Considering switching from pack goats to burros

[Bachto]

I have been running pack goats for about 5 years. I love my goats and probably have another 3 good years with them. There have been times where I wish I had a different type of packstock. Here are my considerations.

2 burros can pack what my 5 goats can pack. Going from 5 animals to worry about to 2 seems like it would make my life a little simpler.
Having to take my goats literally everywhere I go is sometimes really annoying. I make it work and most of the time it's no big deal but sometimes I just wish I had the option to leave them tied up somewhere. Especially bowhunting.
Goats are getting banned in more places and having to worry about if I can take them somewhere is inconvenient.

The pros for my goats are obvious, they can go anywhere I can go for the most part. So trail condition isn't something I take into too much consideration. I also almost never have to worry about food with them.

Any advice or consideration is helpfull.

 

[bisblue]

I have no goat experience, but I've had pack llamas and now mules and a BLM burro.

Bring your patience. I'm guessing a burro would be the opposite of a goat in terms of wanting to please you and follow you on the trail. Everything in a burros life could be a mountain lion in disguise waiting to kill them, and they need time to contemplate the danger while you stand there. Lots of training is mandatory.

Burros will need fed twice a day and will get fat quickly if left to graze on good forage. They have one stomach and will be more temperamental with food.

A good sized BLM burro will weigh 400 pounds or so and pack 25% of their body weight when in shape. There are other big donkeys that would weigh much more, but then you are in mule territory. Supposedly hotter climates have smaller BLM burros, and northern Nevada has the biggest. Picking the right animals is crucial, but there seems to be lots o fgood trainers and lower demand for Packers.

Downfall is a serious consideration and they don't like to jump over things quite like my llamas.

Pedro is also a puppy dog like sweetheart, and if I didn't luck into my mules, I might get all burros of I started over. Check out the link to a great new book on pack burros.

Amazon.com

 

[Miflatlander91]

The link doesn’t seem to be working for me


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[limpet]

It worked for me. It’s to a book called “

Backcountry Burro: Your How to Guide to Packing Donkeys in the Backcountry” by Shane Weigand.​

It’s a good book, I got it when it came out. He was a member here not sure if he still is. I’ve been debating between donkeys and goats for awhile now. I’ll be interested to see what others have to say about this.

 

[Miflatlander91]

It worked for me. It’s to a book called “

Backcountry Burro: Your How to Guide to Packing Donkeys in the Backcountry” by Shane Weigand.​

It’s a good book, I got it when it came out. He was a member here not sure if he still is. I’ve been debating between donkeys and goats for awhile now. I’ll be interested to see what others have to say about this.

Must be the goofy WiFi here thank you


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Bachto]

I really did consider llamas and I guess they are still on the table they just seem to be expensive to purchase. $3000 for a llama is a hard sell to the wife. "rescuing" a Burro off public land is a little easier sell .

My main dilemma is feeding them in the backcountry, and navigating unmaintained trails. Maybe that means I need to bring a bigger saw and be little more dilagent on the trails I choose. But that is the main appeal to packgoats is I can just go anywhere for the most part.

Maybe in the end I will stick with goats, this is just something I am considering.