This is the question I get asked the most from new goat owners. Are girls, “does”, or castrated boys, “wethers”, better for pets? Let’s just state right now with no hesitation that intact males, “bucks”, are NOT good pets and should not be considered. Intact males of most livestock species can be aggressive, and in the case of goats, STINKY. You would be setting yourself, and your beloved pet up for failure.
You must get at least two goats! Before we go any further on boys vs girls, I want to make it very clear that we will not sell a single goat to a home that does not already have goats on the property. Goats can not be alone without other goats. Period. There are always exceptions to this rule where a goat befriends a dog or a donkey etc. but this is not ideal and can not be guaranteed. Goats are herd animals and must be with other goats or they will be very depressed and can even die. We put the health and happiness of our goats first!
Wethers are the most typical pet goat. Males are castrated around 12 - 16 weeks of age and will not stink like their intact brothers. They can still display “buckish” behavior like snorting, humping or chasing after does during the does’ cycle. Much like a neutered dog might still mark etc., this is common and does not indicate that they are still intact.
Wethers are a great pet option and we highly recommend them for this purpose. They are very sweet and affectionate if raised correctly (see bottle babies), they are less expensive, typically about half the price of a doe. They are otherwise useless in goat farming so adopting a wether is also a compassionate option.
However, wethers do have very specific nutritional needs/restrictions. Ironically, they have the most complex nutritional needs. Their diet needs to be monitored very closely and kept at a 2:1 Calcium to Phosphorus ratio to avoid urinary calculi (think kidney stones). Too much calcium or too much phosphorus will result in stones. The stones are not only extremely painful but are quite often fatal. Too much of either mineral can result in stones.
There are herbal and homeopathic treatments and preventatives you can use to prevent and treat stones. Chanca Piedra aka "Stone Breaker"is an excellent herbal remedy for humans as well as goats. It is known to break up stones and prevent blockage. We recommend using this as a preventative.*
Does are also susceptible to calculi but their anatomy makes it easier to pass stones and it is very rare for a doe to have a full blockage. Read this article on how to feed your goats.
Do you want to milk your goats? If you want to keep the milking option open, we reccomend starting out with two does bred on quality milking genetics. Does make very good pets and do not have to be bred and milked. And no, they will not make milk until they have given birth so no need to worry about milking until you decide to breed.
We suggest two because if you have two, they can alternate breeding in order to provide you with milk all year long. Goats are pregnant for 5 months and should only be bred once a year. The ideal calendar is to stagger breeding or “freshening” them so you always have milk. Side note, Nigerian Dwarfs are one of the polyestrous breeds that cycle all year round vs. breeds that only breed in the fall for spring kids.
What about one of each or a "breeding pair"? There are some big issues with this situation and we will not sell a breeding pair. If you get one each to breed, they cannot be penned together and therefore, will need a buddy each. Goats do not do well in isolation from other goats, even in adjacent pens. They must have companionship.
Therefore, you will need two does and two bucks or a buck and a wether. Side note about getting a wether vs buck to companion your buck. I always suggest two bucks so that you have genetic diversity in the years to come. If you breed a doe to your one buck and keep a doe kid from this breeding, you can breed the daughter back to the buck but any offspring in this second generation will need a new buck to breed to. Having two bucks means you can alternate your genetics and not need to bring any new genes in for at least 4-5 years.
Start-up costs for a dairy herd add up fast and two bucks and two does can easily run over $2000. However, after the initial investment price, it costs the same to keep a buck as it does a wether. Therefore, it’s more cost-effective long term to have two bucks and be able to have genetic options for breeding.
Can I keep wethers with my does? If you’re planning to get a wethered companion to your doe(s), there are a few issues to take into consideration. The first and most likely issue is that your wether, while castrated, will still harass and annoy your doe when she cycles, which is every 21 days for Nigerian Dwarf goats. This is not a huge deal for some, but a lot of people do not want any conflict in their herd so they find it more peaceful with two girls or two boys.
The second and less common but more serious issue is the health of the wether. If you are breeding and/or milking your doe(s) they will have different nutritional requirements than the wether(s). Does will need a rich diet while wethers cannot have rich hay or grains. Wethers require a very balanced diet or they are at risk of serious health complications. Urinary calculi is the most common but others such as fatty liver disease can shorten the life of your beloved boy.
What about initial costs? Often, the cost of does vs wethers determines which pet gender you will choose. The average price for a quality milking doe is $500-650. Superior herds with performance accolades and championship wins can range up to $3500 for proven adults and $1500+ for their offspring. While wethers are $250 regardless of their mom’s ribbon collection.
To encourage buyers to get two bucks for their dairy herd, we are now offering the "Two Buck Chuck Discount". When you one buck and get the second at the wether price*. We hope this program makes it feasible for herds to keep a companion for their bucks as they too need to have their own herd and cannot be permanently housed with does. The discounted buck will come with ADGA papers etc.
We hope this article was helpful to you in choosing the best gender or gender combination for your new goat herd. To recap, we will not sell single goats or "breeding pairs" without other goats on the property or plans to bring goats in from other herds.
For more information on what to feed your goats, does, bucks, and wethers, check out this article.
If you have more questions about which gender to pick, please contact us.
*The two-buck discount does not include registration fees and is applicable to select kids. For example, an exceptional buck kid may not be available for a discounted price.
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This advice should not be considered medical advice. Please contact your veterinarian or medical doctor for medical advice.