Nanny Goats

[smudge]

I have always fancied the idea of owning a Nanny Goat as a pet.

I'm not saying we will ever own one, but wondered if you know anyone who has & if there were any drawbacks?

The reason I ask, is because a friend of mine once owned a Billy goat, but it constantly head butted her patio doors - from outside of course!

[ursula62]

Depends what you're expecting of your goat...

When I was a kid my Dad's school got a pedigree goat, thinking it would keep the grass down in one of the fields, and that they could use or sell the milk.

It was such a fussy so and so, it only ate dried food (or the headmaster's wife's roses), and it never gave any milk.

It was too "delicate" to be left in a field even for a couple of hours - it needed a blanket as it kept shivering with cold even in the summer, even though the vet gave it a clean bill of health and told them it was just playing up.

The vet told them that they should have got an ordinary goat from a farm if they wanted it to eat grass!

It was so spoiled they used to leave a TV on all day in its house in case it got bored!

In the end, they gave it back to the breeders they got it from - but it was too old to mate by then!

[Loosehead]

A relative of mine had a goat and it ate the washing off the line!

[smudge]

Thank you ursula & Loosehead - I cracked up at both your replies!

I adore goats, but maybe it won't be a good idea to own one after all - never mind!

[ursula62]

Smudge

the pigmy goats they have at Thorpe park are gorgeous - they are very hardy (from desert goats in the Sahara region) and they are about the size of a large labrador.

They have very cute faces and were very friendly.

[dmsjps]

We had a nanny goat and she was a devil to milk! She was also lonely because she had been reared with other goats and she missed them, so we let her go back home in the end.

 

You will have to have a very large area for her to graze if you get one, with your 'domestic' plants area - or anything else for that matter - fully goat-proofed, otherwise she will eat everything you cherish and leave the 'boring' pasture.

 

Apparently goats and horses get on well together ...

[PurplePixie]

The laws concerning the ownership of certain animals (I think it's just cloven footed) has changed recently due to the foot & mouth outbreak a while ago.

There are strict guidlines & licences now, making it more difficult to keep such animals including goats in a domestic situation. You wouldn't be able to take it for walks outside your property & if it ever required Vet treatment & needed to be moved anywhere you'd have to inform the Ministry of Agriculture of the move & go through the proper channels.

I found this out in connection with rescue work, as an odd assortment of creatures end up on my doorstep & sometimes it gets complicated!!

[smudge]

Thank you all for your helpful & informative replies.

I've seen pigmy goats on TV before & they are gorgeous. Having said that & after reading all your comments, I think I'll refrain from owning one - I'll just carry on caring for all the wild birds! :0)

[Robinia]

Hi smudge (it's me, noddy as I was in my previous AB life).  I love goats too & I thought about 'fostering' one when I first moved here as the garden was a jungle but as it's  been said they tend to eat the best plants & leave the rough.  After years of hard work I wouldn't want to everything nibbled down to stumps now!  I've always wanted to keep chickens too but that's not likely either.  I have a friend who keeps ducks & they are all different personalities & are hilarious.

It's lovely to be back after these few weeks - computer had a near death experience but one of my lovely sons has debugged & upgraded it for me so thought I'd have a change of name (my favourite tree). x

[smudge]

Hi Robinia (noddy) - I wondered where you'd got to -  glad you've got your pc sorted out & able to return to AB.

I know what you mean about all the hard work in the garden being undone by goats!

I would also have liked to have kept chickens - or even a duck or two, but a friend of mine had once one & although he was a friendly little fella, he pooood everywhere. So, that wouldn't be good idea either, especially when you've got little grandchildren visiting!

As I say, I'll stick to the wild birds for now! 

[smudge]

P.S. Like the new name -x-

[smudge]

* I meant 'had one once'!

[Robinia]

Thanks smudge.  I'd made  a short list of possible user names & sure enough the first two were already in use!