I disagree. On the contrary, there's pretty much no evidence that goat vaccines are of any use. CL: There's already a vaccine on the market (has been for years) and even the manufacturer admits it's pretty much useless, because CL is a disease much like the flu with different strains. You CAN get an autogenous vaccine made (I think the company is PL labs or something like that) but it costs $300. That is actually very effective. But CL isn't a disease that really kills goats very often, anyway, it's more of a nuisance. I know of no effective pneumonia vaccine either because pneumonia is frequently an opportunistic infection of the lungs caused by numerous organisms. I've never had a case of pneumonia in my goats in five years, despite all kinds of crazy buying, selling and trading of goats.... that's because my goats are healthy. There's no vaccine for Johnnes. There's no vaccine for CAE. There's no vaccine for listeriosis (I don't think?) or for goat polio. Those are all the big killers of goats, except , of course, for the clostidium (sp?) caused by overeating. The CDT vaccine is ineffective, with only minimal protection offered, and that particular vaccine DOES have a history of causing adverse reactions in goats. Way smarter to have the C&D anti-toxin on hand in the event your goat breaks into the grain bin (along with baking soda, etc). Really, I know of two big breeders, with herds over 200 , who do not vaccinate their goats for anything. I know of one large 70-goat dairy that doesn't vaccinate as well. Human vaccines are far safer and more effective (and some of those are really iffy, too).

I'm not one to jump on the bandwagon. Goats can do a very effective job of clearing land and have done so for 1000's of years. If left long enough it is true the land will be barren, but that is where management comes in. You will need some sort of fence, try a portable electric fence and/or cattle panels you can move every few days as the forage gets eaten. Tying goats is only a good idea if on flat cleared land and if you are there to watch them constantly. Tying them in a land-clearing situation is surely asking for a hung goat, a very dead hung goat. Consider whether there will be shade in the area you move the fencing to. If the herd you buy from isn't behind electric fence, you will need to train your goats to the electric fence-or they may just run right through it. Another consideration is predation. Electric set up correctly will deter many predators AND keep your goats in. Consider stalling them at night when predation is high. Note that goats are herd animals and you should get at least 2. Check your land for poisonous plants. It is true many goats don't eat the garbage weeds. That is because breeders are raising goats on less and less land, supplementing with hays & grains to make up for the lack of browse. They simply havn't learned what is good to eat vs. what can make them ill, not to mention why should they work for their meal when it is brought to them in a pan & placed in the feeder? I do recommend a meat-type breed. A milking breed has been far too pampered for far too many generations to thrive on brush growth. Buy from a herd that is pasture raised-a foraging herd. Goats learn what is good to eat from the herd queen who is very saavy in a forage-based herd. Pygmies would do it, other breeds include Spanish Brush Goats, boer Goats, Kikos, etc. Meat goat breeders selling at auction input very little to their herd-pasture or forage based they are. That is where you should start as that is the type of goat that will thrive on forage. Good luck and when you find a larger forage based herd, ask the breeder their management style & what they recommend for management in your area, predator threats, etc. Brendasue

Ahhhh home! With two fat bellies! Mrs. Harrell is an ANGEL! I learned more from her in the first 5 minutes of meeting her than two days of hem hawing with the breeders of my babies. I did find out that Pipp couldn't possibly be full pygmy as she has a half white body (Which is really totally fine, they are just pets. But that does show me that the breeders have no idea what they are talking about, period). Mrs. Harrell looked at my bottles and nipples and said they were all fine. She had me throw out my rolled oats and let me know that alfalfa hay was ok (But not ideal) for the girls but if I ever got a boy it had to go. She gave me a big bag full of what she feeds and the label off her bag and told me where to get it (The girls thought it was yummy by the way). Then she looked at me, rubbed Izzy's horn bud's and said.... "These have to go, that's a safety issue". So she told me we'd take care of that after the girls ate. She went inside and brought out two full mountain dew bottles, one with a pritchard teat and took Izzy from me. (She also inspected the girls and said they were lucky I was so persistent because they looked to be ok and not literally starving, lol).She sat down on her steps and sat Izzy beside her with her butt to the back of the step. Gently she wrapped an arm around Izzy, pulling her into her side and squeezed on each side of her mouth, pushing the lips forward to accept the nipple. It went right in but Izzy seemed to be having issues with the nipple. Mrs. Harrell stopped and said she thought she had just the trick. She disappeared inside and returned with a lambs teat (A red rubber one) and switched out the nipples. She put the nipple in Izzy's mouth and Izzy began to suck, still half chewing but better. Mrs. Harrell pulled the nipple forward slowly as if she might take it away and Izzy went NUTS! All of a sudden it was on like Donkey Kong! Izzy sucked down about 6 ounces in a wink of an eye and was fat as a little tick! Pipp followed the same procedure and then fell asleep, standing up, with the nipple in her mouth, lol. After that, and tears of joy from me, I followed Mrs. Harrell back to her little barn and she gave both the girls a shot. She said they had to get a tetanus before they could be disbudded and she didn't have it by itself so she just plain out vaccinated them for me! She stuck Pipp in the little box, shaved her head (She didn't cry or struggle, what a good little girl!), and I stepped out and BOOM, finished. She handed me Pipp with two round holes and a yellow head, lol. Izzy went next and now they have matching little heads (Ouch!). We put the girls back in their big crate and talked and talked. She gave me the mountain dew bottles with the lambs nipples FULL of goats milk from her goats. THEN as if she hadn't done enough already, she went inside and brought back out TWO FULL GALLONS of her goats milk! This woman had no intention of asking me for one red cent! All I had on me was 15 measly dollars and knowing I owed her a CRAPLOAD more than that, I humbly handed her 10 bucks (I needed the 5 for gas, remember she was an hour and a half away, lol, squeezed her neck, and told her that no words could express my gratitude. I will be returning to NC Promised Land with the girls for their next round of vaccines and wormings, etc... She gave me the number of a lady more local to me to purchase milk from if I didn't want to put them on cow's milk (Which she said would work just fine). I also offered to tag along to shows with her when I can so that I can help her however she needs it. I have shown dogs over half of my life and I know how horribly difficult it can be to venture to a show ALONE with even TWO dogs! When I return to see Mrs. Harrell I'll bring a sufficient amount of moolah with me for her trouble. This woman is unbelievable, her heart as pure as they come and a gorgeous little herd of Nigerians to boot. Thank you to everyone that so graciously helped out a newbie and stranger. My only concern is that of my girls, Izzy and Pipp. Elaine

We bought 3 pygmy goats (1 male, 2 female) in December, so here's our experience so far. They LOVE honeysuckle, and we can't pull it down fast enough, but they don't eat the woody vines (at least ours don't). They also love a lot of other things like dogwood leaves, so like you all have noted, they don't discriminate between the desirable and undesirable. They are cute and sweet natured and easy to keep. The small size of a pygmy, even when they rear up on their hind legs doesn't allow them to munch anything but the lowest branches. That also means that they don't always pull down the honeysuckle that has grown far up into some of the trees. We have 9 acres; the goats are kept in a fenced area near the barn/workshop at one end of the property on about a half acre or so. So far they have done a great job of keeping down the weed growth on the fence line (old fence between us and the neighbors plus the new fence), plus all the undergrowth in 2-3 groves of trees. They also graze, which to my husband's delight, reduces his mowing in this area. We think the 2 females are pregnant. One neighbor already wants 2, and we plan to keep some for future breeding so we can eventually fence off some other areas for them to work on. I wish you folks in the city could have some. They are low maintenance, feed we supplement with is cheap, and they make great little pets also. And yes, Carol, you need to have at least a pair as they like to stick together. Hope this info is useful.