New to goats- a couple questions

[BrushBuster308]

Is it realistic for me to look into getting a few goats? Before I really start considering it, a little background…

The main purpose would be to help pack meat in the backcountry. As I get older (30), more time is devoted to family and career than to working out. I have packed thousands of pounds of meat up to 10 miles out of the backcountry but not sure how long I can keep doing it. I had been a roofer for 12 years and my back isn’t as great as it used to be. Just thinking for the future a little as I understand it takes 3-4 years.

My concerns: I live at 1,000 ft but hunt at 10,000. I drive 26-28 hours one way to elk hunt each year. I don’t have much experience with animals but did have a couple goats growing up. I only own 6 acres and don’t have any fence or accessory buildings yet. They would be pack goats for 2 weeks a year and pets for 50 (besides training hikes around home). My thinking is it would be fun to raise a few goats around the children and also be great for them. And also money, I had looked into Llamas a couple years ago but ultimately decided the financial investment wasn’t worth it. I don’t mind spending $1-2,000 on a few good goats but I just don’t want to be making a 10 year commitment to spend $2-300/month taking care of them. And last, predators. I have a bunch of coyotes around my house, do they normally bother full grown Alpines?

 

[Jeremyc_1999]

I’ve got a deposit on gots for next spring, but this is what I’ve found through research and borrowing goats

Predators are bad and dogs kill goats so coyotes will probably as well

If the goats are not exercised they will kit keep up and will carry substantially less weight and will have a much shorter range

They make great pets and are very similar in personality to dogs

I’m not sure about the altitude change. That can definitely play a part but it does take time to make sure that they are in shape.

 

[Bachto]

I live about the same elevation and hunt at 6k to 9k and didn't have any issues this year. I did train with them once a week up to a couple times a week leading up to hunting season.

When you drive you will need to stop, let them out and stretch their legs for about a half hour. I would do that every 6 ish hours or so. Especially if you aren't trailering them a lot in between years.

I don't live in an area with coyote problems but if I did I would keep their pen/shelter as close to the house as possible and make sure you have good fence where they can't get in easily.

 

[Jacob.smithjas]

I got into goats for the same reason as you are considering them. I broke my leg a while back and haven’t ever gotten back to 100%. They have been easy to maintain and keep in decent shape. I put a lot of miles on with me this last September. I do training jogs with them about 2-3 miles at about 10-11 min per mile pace throughout the summer. If they have a play structure to jump up and down on it they will keep active with each other on it. Cost wise my three goats have been about $100 a month and that’s spending 250-350 per ton of grass hay. Fencing your pasture and building structure for them will be the biggest expense initially.

 

[Huntnnw]

Is it realistic for me to look into getting a few goats? Before I really start considering it, a little background…

The main purpose would be to help pack meat in the backcountry. As I get older (30), more time is devoted to family and career than to working out. I have packed thousands of pounds of meat up to 10 miles out of the backcountry but not sure how long I can keep doing it. I had been a roofer for 12 years and my back isn’t as great as it used to be. Just thinking for the future a little as I understand it takes 3-4 years.

My concerns: I live at 1,000 ft but hunt at 10,000. I drive 26-28 hours one way to elk hunt each year. I don’t have much experience with animals but did have a couple goats growing up. I only own 6 acres and don’t have any fence or accessory buildings yet. They would be pack goats for 2 weeks a year and pets for 50 (besides training hikes around home). My thinking is it would be fun to raise a few goats around the children and also be great for them. And also money, I had looked into Llamas a couple years ago but ultimately decided the financial investment wasn’t worth it. I don’t mind spending $1-2,000 on a few good goats but I just don’t want to be making a 10 year commitment to spend $2-300/month taking care of them. And last, predators. I have a bunch of coyotes around my house, do they normally bother full grown Alpines?

We raise packgoats and are in year 5. We have lots of predators around our place coyotes,wolves, bears and cougars. We have yet to have any issues. We have had coyotes kill chickens right by our goats, but never try to go after them.

Like mentioned fencing is the biggest cost and dont cheap out as you will rebuild it and do it right if you do. They are escape artist so build it right.

All stock has their pros and cons. Goats are you cant leave them at camp unattended and gotta hunt with them.

 

[Rocky723]

Goats will obviously help with what you want. I have 5 goats and have only had them for 2 years but so far this is what I have seen.
Altitude: Doesn't seem to affect them much if at all. I live around 2.5k feet and hunt 9k feet and they don't seem to be affected at all.

Experience: You don't need much experience to take care of goats and especially if you've owned goats before you'll be fine.

Land: 6 acres is plenty for up to about 10 goats. Not sure how many you plan on having but that is plenty for the biggest of goats

Training/Use: As long as you are able to take them out about 3 times a month in the offseason and 2isn times a week in the month leading up to season then they will be in better shape then you.

Money: This can definitely get expensive quick if you buy all brand new gear however there is several forums/communities that have killer deals on gear and often will sell trained goats for a good deal. Look around and you will find what you need. My best goat was $200 from someone that just didn't have time. And if you decide goats isn't your thing just sell them. If you buy gear used you won't lose much if any money.

Predators: I have lots of coyotes that roam my area however I also have a very protective dog that doesn't like unwanted visitors. He is kept separate from the goats but the pasture is close enough he knows when something is in there and lets us know very quickly and loudly. I would say your best bet would either be keeping the goats as close as possible or even looking into a livestock guardian dog.

 

[burrohiker]

Sounds like your setup would work great for a variety of pack stock but your really on the fence about committing to a different lifestyle/type of hunting.

Owning stock is a 24/7/365 commitment. It also increases your drive times and complexity of hunting trips and reduces your over all time spent hunting as compared to backpack or truck hunting. You will have a steep learning curve with vet care, trailer maintenance, and lost sleep when bad weather rolls in. A bunch of weekends during the summer will now be devoted to conditioning your animals for a hunt in the fall, on all of which, you will become the international pack stock ambassador for every single person you see on a local trail. You will invest thousands in tack, animals, and hay before you even draw your tag, and look back on all the lightweight backpacking gear you could have bought and saved a ton of money. Finally, your house will slowly accumulate goat (or donkey) paraphernalia since everyone will buy you any goat related figurine, sign, or hat they find for the holidays- and you will keep most all of it.

If that still sounds alright enough to you still- packing a elk out with nothing but a bow and sandwich in your backpack is pretty amazing. Teaching your kids how to take care of animals at home and in the backcountry teaches more life lessons than a boy scout backpacking trip ever could. Summer training hikes become part of life and give new purpose to your personal workouts. Then there is a the feeling of planning, training, and pulling off a hard pack in/out and seeing your animals tired, but yet very satisfied, munching on mountain grass while you drink a snow melt cold beer in front of the worlds best mountain vista.

If you want to do it for the reasons above- Go buy the trailer, build the fence, and be forever labeled as the neighborhood goat guy.

 

[Hunt the Top]

Definitely a tough decision. Getting into goats doesn't seem like that big of a commitment on the surface, but after owning them for almost 4 years, it can get to be a pain in the butt. It all comes down to how much you will actually use them. If you have the right type of hunts planned, where goats will be beneficial it could be amazing. I would 100% say that rifle hunting with goats is much better than trying to archery hunt with 5 animals following you around. My goats have spooked several bulls that I had coming in a on a string, which is very frustrating. That being said, many guys have had great success calling bulls in close without the goats spooking them, not the experience I have had. If you don't mind the daily chore of feeding them and staying acquainted with them after long days at work, go for it. You will need to be persistent on keeping them in shape and well maintained in the off season. I can personally say that after 4 years of owning packgoats, the newness has worn off and it seems to be more of a chore than not. Now that being said, having them pack all of your gear and game off the mtn can be epic. But like with any pack animal, there will always be cons with the pros. I still plan on keeping my goats after raising them from babies the right way, but I would give it a lot of consideration before you pull the trigger. If you decide to go that route, make sure to do a lot of research and invest in a goat or goats that have great genetic potential. There's so much effort that goes into getting a goat to be a proficient packer, and if his genetics never allow him to get good size the ROI is diminished. Best of luck

 

[Shermanator]

Are there any restrictions to having pack goats in certain areas?

 

[Highdesertpursuit]

I was nervous about the time that it would require to keep my goats in shape for hunting season. I went ahead and pulled the trigger and bought a couple. I have found that it's a lot of funn exercising them, and it brings a sense of pride watching them in action that I didn't expect. I really haven't changed my routine much other than bringing the goats along on hikes that I would have done anyways. I love to shed hunt in the spring and go on hikes with the family, so I just started bringing the goats along. It's been a pretty seamless transition that is a lot of fun.