# How bad is the smell?



## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

For those of you who keep bucks.... exactly how bad does a buck smell? 

I've heard everything from "can't smell him even during rut unless I'm in his pen" to "I can smell him from a mile down the road."

I am allowed to have goats on my property - I checked the zoning before I moved in - but I want to be a good neighbor too :angel:

Thanks!


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## NEfarmgirl (Jan 27, 2009)

We kept our friends goats for them after a tornado took their goat building and the smell of a buck in rut for us was bad. He didn't smell until the end of July and I can not describe the musky smell he produced. We could smell it outside of the house and if we set foot in the barn they were in our clothes smelled so bad we would have to change. Our friends didn't think they smelled that bad--but they are used to it.


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## mpete (Mar 4, 2008)

I wish my buck smelled worse! lol... He's 1.5 and barely smells enough to interest the girls... but my boer buck that I had was bad whenever we were by his pen... I think it also depends on how close to your house he is... but if you arn't going to have a lot of does to have bred, then you can just use a neighbors so you don't have that problem! Does do not smell and neither do wethers...  what kind of goats were you planning on getting?


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

I have Nigerians dwarf goats which are year around breeders & I think the adult bucks smell pretty bad but it doesn't bother us because we are use to it, we also have 40 acres & no neigbors that close. If it bothers company or family when they come to visit they don't say anything. 
They have a smell year around but I do think starting end of summer to early fall they smell worse. 
We have what we call goat clothes that we wear in the winter & even after washing the smell doesn't come out. I hang them in the basement. We Love them still though.
Have a young buck born here this spring who's just a little over 3 months & if you get close to his head he's already stating to get the buck smell.


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## Elsbet (Apr 2, 2009)

Our Nubian boy smells like mothballs. He loves to gently, gently, gently lean his forehead against me, which means I end up smelling like mothballs, too. Blech.


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## petaddict (Apr 10, 2009)

I don't think my nigerian dwarf buck smells bad at all. He's a little over a year old. Sometimes he smells stronger than other times. The only time I smell him is if he's rubbing up against me or if he's in the barn close to me.


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## Bricore (Sep 8, 2007)

My two Mini Nub bucks really smell (they are super friendly and of course want to love on you when you come around them. I don't like the smell myself but they aren't in rut all year round so I put up with it.)

My Saanen/Nub Mix buck isn't as bad as my Mini Nub's for some reason. He is only 1 1/2 years old so maybe that has something to do with it (I am not sure.)

We have them far enough away where we don't smell them unless we are out with them. There are some days where I can smell them more then others but most of the time we can't smell them unless we are pretty close to their pen.

I never go out to my bucks (when they are in rut) before I have to go out in public unless I have time for a shower and to change before I go. 

Dora Renee' Wilkerson


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## jil101ca (Jul 2, 2007)

My hubby says they stink but he also said that about my male ferrit I use to have. They do smell sometimes more so than others but i don't think it's that bad once your used to it.


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## Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians (May 6, 2002)

Mature bucks, OMG. You wear gloves and means coveralls, and you still have to shower with comet to get off the top layer of skin that still smells like the boys! But in the end they smell like money, without good bucks, and nothing is better than senior proven bucks, you can't make the big buck$  Vicki


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## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

If I personally get stinky, I can shower.... My concern is ONLY with how much of this stink is airborne, for the sake of being a good neighbor.

I am *hoping* to get LaManchas.... I've got a lead on two does, although the woman hasn't emailed me back with a price list yet (and I've been on the edge of my seat waiting, LOL!!). I may also have a lead on a buck, which is why I ask.

I'm only allowed to have 3 adult goats on my property, along with the other critters that I have/am getting. BUT I do not have a stock trailer or any other method of transporting my goats, so I can't really take my does to a buck to be serviced every year. AI sounds expensive and complicated, so its not an option either. So if I want milk (which is pretty much the entire reason I'm getting the goats), I need a buck here on my property.

The neighbors behind us have horses and cows, although their fence is probably 100 feet from my back fence. They also have a hay field, I think, because they were spraying fertilizer the other day and BOY I could smell that! 

My lot is under an acre, and I have neighbors on either side who have lots about the same size. I'm going to put the buck at the back of my property, but I still don't want to give the neighbors any reason to complain.


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## tiergarten-CO (Dec 24, 2004)

my family thinks im crazy but i like the smell..


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## KayJay (Oct 3, 2006)

IMO it really depends on the buck. Some seem to smell worse than others. The older they are the more they tend to stink, also. The buck I used to have could be smelled from a good 200 yards away on a windy day lol. So far my new guy doesn't smell much, but he's still a young'un. If you don't mind me asking, where in Utah are you? I'm not far from Utah... would invite you over to smell the buck :stirpot: , but the new guy isn't as stinky as he'll get yet, and the old guy is gone.


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## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

KayJay said:


> IMO it really depends on the buck. Some seem to smell worse than others. The older they are the more they tend to stink, also. The buck I used to have could be smelled from a good 200 yards away on a windy day lol. So far my new guy doesn't smell much, but he's still a young'un. If you don't mind me asking, where in Utah are you? I'm not far from Utah... would invite you over to smell the buck :stirpot: , but the new guy isn't as stinky as he'll get yet, and the old guy is gone.


I'm in North Ogden, about an hour south of the Idaho line.....

What breed of goats do you have? I don't know if some breeds are less stinky than others or not.....


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## mawalla (Oct 28, 2002)

I used the hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and dawn liquid dish soap formula that I our vet clinic uses to deskunk dogs on my hands to get the buck smell off after helping the vet work on one. It helped a lot.


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## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

mawalla said:


> I used the hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and dawn liquid dish soap formula that I our vet clinic uses to deskunk dogs on my hands to get the buck smell off after helping the vet work on one. It helped a lot.


Do you think I could use this to give the buck a bath, to keep his smell down? Or something else, maybe like the KOE (kennel odor eliminator) spray I use for the dog kennels?

I'm not worried about the smell on me, I'm worried about how badly HE smells and the neighbors complaining!


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## Elsbet (Apr 2, 2009)

I doubt the wash would help with cleaning the whole goat- he'll just keep making more scent. They do get pretty whiffy.
Some people seem to be more sensitive to the smell than others. 
Have you talked to your neighbors?
We talked to our close neighbors before getting our goats. One didn't care about the smell, he just didn't want them climbing on his cars and boats. I wouldn't want that, either. We keep them penned. The other neighbor went into rhapsodies talking about the smelly old buck they used to have, and were looking forward to seeing ours.

We've paved the "friendliness" way in our neighborhood by giving away eggs and veggies, and canned pickles, too, lol. And the older couples around us love our children, and having me come over to chat (I'm not allowed to just drop stuff off, I get dragged in the door and hospitalitityed, hehe.). I think they get lonely. That's ok, I do too.  So no one minds my goats. Most people stop by when they are out walking to talk to my goats, or throw food down for the chickens, pat the cats, walk through my flower/veggie gardens with me. I love my neighborhood for the most part. It's a good place for kids and kids.


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## jennigrey (Jan 27, 2005)

There's a place I drive by fairly often and I can smell a buck there if I have the truck window open even a little. Not sure how far away from the road they keep him. There's a fenceline about 4' off the road that has some goats behind it but I don't know if one of them is the buck I'm smelling.


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## Wags (Jun 2, 2002)

I have Nigerians - the only time it gets bad is if several of my does happen to cycle at the same time and I put them in with him. Otherwise he doesn't smell, unless you are very close to him.

It does seems to vary from buck to buck, some are definitely more odoriferous than others.


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## Lizza (Nov 30, 2005)

For the most part, yes they smell, and a lot, during rut. There is not anything you can do about it. They pee on themselves regularly (all day), so anything you do and they'll just smell themselves up again for the ladies. Mine actually pee on their heads when they see me coming, I think maybe they are trying to attract me . 

Your close neighbors will notice, no two ways about it, but they might not care. As long as you aren't RIGHT next to them the smell is mostly tolerable. Just make sure your zoning is not for 3 female animals. A lot of city ordinances forbid the males (roosters, bucks, ect), so just double check on that.

I forgot to add that I have a LaMancha Buck, a Nubian Buck, and a Oberhalsi Buck. The Nubian is a youngen and doesn't smell much but the other two are mature bucks, very stinky.


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## Wildwood (Jul 2, 2007)

If you end up with one of the smellier guys and your neighbors are that close, they are going to smell him from time to time. If they spend a lot of time in their yards and they don't love goats I think it could be problematic. Any chance you could find him another home if it doesn't work out? You'll never know for sure til you try it.

For what it's worth, my nigie buck had to have his hooves trimmed when he was at a very stinky time last year so I took the opportunity to mix some dawn and a small amount of bleach in a very large bucket of warm water and scrubbed down his legs and other areas with a soft brush and poured the remaining water over the areas when I was through scrubbing. It did help matters a good deal and it took him a while to get to his previous level of stink and he seemed to feel extra good after his mini bath. Of course DH was telling me the whole time that I was wasting my time but he had to admit he was wrong LOL.

He had wet on the back of his front legs til they were getting very irritated. After the bath, they healed right up.


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## Feathers-N-Fur (Dec 17, 2007)

I would spend what you would have paid for your buck, on a trailer. It doesn't need to be fancy, a truck bed trailer with a canopy is light enough to be towed by a car, and can be picked up for $200-$500 on Craigslist. I think you would be happier without the buck. Then if you want to keep your first doe kid, you can. 
Stud service. My kids 4H leader charges the kids in the club $25 for buck service and $60 to anyone not in the club. That is way cheaper than keeping a buck with only 2 does. Talk to the breeder you get your does from, see if they offer services.


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## petaddict (Apr 10, 2009)

I went to a restaurant with some friends. We were discussing the taste of goat cheese and how some have a stronger taste than others. My friend gave me a taste of her cheese and I said (while the waitress was standing there) it tastes like the smell of my buck. The waitress walked off laughing so hard. The other friends told me it sounded like I said, "it tastes like the smell of my butt". I wonder what the waitress told the people in the kitchen.


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## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

Feathers-N-Fur said:


> Stud service. My kids 4H leader charges the kids in the club $25 for buck service and $60 to anyone not in the club. That is way cheaper than keeping a buck with only 2 does. Talk to the breeder you get your does from, see if they offer services.


The woman I'm getting my does from is getting out of goats and selling off all her stock (except for a few old does, who she told me have earned their retirement), so that's not an option. She also lives 4 hours one way from me, so it would be a heck of a haul!

I've told both my close neighbors that I have rabbits and I'm getting chickens and goats, neither of them said anything about that - of course I made sure they knew that I had contacted the county and that I knew the zoning regs  . And heck, they knew when they moved here that the county allows goats, so they really can't tell me not to get them. 

When I called the zoning people for the county they didn't say anything about no bucks/roosters allowed. In fact, one of my neighbors has laying hens, and he has a couple of roosters out with his. He's planning on eating at least one of them, from what he told me, but hadn't decided if he was going to keep one or not.

I guess I'll play it by ear and see how things go....


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## Bricheze (Jun 21, 2008)

Maybe when you buy a buck you should find a two year old one that the owners know smell enough to breed, but don't smell so much that your neighbors would smell it too.


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## Sweet Goats (Nov 30, 2005)

It is pretty bad at my place right now. I have 9 does all going into heat and the boys want them to know they are there for them. Now my boy that is a year barely smells, it is the older ones. I think it gets worse as they get older.


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## cjb (May 2, 2006)

We have hosted two different ND bucks at our place for breeding. The second wasn't TOO bad but the first was awful. In either case, the smell is definitely airborne and your neighbors will simply hate you for it. 

If you're not going to be in large production, why keep one? I would think that you could just AI or bring your does out on a date when needed.


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## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

cjb said:


> We have hosted two different ND bucks at our place for breeding. The second wasn't TOO bad but the first was awful. In either case, the smell is definitely airborne and your neighbors will simply hate you for it.
> 
> If you're not going to be in large production, why keep one? I would think that you could just AI or bring your does out on a date when needed.


AI, from what I've been told, is expensive and complicated, and the conception rates aren't that great. And I don't have a trailer or any way of transporting my does to a buck.

I was hoping I could keep a buck on my property without things getting too stinky. I don't mind it if you can smell him from 50 feet, but if you can smell him from 500 feet, my neighbors will be in the "fall out zone" for sure.

When I started out, I didn't think any of this would be a problem... I was looking for the best fencing to keep a buck contained, then ran into all this information about them being stinky from long distances (I had known about buck smell, but I thought it was more like Pigpen - the air immediately around them was rank, but that was it). 

I'm still hoping to figure out a way to neutralize the smell to make it do-able. Even if I have to spray the buck down twice a day with something during rut, I'm willing to do it. If there is nothing at all that will counteract the stench, then I'm out of ideas


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## hoofinitnorth (Oct 18, 2006)

In my experience, it varies from animal-to-animal and farm-to-farm. I have smelled some bucks that were AWFULLY ripe and some that were barely noticeable. Surprisingly, the buck smell itself did not depend on the cleanliness of their pen (but there was a distinct odor attributable to the dirty pen of course).

My boys are pretty ripe right now, even though they are not in full rut. They are all living together and the junior girls are next door so I can better watch heat cycles in preparation for fall breedings. Understandably so, they get pretty riled up.

It's certainly true that once you get the mature buck smell on you, it's hard (impossible?) to get off!


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## KimM (Jun 17, 2005)

People say they can smell my bucks when they drive past our property but their pen runs right along the road. My nearest neighbors are (thankfully) 1/4 mile away on either side so no one is actually complaining. 
Sometimes it is so strong in their side of the barn that I can almost feel the vapors hit my eyeballs!  whewwieee!


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## billooo2 (Nov 23, 2004)

I have Alpines, and I have noticed a tremendous variation between individual bucks. I leased one many years ago that had an atrocious level of "stink." Last fall I had 2 bucks here and the smell was only noticeable when I was right next to their pens (and these were mature boys!) But I was doing "pen breeding" so the boys were right in with their ladies. My experience has been that the bucks are less "crazy" when they are with their ladies.....as opposed to being by themselves.......and smelling those ladies coming into heat.....and being obsessed with getting to them. :shrug: I don't know if others have had a similar experience.


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## Cannon_Farms (Aug 28, 2008)

It is quite easy to transport goats in large dog kennels if you have a van or larger suv, I use the wire crates with double doors, i lay a tarp over the carpet and put just a little bedding down, hay I find to be hard to get out of the carpet but shavings fly around if you have to roll with the windows down.
Personally I dont see where it wouldnt be a better investment to buy a goat trailer and have three good does, use the goat trailer to haul them to a buck/vet when needed. Its always a good idea to have a method of transporting your livestock in case of a evac. A goat trailer can be made pretty cheaply and easly or a pre made goes for a few hundred dollars around here. I prefer them over stock trailers because I can pick mine up and move it, however unless Im hauling several goats they just go in the back of the suburban.
If you must have a buck, then go and visit the buck during rutt season, as every buck is going to stink differently so buy one less insulting to your nose. My buck only stinks for a few weeks and hes not that bad, my friends buck, you can smell him clear across a 40 acer field.


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## CheerfulMom4 (May 21, 2008)

We live on a dirt road, our house is one one side and the animals are on the other. The driveway is acrossed the road from my buck pen and when I get out of the truck I can smell him when he's rutting. I can't smell him at the house though, that's about another 60 feet away.


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## Goat Servant (Oct 26, 2007)

Bluemoon now this is just how we have done it. The first couple of years we hauled our 4 does 3hrs away for conjugal visits cause we had no room or desire for a buck. 
Another yr she offered a lease. Last yr we had another offer.
It has been 4yrs now & this is the first time we have our own buck for this coming season.
So I cant offer much about the wonderful aromatic aroma. Our 5mo old is spraying hiself so far the scent is not too bad but Im sure will get stronger as he grows. 
By the time late Sept & Oct rolls around most neighbors will have their windows shut.
I've heard that goat soap will take it out?


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## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

Cannon_Farms said:


> It is quite easy to transport goats in large dog kennels if you have a van or larger suv, I use the wire crates with double doors, i lay a tarp over the carpet and put just a little bedding down, hay I find to be hard to get out of the carpet but shavings fly around if you have to roll with the windows down.
> 
> Personally I dont see where it wouldnt be a better investment to buy a goat trailer and have three good does, use the goat trailer to haul them to a buck/vet when needed. Its always a good idea to have a method of transporting your livestock in case of a evac. A goat trailer can be made pretty cheaply and easly or a pre made goes for a few hundred dollars around here. I prefer them over stock trailers because I can pick mine up and move it, however unless Im hauling several goats they just go in the back of the suburban.


I have a minivan with "stow and go" seating, and I normally leave the back row of seats down so I can fit dog crates in the back for my dogs. *What size crate would I need for LaManchas?*

I don't even know where to start when it comes to getting my minivan outfitted to haul something behind it :shrug: I'm not all that handy, and while I can jury-rig some things half way decently, I don't know that I would trust my limited skills to doing something that would HAVE to hold up while driving down the highway (with little goatie lives at stake too)!!

In a few years, when the minivan gives out and I need a new vehicle, I'm planning on getting an SUV of some variety, with a tow package. My van is paid for, and no way am I taking on a car payment until I absolutely have to, so this isn't going to happen anytime soon!


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## Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians (May 6, 2002)

Why not put off this buy and buy them bred, confirmed via biotracking.com so you don't have to even think about bucks right now? Then purchase a buckling each spring, use him in the fall, confirm pregnancy 30 days later with biotracking.com and sell or eat the buckling? This way you never have stink on your property, bucks rarely smell until their 2nd rut.

Also make sure what you are getting is clean. CAE tested. We have Tracy in Idaho on our forum and also Wizard (Daniel) who is in Utah....since Daniel just purchased Lamanchas he would be the perfect person to talk to... dairygoatinfo.com vicki


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## Cannon_Farms (Aug 28, 2008)

my big boer girls fit comfortably in a 48 inch crate for the ride, I would recomend that size even if you had little ones because its always nice to fit more than one. Take heed to my lesson learned, you have to unfold the crate inside the van, it doesnt work any other way, this is where also the double door thing is important as i like to have them long ways but you can get an xl and a l crate inside a typical van if you place them side by side.
As far as the mini van tow package, its not cheap, nor very expensive to have a hitch installed, its just a matter of bolts and lighting as even if it doesnt have the tow package they are made to have it added. Definatly dont pull anything heavy with it though, mini vans dont have the best trannys in them. 
I think the dog crate thing would work quite well for you, I personally wouldnt put up with a buck just to keep two does serviced, you do have to house them seperate when you milk as its easy to get that buckyness flavor in the milk, and thats not a good thing. Read on fiasco farms about having bucks and see if you still want one then. I love mick my buck to dealth but i will never have another buck, he doesnt smell bad, or has bad manors its just not feasable for me when there is such a large collection of AI semen at my finger tips, no worries about allot of things that way.


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## Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians (May 6, 2002)

CF (and how nice it would be if we talked to real people on here)

So all your does are 100% bred each year with AI? I would never tell a new person that she doesn't need a buck when you know if she took on AI her first several years would be dismal efforts considering most new folks can't even tell when their does are in heat. Would she have does in mlk in the spring? Likely not. How many on here, including our own moderator had goats open last year, most after trying to outside breed their does.

What we as breeders do is one thing, a whole nother thing when helping out new folks, they need bucks, they don't need to be at the mercy of transportation and breeders schedules and whims if they want does on their place to breed.

You can't be self sufficient without a buck on your place, it's the only way to guarantee a new person has does who are pregnant, a buck, pen breeding their does until they figure out heat on their own, pregnancy tests to know their does are bred, then sell the buck if you don't want to keep him over winter (the stinkiest time). Vicki


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

I'm new at this too, and opted to get a buckling to breed my one and only doe. I figure he'll do for the first breeding this year, and maybe for next year too. Frankly, he's such a sweetie, I'm probably just going to get him a wether for a buddy and set up separate housekeeping for them. 

Re: Smell: He isn't whiffy at all, but he is still young. He may get a bit more of a gamey smell as he matures, but I don't think it's as rank as all that.

When I visit my friend's herd up the road, I can detect a goaty smell from her pygmy and Nigey bucks, but it's not unpleasant. Certainly no more so than horse or cow manure -- at least not to me.

I am one of those people who can smell a ferret from a mile away, and I don't care for ferret scent.

But goats, well, they're GOATS, so of course, they're all right by me.


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## Cannon_Farms (Aug 28, 2008)

I will use a professional to do my AI, I wouldnt suggest it any other way for anyone. 
I know the risk of having a buck and the trouble they can be, anything I state is nothing more than my own opinion on what i would do, just as with your advise unless noted with this is a fact and up to the op to deside what is best for her, Im meerly giving her another point of view. I said AI was what I had inteneded on doing, didnt say she should or it would be easier. 
I can say I would about guarantee that cbj gained allot of knowledge during this past season and the season before about his does and breeding. I know with dogs it took me several breedings before I could tell when a female was prime to take to the dog.
There is downfalls in either case of having a buck and not, and many of the people I talk with that where new goat people that quit goats was because of the buck, after all they can be as charming as they are nasty. 
I dont reccomend any uncastrated male animal for anyone new to that species, i wouldnt reccomend a new horse owner to buy a stallion because he is buying two brood mares.


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

I don't think it's fair to suggest that someone new to goats is unable to handle a buck, especially if they have plenty of mentoring support and good stock to begin with. And while there are similarities, I think comparing a stallion and a buck is a little like comparing apples and oranges -- or maybe apples and pears?

Still, one does one's research, and then goes ahead with the best decision possible for one's particular situation.

I know enough about bucks to know that you can't be as sweet and lovey-dovey with them as you can be with does. I am aware that, when in full standing rut, it's not a good idea to hang out with them. 

But I also know that, when my doe is in season, she's pretty likely to get pregnant, because she's running with the buck.


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## LFmenagerie (Mar 29, 2007)

Goat milk soap will take the smell off...several washings of it...but it did. LOL.
There were times that Tom (DH) would set at the table and I would give him the look, and he would smell around his arms and such to find where 'it' (the smell) was coming from and either go wash again or change his clothes. Pretty amazing stuff/stink, it is!

What Vicki says is good info for new owners. We started in just that way. No access to bucks close by and no knowlege in heat cycles. 
Vicki - it amazes me that you haven't forgotten what its like to be new and give info that is good for where a person is at the time. I appriciate it! 
AI is costly so even if a person has nice goats they might be at their spending limit on proper feed and care so the little extra is just over the top for them (having extra for vet care emergencies, too).
We had to keep a buck on the property cause a good or even just clean-as in desease free- mediocre Alpine was many hours away. From our limited experience (and someone already said this) if the buck is kept as far away as possible from the does they don't stink as much but, yes, they stink in rut times. I also agree that different bucks will smell more or less. We do have Alpines and they pretty much only smell in the fall/winter until everyone is bred. But the Pygmy I had a long time ago smelled pretty much all year and worse in the fall/winter. Did you consider swiss breeds (Tracys are awsome) so you don't have the 'all year' smell? If you work to wash the buck, they would just work harder to put it back. And if he is too clean the does might not be interested- if you know what i mean. There is a reason for the smell. It makes the does "like" him more. So the stinker he is, the more the does are crazy for him. 
Enjoy your goat experience. They truely are like potato chips. You want another and another.... We were just going to have three...and now we have a few dairy and more fiber goats and we are closer to thirty. Selling soon to get back to under twenty, hopefully.
Pam


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## SheriM (Mar 4, 2009)

If you really want to get the buck smell off your hands, use goat milk soap!! I'm not kidding, it works like a charm. My laundry soap is made from homemade goat milk soap too and it takes the smell out of clothes, provided it isn't super strong.


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## jil101ca (Jul 2, 2007)

I'll take back my response that they are not that bad. he boys have been rutting now for a couple of days and oh my does their section of barn stink to high heaven. Tony is older and he really stinks.Jimmy doesn't smell quite as bad. I have decided to sell Jimmy right away instead of waiting to see who throws better kids. I don't want or have room for both of them.


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## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

Okay.... so if both of my does are bred, and there are no other goats around, will the buck stop his fall/winter rut? If the does aren't going into heat, he wouldn't need to stink himself all up to attract them, right? Or does he just keep himself stinky "just in case"??

Also, am I understanding correctly that if I give him free access to does at the beginning of breeding season (fall), he won't stink as much because he won't have the need to attract anything (they'll already be there)?


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## Freeholder (Jun 19, 2004)

I don't have time to read through all the posts, but it depends on the buck. A young buck will usually not smell as much as a mature buck, and some breeds are less smelly than others (usually the seasonal breeders are the smelliest, the year-round breeders the least smelly). But my now-four-year-old Oberhasli buck has yet to get terribly smelly when he's in rut. And a Kinder buck was one of the smelliest bucks I've had (Alpine was the other smelliest one). 

A year or two after I got my first goats, we walked into a breeder's barn to look at her bucks (planning to breed our does to one of them), and the smell of six mature, in-rut bucks confined to a barn just about knocked me over. I could smell them long before we got to the barn. I don't know if I've gotten used to the smell, or if it's because mine aren't shut up inside a building (they have a three-sided shed), but they just don't bother me that much anymore. However, do be prepared to have 'chore clothes' that you wear for taking care of the buck when he's in rut, and change out of them when you go back in. Also be prepared to have to shower before going to town or having company!

Kathleen


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## HappyFarmer (Jun 17, 2006)

yea they stink-it gets worse as they grow older. My yearling buckling doesn't smell at all yet, my bucks 2 years & up ought to market a perfume for the youngsters. 

My senior buck likes to rub against me, too. Since rut started he's lucky to get a finger scritch on his shoulder. Wheeeeeew! Poor guy doesn't understand I don't find him appealing these day, lol.
HF


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## Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians (May 6, 2002)

Okay.... so if both of my does are bred, and there are no other goats around, will the buck stop his fall/winter rut? If the does aren't going into heat, he wouldn't need to stink himself all up to attract them, right? Or does he just keep himself stinky "just in case"??

Also, am I understanding correctly that if I give him free access to does at the beginning of breeding season (fall), he won't stink as much because he won't have the need to attract anything (they'll already be there)?
..................................

Yeah, you just believe all that 

1. Bucks in rut have no blood in their brain to think  They will breed a post. They stay in rut by the off chance anything stands still long enough for him to breed, they stay in rut and sitnking until hormone levels lower, which is about light and day length, just like does in heat....has nothing to do with having does around, they are in rut with no does on the place. With does around they just display more.

2. Giving a buck free access to your milkers means you are stinky when you milk, they are stinky when you milk them...and you will be mlking them for 3 months while they are pregnant....means you are going to shower twice a day after milking and still have milk that is stinky from going through buck smell in the barn.

With a young buck breeding your first does he won't be stinking yet...this way you have him in the pen with your girls and he will teach you about heat cycles, about breeding etc... Vicki


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## KayJay (Oct 3, 2006)

bluemoonluck said:


> I'm in North Ogden, about an hour south of the Idaho line.....
> 
> What breed of goats do you have? I don't know if some breeds are less stinky than others or not.....


I currently have a Nigerian buck (actually got him in Syracuse, UT), but have had quite a variety of boys before.... La Mancha, La Mancha/Nubian, Nubian, Alpine, Saanan, Pygmy, Mini Alpine.... the girls I have now are all mixes. I've noticed more variation based on maturity than breed. :shrug:
Oh, and I'm about 2hours away from you.


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## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians said:


> Yeah, you just believe all that
> 
> 1. Bucks in rut have no blood in their brain to think  They will breed a post. They stay in rut by the off chance anything stands still long enough for him to breed, they stay in rut and sitnking until hormone levels lower, which is about light and day length, just like does in heat....has nothing to do with having does around, they are in rut with no does on the place. With does around they just display more.
> 
> ...


You can't blame me for wishful thinking!! LOL

Okay, so I just need to keep him separate from the ladies, so that the girls won't stink. That's do-able, I was just trying to think outside the box


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## billooo2 (Nov 23, 2004)

I am not sure about any difference in smell, but when I do pen breeding, the bucks that I have are a LOT calmer, and do not act nearly as crazy as they do when they are penned by themselves. :shrug:


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## cjb (May 2, 2006)

Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians said:


> Why not put off this buy and buy them bred, confirmed via biotracking.com so you don't have to even think about bucks right now? Then purchase a buckling each spring, use him in the fall, confirm pregnancy 30 days later with biotracking.com and sell or eat the buckling? This way you never have stink on your property, bucks rarely smell until their 2nd rut.
> 
> Also make sure what you are getting is clean. CAE tested. We have Tracy in Idaho on our forum and also Wizard (Daniel) who is in Utah....since Daniel just purchased Lamanchas he would be the perfect person to talk to... dairygoatinfo.com vicki



This ^


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## saanengirl (Apr 7, 2009)

I would not keep a mature buck on less than an acre. I agree with Vicki, make sure your does are bred and confirmed pregnant when you get them. That buys you a year. After that when you want to breed get a buck kid and then sell or eat him as soon as the does are confirmed pregnant. Since you can't have more than three adult goats, consider milking your does for two years at a time instead of breeding every year. 

I have five acres and four does. I do not keep a buck. I will bring a buck of each breed (Saanen and Guernsey) to my farm just long enough to get the girls bred, and then he will go back to where he came from. Bucks are a huge hassle. Young ones aren't that hard to deal with, but mature bucks are a pain.


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## kreddish (Mar 17, 2009)

Bruce Almighty.. my pygmy buck does have a definate scent to him... must not too horrible bad at all. Dosent really bother anyone here I guess it just depends on the individual buck I like having him around because he is so stately


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## cybercat (Mar 29, 2005)

I am going to butt in here. Something to think about you do not have to breed each year to keep a doe in milk. You can just *milk thru*. Something for you to read up about for all you have to do is breed once and just keep on milking all thru the year. Amounts will drop back in fall and winter but will pick up again in spring. I have read about people doing this for many year on one breeding only. This way you only need to breed once, maybe twice and just keep on milking. It would save alot of hassel. Good Luck.


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## The Tin Mom (Dec 30, 2008)

saanengirl said:


> I would not keep a mature buck on less than an acre. I agree with Vicki, make sure your does are bred and confirmed pregnant when you get them. That buys you a year. After that when you want to breed get a buck kid and then sell or eat him as soon as the does are confirmed pregnant. Since you can't have more than three adult goats, consider milking your does for two years at a time instead of breeding every year.
> 
> I have five acres and four does. I do not keep a buck. I will bring a buck of each breed (Saanen and Guernsey) to my farm just long enough to get the girls bred, and then he will go back to where he came from. Bucks are a huge hassle. Young ones aren't that hard to deal with, but mature bucks are a pain.


I agree with this. When I asked about breeding on this board, I was told that, as a newbie it would be very unlikely to find someone who would be willing to take my does for breeding or lease me a buck. The advice was to go back to the breeder that I got them from & she is three hours away.

For me, it worked out to buy a buckling from her (rather than haul my girls back & forth for breeding). She had a stellar buck year & had two left that she wanted to get moved out. We have six acres & I will keep him at least through fall 2010. After that, we will see. Right now he is as sweet as can be & not too smelly.

If I were limited on the number of goats I could have & had neighbors as close as yours, I would have done as Vicki suggests. It makes things lots less complicated.


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## Common Tator (Feb 19, 2008)

Our Boer buck went for a 'walkabout' the other day. Several miles away to a local campground! DH stopped on his way home and crammed Gorgeous George into the back of his Subaru Outback to bring him home. Dang! I liked that car too!

Hours later I opened the tailgate and just about tossed my cookies! Buy stock in Febrize, because Ill be using several cases on DH's car!


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## southerngurl (May 11, 2003)

My yearling buck sure smells worse this year than he did last year. YUCK. And he's a lunatic right now, wanting to breed anything. I hate to tell him he has to wait a bit. He was so pretty and nice, and now all his white is turning orange, and his beard is perennially soaked. EWWW I can't get near him without that stench on me. Last year he wasn't too bad. But, I don't smell him unless I'm near him.


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

I remember reading somewhere (where? I have no idea...) that you can "de-scent" bucklings.

True? False? Wishful thinking?


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## saanengirl (Apr 7, 2009)

There are scent glands in the head that can be burned off when a kid is disbudded or else surgically removed. I have heard though that this can make them less attractive to does. It still doesn't keep them from urinating on themselves, so you still end up with a stinky buck, even without those scent glands.


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

Hm. Maybe I should teach him to enjoy getting bathed?


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