# How old to butcher a dairy goat for meat?



## DownHome (Jan 20, 2006)

I know I'm getting ahead of myself, but I was wondering when my does kid
in the spring how long will I have to grow their offspring before we butcher them?

What do I feed them to get the best growth ratio? I figure my luck I'll get all bucks


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## Feral Nature (Feb 21, 2007)

I have butchered them anywhere between 6 weeks to 9 months. The younger the better as far as I'm concerned. Milkfed goat or cabrito is awesome. You can feed them out on alfalfa pellets and a little bit of oats...small amount of dry whole oats. Or you can use meat goat pellets. i prefer just alfalfa pellets myself....it's safe as they cannot overeat them or bloat and they can have them free choice. 

I like to butcher little bucklings or wethers while they are still nursing or bottlefed for the very best tasting and most tender meat. if you have alot of bucklings born, it is a great way to dispose of them early as they are much better just to eat then to try to waste resources, time and energy trying to sell...especially skinny dairy bucklings. Just put them in the freezer young, the job of processing them is easier too


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## DownHome (Jan 20, 2006)

How much meat would you get off of a young goat like that? What is the difference in one that is a few months old as compared to one that is say 9 months old?

Thanks FeralFemale


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## gracie88 (May 29, 2007)

And on the other side... what if you want them to help eat some brush before you butcher them? How long can they go before getting tough/less tasty? Or hey, maybe I butcher them young, get more ladies to eat my brush and make more babies


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## Jim S. (Apr 22, 2004)

I've eaten goats that were up to 2 years old. Like any other meat, it depends on how you cook it. If you smoke a 2 year old goat, the meat just will fall off it. Same if you roast it in the oven.

I have never had a "less tasty" goat.

My experience is that a dairy kid at around 6-7 months will generally yield between 20-30 pounds of meat when dressed. It depends on conformation. Most dairy kids will be in the 20-something pounds range, unless they have been babied all their lives and really fed up. Most Boer-dairy crosses will be at 30 to 40 pounds of dressed meat, with the occasional really nice one upwards of 50.


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## Feral Nature (Feb 21, 2007)

My 20 lb baby goat dressed out at 11 lbs.  The only other one I weighed was a 74 lbs wether and he dreassed out at 40 lbs. Both of these were LaManchas. The Boers give more meat, but I didn't weigh them. I could just tell, there hindquarters and shoulders have alot more muscle on them. I have a HUGE Spanish/Alpine wether, 10 years old, that I am seriously considering butchering. Hubby is not too hot on the idea as we have had this guy so long and he is a companion to our buck. But this guy is big and healthy now and we need the meat. He won't stay as healthy as he is now because he is getting old and he eats too much of the buck's food. This wether is about 180 lbs or more and will probably dress out well.

BTW, Downhome, I am "Feral Nature" that's my ADGA herd name....feralfemale is someone else


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

OT confession, Diane - for a while I didn't notice the difefrence in handle names - I would read your eminently reasonable goat posts and then see Feral Females' GC posts and think they were all you. It earned you the nickname "Crazy Diane" in our house until my hubby pointed out that it was really just FF tha was nutty. 

Downhome - Feral Nature has great how-to photos.


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## Feral Nature (Feb 21, 2007)

heh heh.....little do you know....I AM crazy Diane at OUR hose....being BiPolar and all....perhaps I am more like FeralFemale than you know....Poor girl, we are talking behind her back and I have never even read one of her posts! Perhaps she is a kindred spirit!


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

Oh -- she's a fun nutty - but nutty nonetheless. I call her nutty in GC - I think it's all cool.

Well--- we'll just keep calling you Crazy Diane then - until we finally get to meet you somewhere - then we'll see.


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## DownHome (Jan 20, 2006)

Please accept my apologies Feral Nature. I just remembered the Feral part and just assumed it was the other one. I've seen lots of her posts out there.

So, thank you Feral Nature and everyone else.

Here's where I am. I figure odds are my two does will probably give me all bucks  I really don't want to have to butcher them myself. I know shame shame. The meat locker will do up to an 80 lb goat for $44. That doesn't sound to bad to me if I could get about 44 lbs of meat. $1 a lb doesn't sound to bad, but I would probably have to raise it for nearly a year to get that it sounds like. It is either that or figure $2 a lb, which really isn't that bad if you think about it.

hmmm definitely something to think about. thanks all


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## Feral Nature (Feb 21, 2007)

Ok, Crazy Diane the Crazy Goat Lady. If the shoe fits.


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