Hi Jonathon and all:
My wife and I milked dairy goats commercially for 10 years here in
southern Ontario. We didn't process the milk ourselves but sold it to a
dairy which processes it into a variety of products, from cartonned and
bottled fluid milk to cheeses, yoghurt and butter, so it can be done.
In the last few years before we quit shipping milk we tried to make the
fullest use of pasture (for about 150 milkers + doelings and kids).
As Gerhard said, the biggest difference in grazing goats vs cattle is
that goats much prefer to browse than graze. Given the choice, they'll
eat tree leaves, small branches and bark before they'll graze short
grass. They love a variety of weeds and shrubs. Part of this is their
natural defence mechanism again worms. Eating higher off the ground
means they can, to a certain extent, keep worms at bay. Also, they're
not stupid. Fresh leaves and shoots can be extremely nutritious.
That's not to say goats won't graze. They are picky eaters but will
happily graze a strip of robust grass leaves or alfalfa. Surprisingly,
we've never found them too keen on clover, unless it's pretty lush.
(Although they love red clover hay -- but, as with sheep, watch the
estrogen levels.) Turn them out into an over mature field of timothy
heads and tough old orchard grass, and you won't get much milk out of
them.
Of course, a milking herd can clear out a treed area in a hurry and
then your "pasture" is gone for a while. In the spring they love
fresh low hanging tree leaves, and milk production will really zoom
ahead.
In short, despite our best efforts to use a lot of pasture, we found it
a difficult balance to rely solely on pasture. It takes a lot of
planning and juggling but it can be a cornerstone of a mixed feeding
system (I'm talking commercial milk production here).
We always have a round bale in front of them in the barn overnight,
and they get some grain in the parlour (a simple ration, nothing
complicated or overly rich).
In summary:
You can get good milk from goats if you graze them on good feed
- Goats love variety in plants (but be cautious of poisonous weeds and
sharp flavoured plants such as evergreens that could possibly taint
milk)
- "Goatiness" in milk and cheese isn't a given. Most goatiness in
commercial herds is caused by poor feed, dirty barns and/or worms.
Don't forget poorly installed and maintained milking systems.
- Take care of those conditions and you can have lots of good tasting,
fairly high component milk (3-4.5% BF) without a lot of trouble,
depending on their stage of lactation
- remember that goats can bloat, just like cattle if you turn them out
in a lush alfalfa or clover field, especially if it's dewy or wet from
rain.
- Always feed some dry hay overnight and before you turn them out onto
pasture in the morning
- don't forget salt and mineral
If I sound overly cautious or preachy, it's only because of learning
from our own mistakes and helping a lot of others through the same
things!
Mark Hall
Lover's Creek Farm
Free-range pork and grass-fed beef
Grenfel Ontario Canada
