Favorite breeds for packing?

[Missy]

I was wondering what is your favorite breed for packing? What are the pros and cons of that breed in your opinion? I am currently using commercial Boers and I really love them but I am very interested in trying some other breeds and crosses with my Boers. Thanks!

[Charlie Horse]

Alpines-- Great body and size, lean build, best legs, love people, but have no goat-friends (aggressive to each other).
LaMancha-- Great personality. Large (mine is too thick for the job), no external ears so they're kinda deaf and dont shed heat via ears. Well liked
Boer-- Can do the job but have short legs and barrel-body. Sweet personality but not chosen for packing often.
Ober--A bit smaller, well built, epic horns, a little more independent personality. Popular.
Nubian-- Super big, friendly. Known to be sometimes lazy on the trail. Loud. Most people like this as a 25% mix or something rather than pure.
Togg-- Smallest. Top-tier friendly. Not that common in packing due to size but people that have them like them.
Kiko-- Some people swear by them. Seem a bit boer-like to me. Wide horns and sturdy
Krampus-- Best goat for pulling carts full of bad children. Not generally friendly, but love kids. For dinner.

[Stringinit]

My Saanen is amazing, you couldn’t buy him from me for any amount of money. I live in Northern California and he does great under 85 degrees anything over he starts to show heat stress, but so do my Alpines. Saanens would be a great cross with the Boer. They have long legs, probably on average taller than any other goat besides a Nubian in my opinion. Lots of people complain about having white goats but I find it as an asset, it’s easy to see your goats at night and early mornings and I can quickly count all of my white boys my darker alpines and la mancha blend in so well. Plus the darker goats I feel could be more prone to being mistaken for a deer.

Saanens also are very quiet which is a big deal for me.

That being said if I could only have 1 breed of goat it would be a saanen. Alpine 2nd La Mancha a very close 3rd, some may not get very big. I am currently experimenting with a kilo alpine cross.

[Missy]

My Saanen is amazing, you couldn’t buy him from me for any amount of money. I live in Northern California and he does great under 85 degrees anything over he starts to show heat stress, but so do my Alpines. Saanens would be a great cross with the Boer. They have long legs, probably on average taller than any other goat besides a Nubian in my opinion. Lots of people complain about having white goats but I find it as an asset, it’s easy to see your goats at night and early mornings and I can quickly count all of my white boys my darker alpines and la mancha blend in so well. Plus the darker goats I feel could be more prone to being mistaken for a deer.

Saanens also are very quiet which is a big deal for me.

That being said if I could only have 1 breed of goat it would be a saanen. Alpine 2nd La Mancha a very close 3rd, some may not get very big. I am currently experimenting with a kilo alpine cross.

Thanks for the recommendation! I will definitely have to get a Saanen. Being white is a good idea in my opinion that is one reason I want to cross with my Boers so they will not look like deer. I don't do well over 85 degrees either so that wouldn't be a problem. One question about Alpines do you find them to be as quarrelsome as other people say? I am goat crazy (I have been since I was 5 and that was a long time ago) and would like to have a few breeds. Thanks for your help!

[Missy]

Alpines-- Great body and size, lean build, best legs, love people, but have no goat-friends (aggressive to each other). 
LaMancha-- Great personality.  Large (mine is too thick for the job), no external ears so they're kinda deaf and dont shed heat via ears.  Well liked
Boer-- Can do the job but have short legs and barrel-body.  Sweet personality but not chosen for packing often.
Ober--A bit smaller, well built, epic horns, a little more independent personality.  Popular.
Nubian-- Super big, friendly.  Known to be sometimes lazy on the trail.  Loud.  Most people like this as a 25% mix or something rather than pure.
Togg-- Smallest.  Top-tier friendly.  Not that common in packing due to size but people that have them like them.
Kiko-- Some people swear by them.  Seem a bit boer-like to me.  Wide horns and sturdy
Krampus-- Best goat for pulling carts full of bad children.  Not generally friendly, but love kids.  For dinner.

Thank you for the rundown on each breed! My Boers are not fullbloods so they are pretty slight and have very long legs but can be a bit stubborn. Which breeds have you had and which was your favorite? I really appreciate your help!

[Nanno]

I love my Alpine/Nubian crosses! I have to disagree with Charlie Horse about Alpine feet. I tend to find Alpine foot and leg conformation lacking. (Not as bad as Saanens, but worse than most other breeds.) Alpines can be light on bone and have splayed toes and thin hoof walls. Saanens are the kings of brittle, splayed hooves and weak pasterns. However, breeders who have been concentrating on improving feet and legs can buck the trend and turn out goats with really nice conformation. It's important to be aware of this problem when looking at any goat, but especially Saanens and Alpines. The problem sometimes doesn't present itself until the goat reaches maturity and his body weight increases.  

The Nubian breed typically has consistently good feet and legs, with strong, well-formed hooves and thick, tough hoof walls. However, they are more commonly post-legged in the back than Swiss breeds in my experience. They can also have the opposite problem in the pasterns and be too upright, which is less of a problem than pasterns that are overly angled (weak), but it's still not ideal. Nubians are typically quite mild-mannered in the pen and like to snuggle with each other. This makes for a very tranquil goat herd, but that lack of passion can also translate to laziness on the trail. Nubians are generally less athletic than Alpines, but they also tend to have more stamina and a stronger build. This is why I like crossing Nubians with Swiss breeds (especially Alpines). Nubians add strength, good leg conformation, and a sweet temperament while Alpines add a good work ethic, athleticism, extra boldness and curiosity, and a softer voice. I don't think Nubian wethers talk more, but their voices are about 10x louder and more obnoxious when they do talk. Of course, crossing breeds does not always get you the best of both worlds. Sometimes you end up with a goat that exemplifies the worst of both breeds! But nevertheless, I have been overall quite pleased with my crosses.  

I've rarely seen a Togg with bad feet, but they can be one of the more aloof breeds. I hear they are hard workers but less likely to be your buddy than other breeds. Everyone who has Obers seems to love them. I hope someday to add more Ober to my herd genetics. I got a trace amount of Ober (and Saanen) when I bought my bucks, Buda and Pest, in 2021. My herd also has a small amount of Saanen in it through my goat Lilly, who was 1/2 Saanen. That makes my star packgoat, Finn 1/4 Saanen. I currently have a lot of white in my herd tracing back to Tigerlily, who was Finn's daughter.    

[Missy]

Hi Nanno sorry I didn't respond to your post. Right after reading it I had the opportunity to get three little Alpines! And because you said that Alpines made a great cross with your Nubians I thought they would be good for my Boers too! In the few weeks I have had them I have noticed they have a higher energy level, are more surefooted, and are less stubborn than my Boers. But I agree their hoof walls do seem very thin (the Boers have such thick hoof walls, I have to wait till it rains to cut their feet) and their legs don't seem substantial enough (though they are very long). I am really excited to cross the two and hopefully will get some great Packgoats! Thankyou so much for your advice it really helped me make a decision! 

[GoatPackr]

I think it will vary depending on how you use them.
If you are picnic packing it won't matter much. A long as they want to follow you.
If you are looking towards off trail athletes then you will find the leaner dairy breeds with long legs will out perform the short leg muscled meat goats. Think marathon runners over body builders. Long legs make a difference climbing over things and keeping panniers from dragging in the brush and logs.

My favorite is Alpine and Lamancha or crosses between them.

Kris