Pricing questions

[Nanno]

This isn't a classified ad, but since it pertains to goat sale issues, I guess I'll post it here. 

I'm wondering what is a typical price for packgoat prospects. I'm soon going to list Snickers and our two new boys, Sledge and Hammer, for sale and I need to figure out where to start. Ads on Craigslist in my area aren't overly helpful. Young wethers usually go for $75 - $150, but they are usually not very inspiring-looking and often under-grown. Yearlings are usually a bit pricier than kids but not much. I don't want to ask more than the market can bear, but I also don't want to tempt the meat buyers. All my boys are too nice to get eaten, and all have been worked with, especially Snickers.  

I'm also probably going to sell Pac-Man once Finn is old enough to take his place. Do ya'll think a goat that is already trained to pack, lead, tie, and pull a cart is worth about the same as a grown dairy doe in milk? Those usually go for around $300-$350, but that seems a bit low for a goat that is trained to drive. Any opinions?

[Dave-Trinity-Farms]

I list mine at $200 now. Anything more then that and you kinda shoot yourself in the foot. People that know pack goats or want a good source for them because they are going to really be using them will pay that no problem. But most of the people, including yourself will find a 50 dollar wether and just end up with what they end up with.

[Nanno]

Dang... I just looked up the "per pound" price of goats in Colorado right now and I am completely shocked. They're going for $2/lb. and up. The very cheapest are still well over $1/lb. Even little kid goats smaller than Sledge and Hammer are going for $2-$2.50/lb. That would put Snickers around $240 just for meat. The big bucks start to get cheaper per pound, but they're still quite expensive. That does give me something of a starting point. I know that some of us have gotten lucky with a very cheap dairy cull (here's lookin' at you, Cuzco!), but I don't expect that to be the norm. I don't want to price my babies down so low that the meat buyers "discover" us. They all have too nice of working goat conformation and too good a start on them to go for meat. Sledge and Hammer are around 50 lbs. already, maturing beautifully, and are every bit as friendly as any bottle babies. They should be ready to wean in another 2-3 weeks or so.

[Dave-Trinity-Farms]

I always price over meat prices to avoid just those kinda buyers. Thus the price increase this year. Granted as I have said before, I actually lose money selling them as packers instead for meat. Here its not the final price but the time and money put into raising them

[Hunter911]

Nanno please let me kow if your going to sell a packer or two

[Nanno]

I'm sorry, but the only ones I have for sale this year are too young to start working yet. I have certainly been keeping you in mind whenever I'm on Craigslist. I do a "pack goat" search every time I'm on there in case something comes up for you.

[Hunter911]

Thank uou very much Nanno