Chat
09-27-2016, 03:38 PM
It's generally not practical for all your goats to be the same age. For one thing, there's no older, experienced goat for the youngsters to learn from so you have to do a lot more work teaching them yourself. Another problem is that your herd will probably be more volatile. Pecking order is generally established by age and size, and older goats are good at breaking up fights among younger ones if things get too rough. One of the biggest problems with having goats all the same age is that they will get old and die around the same time and then you have to start over again with a whole new batch of youngsters. If their ages are more staggered then you only have to add one or two younger goats at a time as your old ones retire.
The big question is where to find mature, experienced goats. There are sometimes goats offered for sale in our classifieds section here. You can also look on Craigslist, but definitely be careful about what you buy. A goat that has been used as a weed-eater his whole life and never worked with is probably going to be more trouble than he's worth. But sometimes people find amazing deals, so you just have to keep your eyes open and hope to get lucky. You may have to travel some distance to find your perfect packgoat, but he will be worth it. There's a reason why trained and experienced packers are hard to find. People bond closely with them and don't like to give them up after putting so much time and effort into their training. But sometimes life happens and people must part with their pack string, so be patient and keep your eyes peeled.
One thing to consider is getting only two goats at first and see how they work for you. It's much easier to manage a couple of goats than a whole big string. You'd be carrying more stuff on your back of course, but it might give you a taste of what it's like to have packgoats and whether it's really for you. You don't want to dive in so deep you get over your head. Goats and their equipment are expensive. It's also easier to find just two good goats than a whole string. If it turns out it's not your thing it's easier to re-sell only two, plus you're not so financially tied to the experiment.
The big question is where to find mature, experienced goats. There are sometimes goats offered for sale in our classifieds section here. You can also look on Craigslist, but definitely be careful about what you buy. A goat that has been used as a weed-eater his whole life and never worked with is probably going to be more trouble than he's worth. But sometimes people find amazing deals, so you just have to keep your eyes open and hope to get lucky. You may have to travel some distance to find your perfect packgoat, but he will be worth it. There's a reason why trained and experienced packers are hard to find. People bond closely with them and don't like to give them up after putting so much time and effort into their training. But sometimes life happens and people must part with their pack string, so be patient and keep your eyes peeled.
One thing to consider is getting only two goats at first and see how they work for you. It's much easier to manage a couple of goats than a whole big string. You'd be carrying more stuff on your back of course, but it might give you a taste of what it's like to have packgoats and whether it's really for you. You don't want to dive in so deep you get over your head. Goats and their equipment are expensive. It's also easier to find just two good goats than a whole string. If it turns out it's not your thing it's easier to re-sell only two, plus you're not so financially tied to the experiment.