Where do you get them and what type or breed of goat is used for packaging??

[torrey.harris.5]

How old do they have to be ???
What is the downside to them??


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[Stefan]

I just have some goats and don't use them for packing. I would either find some bottle raised goats or raise some yourself. You are probably looking for nubians.

There are plenty of places to find them. I might still have the contack for a lady that we bought our nubian goats from out in MO. http://www.summitpackgoat.com/Breeds.html

 

[rileybassman]

For packing goats, you want to look at boer goats - my family used to have a goat farm and had quite a few of these as well as dairy goats.
Boer goats are a meat and packing goat.

I would say you want at least a year old for any decent weight - two years would be better.

 

[Beastmode]

LaMancha, Alpine, and Nubian cross are all goats that I would look at. They don't absolutely have to be from a family of packers, but the dairy breeds are the biggest goats and I would stay with them. Wethers (castrated male) are going to be your best bet as anyone that's been around a buck goat can attest to the smell.

You can start a goat young with no weight. They will soon start acting like a dog in a lot of ways. They will follow you everywhere, everything will try to get in your entire life with you! I would recommend fairly young and bottle feed them. This will definitely grow a bond that will last a lifetime.

Downside to goats-
-You need a lot of them to pack an elk out. They can generally pack a third of their body weight every once in a while. A 150lb goat is a big goat so he can pack 50lbs or so. 4-6 goats for a boned out elk.
-predators seem to be ultra attracted to goats for some reason.
-you can't bring them in an area that has wild sheep. They will transfer diseases to the sheep and kill of a herd. Your goats could be carrying a form of pneumonia you don't even know about and transmit it.

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[flyinsquirel]

Out of curiosity, and I apologize if this is a thread derail, but is there a way to test your goats for this sheep killing pneumonia?

 

[Regul8r1]

Yes, it can be done. There was/is a study going on now testing pack goats for this very thing. It is coming out of the university of Washington. I had my goats tested and they have all been negative. They have sampled them 3 seperate times. Here is link and how I found out about it.

PACKGOAT RESEARCH Needs Your Participation

 

[NHBacon]

My girls and I have used pack goats to hike with here in NH .I would stay away from Boer and Nubs. The floppy ears are shorter legged and tend not to be as agile, plus a touch on the lazy side. Dairy breeds are tops in my book. Saaneens, Alpine, LaMancha, and Obers. Bottle raised is a plus because they will bond and follow like a dog. I prefer horns. They help with cooling and protectioareWe start are goats on short hikes as kids and bring them everywhere. We start working the empty saddle as soon as they can fit in it. Weight came gradual at the 3 year mark. They are amusing to have around. Good luck

 

[Idaho Brad]

As far as the Breeds that are the most common: Alpine, Oberhasli, Saanan, La Mancha
The most optimum way to go about it is to get a bottle raised baby, just to make sure you get a
goat that is bonded with people. It i will put you ahead of the game, but it is not a must. I bought dam raised
kids and it just took a while for them to warm up to me. You will want to go with wethers (castrated males), not bucks.
You can go horned or dehorned, but it's one or the other. You don't want to have both. De-horned goats won't get stuck in the fence
as much. As far as age, it is common practice to not pack them until they are at 3.5 years at the youngest. If you push them too young you run the risk of ruining them young. Be very skeptical about buying second hand pack goats. I have not seen to many downsides to my boys other than they don't pack a lot of weight and they can be fairly slow unless you raise them to move fast. I run with mine a couple days a week so they know I won't wait for them. They are very easy to take care of and are cheap to feed if you have an efficient feeder (I use a keyhole style feeder, but doesn't work as well with horned goats) The tack is fairly inexpensive. My goats are more fun to hike with than a dog, hands down. I recommend them to people who have time to give an honest effort.
Check out Pack Goat Central

 

[Marc Warnke]

Many breeds are used but I prefer Alpine and Alpine crosses. My favorite crosses are Alpines with Obers, Saanan, and Sabers (Saanan/Boer cross) Best breeder in the country is Dwite Sharpe out of Kansas. IMO

 

[Marc Warnke]

yes, it's quite simple, and a nasal swab

 

[Marc Warnke]

Here is a great podcast on everything you need to know. [PODCAST] Chris Bowen on Preparing for a Guided Hunt