About Us
How we got our start
We are a family who loves the outdoors! We purchased our property in 2010 with a dream to one day build our home. As that dream became a reality, we learned that there is a lot more to enjoying the view. Especially during the summer in the south. Weeds, briars & kudzu have to be constantly beaten back to maintain a landscape you'd want to look at while drinking your morning coffee. After several difficult kidding seasons with auction goats, we decided we had to find a better way. That's when we invested in a 100% Kiko buck and 5 does. This transition has made all the difference in the ease of management and kidding. These are some hardy foragers and good mamas.
Herd Management
Our herd has about 20 acres of mixed pasture and wooded area to graze. They are occasionally rotated with premier 1 electric fence, but their larger permanent fencing is 6-strand timeless electric fence. All goats have automatic waterers and free choice mineral. We do not plant any crops for them at this time because they have plenty of high protein forage already in the summer. They get a small amount of grain maybe once a week in the summer to keep them bucket friendly and a small amount of daily grain and hay in the winter. Lactating moms might get a few bonus cups here and there. Does kid in the field. We have portable shelters, but they generally prefer their own private spots. I intervene at birth only for weights and in case of emergency. We only worm when necessary, and that has been seldom. Health records are kept on all stock, so if there is a goat you are interested in I will be more than happy to share their records with you. Weights are recorded at birth, 30 days and weaning at 90 days. This year we have implemented biosecurity testing on our whole herd, testing adult goats regardless of breeding status for CL, CAE, Q fever & Johne's. This testing was entirely negative this year (February 2023), and our plan is to do this annually moving forward.
Our family
We both have full time jobs outside of the farm, so we have recently added two Great Pyrenees puppies to our herd to keep the goats safe from predators. This is a new adventure for us, but it is going good so far. We have two sons and busy schedules, so farming has to be challenging enough to be interesting and rewarding enough to keep doing it even when we are tired or hot or cold. It is a work in progress, but we are learning as we go. We welcome farm tours by appointment and any questions you may have.