do they come when you call? Do they follow other people?
Work up the time and distance hiked. Take some breaks and allow them to browse.
Part of the walking/hiking is getting them used to all the stuff they will encounter on the trail, from dogs to bicycles, to water, mud, and downed trees to get over or under.
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