Neil Hoffman's Farm

Rt. 3, Box 639

Booneville, KY 41314

hoffo@prtcnet.org

Years in commercial operation: 31 years

Total acreage: 235 acres

Acres used for goat production: 14 acres       

Acres for other production: 8 acres

Climate zone: 6b

Goat Production

Number of Goats Raised and Sold: Using 20 breading animals, Neil raises and sells approximately 43 kids each year.   He keeps 3 kids each year as replacement breading animals. He plans on maintaining production at this level.

Goat breeding:   The billy is a half Kiko and half boer. The nannies are Boer x Nubian crosses.   The Boer bloodline produces goats that are large-boned and grow rapidly.   The Kiko bloodline produces a finer-boned, lighter weight goat than the Boer.   However, the Kikos are smarter animals, have better mothering skills, and are less susceptible to diseases, such as coccidiosis, than are the Boers.  

Timing of kidding:   Neil times animal breeds so that most kidding occurs in the fall, in order to have 70 to 80 pound kids in the early spring (Easter).   A few nannies kid in the spring, producing kids that will be ready for sale in the fall.  

Kidding:   Neil stresses that kidding day is the most important day in the life of a nanny goat, and in the goat production year.   If the goat owner is not available to help with kidding, swab iodine on the umbilical cord stub, or the kidding facilities are not kept clean, kids can be lost and the cost of raising the nanny can be wasted.

Nannies should be in good condition and not allowed to get too fat during gestation.   An overweight nanny will produce oversized kids and will not be as healthy as a goat in good condition.   Both of these factors can lead to kidding difficulties.

Neil has found that Boer nannies tend to be poor mothers.   On their own, they do not coax their newborn kids to nurse.   Consequently, Neil often needs to teach kids how to nurse.   He does this by standing the kid next to the mother and squirting milk into its mouth and then putting the kids mouth on the nipple until it sucks.   Later, Neil checks to see if the kids are getting sufficient milk.   He picks up kids underneath their armpits and looks at their bellies to see if it has a bulge.   If it is flat, the kid is not getting sufficient milk and must be watched to ensure that it is feeding.   In talking with other goat producers, Neil has observed that not paying sufficient attention to whether a kid is nursing properly is a major reason why kids die.  

Following kidding, the kids and their nannies are kept in the barn in pens with gates that allow for the expanding the size of each pen.   After 10 days, kids and mothers are put on pasture with access to feeders with creep rations.   Kids are weaned at 10 to 12 weeks and moved to separate pastures.

Goat feed:   Throughout their lives, the goats have access to a 16% protein mixed ration, which is produced by a local feed mill.   Neil maintains several different types of pastures for his goats to meet their nutrient needs throughout their growth cycle.   The different forages produces also assures Neil that his goats will have access to forage during most of the year.  

One pasture type has a mixture of fescue and orchard grass with white and red clover frost seeded in.   Another type of pasture has a mixture of sorghum and Sudan grass, forages that survive the heat and drought conditions of the summer.   These fields are planted to winter wheat in the fall to provide winter forage.   They also contain some browse plants on sloping areas.   Browse plants include blackberry, sumac, and hardwood sprouts.   In the late summer, the goats glean harvested cabbage fields.   In the fall, the goats eat the leaves that have fallen from the browse plants as well as acorns, which provide a high level of protein.   Neil feeds his goats hay during drought conditions.

Bred nanny goats graze the fescue pasture during the summer.   Replacement nannies and kids that will be sold in the fall graze the sorghum-Sudan grass pasture during the summer.  

Access to browse:   Goats prefer having access to browse.   Feeding on browse also reduces the risk of parasite infestations since most parasites typically live near the soil and only travel six to eight inches up forages.   Thus, animals feeding exclusively on browse do not come in contact with these parasites.  

Unfortunately, since browse plants only produce leaves during the late spring and summer, these plants cannot serve as feed throughout the year.   Also, goats will eat succulent shoots and budding ends of branches if they are allowed to feed on browse plants when they are not in leaf.   Feeding on twigs stunts, and can eventually kill the browse plants.   Neil carefully manages his goats' access to browse so that they only have access to these plants when they are in leaf, thus assuring a supply of fresh browse in the following years.

Watering systems:   In the winter, water is provided in heated 5 gallon buckets.   In summer, goats get water from an 80-gallon water tank that catches water coming off from the barn roof.   In some pastures, the goats are able to drink out of creeks and ponds.  

Pest and disease management: Neil uses good pasture rotation to minimize pests and diseases in his goats.   Pasture rotation minimizes disease incidence there are no host animals and the fields have greater exposure to the desiccating conditions of the sun during the rest periods.  

Neil protects young kids against coccidiosis by insuring that the kidding and nursing areas are kept clean, dry, and well ventilated.   He also stresses that goat feeders need to be kept clean at all times and be constructed so that goats cannot contaminate the feeders by jumping on, standing in, or laying in the feeders.  

At one month old, Neil vaccinates kids against tetanus and over-eating disease (a acid condition of the rumen).   He also provides his animals with a mineral supplement that contains an anti-coccidiosis medication.  

Pasture rotations:   Neil maintains three pastures.   He allows his goats to graze 30 days on one pasture while the remaining pastures are left fallow.   This provides each pasture with 60 days of fallow before being used again for grazing.

Predator protection:   Great Pyrenees dogs

Goat production facilities:

Fencing:   Permanent fencing consists of three strands of barbwire with the electric wire on the bottom.   Temporary fencing for rotations consists of two strands of electric wire.  

Buildings:   A 30-year-old barn is used for kidding on floor level and hay storage in the loft.   Slots in the loft allow Neil to throw hay down directly into feeders. Water is provided to animals in the barn through a gravity flow system that is connected to a frost-proof hydrant and an electric pump.  

Portable houses provide shelter for kids while they are on pasture with their nannies prior to weaning.  

Equipment owned for goat production:   Full-size pick-up used to haul goats. Tractor with tractor box used to haul goats around the farm.  Full set of tillage equipment used for pasture maintenance and crop production. Fertilizer spreader, brush hog, scale.  

Equipment owned for production activities other than goats:   Tobacco setter used for tobacco and cabbage planting.  

Labor use for goat production:   Both Neil and his wife, Denise, work on the farm.  Denise also works full-time off-farm. Approximately 10% of on-farm labor is devoted to goat production.  Approximately 4 hours per year is used managing farm budgets and records.

Markets and marketing:  Kids are marketed at 5 months, weighing approximately 60 pounds. Primary market is the Telo-o-auction, a graded goat auction, sponsored by the Kentucky Department of Agriculture. The closest outlet for this marketing source is in Paris, KY, approximately 70 miles from the farm.  Neil became familiar with this auction through his interactions with the Kentucky Department of Agriculture. Cull goats are sold at the Lee City Auction, approximately 50 miles away from the farm.

Neil stresses the importance of raising a goat that is as close to the 80-pound maximum for kid sales.  A heavier weight kid maximizes the return per nanny. This is a critical calculations since the maintenance of nannies throughout the year needs to be considered as a fixed cost.

Record keeping practices:  Using a chart that is kept in the barn, Neil records all receipts, births, and vaccinations.

Production risks and concerns:   The primary production concern for goat raising is safe and healthy kidding.  By being in the barn, providing clean facilities, and helping kids learn to nurse, Neil has prevented losses during kidding time.  

While the kids are growing, a major risk factor is hanging. Since goats are curious and like to get on their hind legs or jump up on objects, they risk getting their necks caught in narrow or v-shaped areas, such as rafter supports. Once caught, the goat can struggle until it either hangs itself or breaks its neck. To protect against these risks, Neil covers over any v-shaped rafters in the barn and cuts out v-shaped crotches in trees located in pastures or browse areas.   

As discussed above, coccidiosis is a major health concern for goats.   While it may not kill the animal, it can stunt its growth, reducing returns on investments.   Preventing coccidiosis by providing clean kidding facilities and maintaining clean feeders is critical.  

A major production concern for Neil is the long distance to markets. He has tried to sell to the ethnic markets, but with little success, since the ethnic community in this area is small.   Fortunately, tobacco settlement monies have allowed for the opening of a feed mill relatively close to Neil's farm. This has reduced his costs for transporting feed.

Farm description and involvement in goat production: Neil raised feeder pigs for 25 years, abandoning this production activity about 12 years ago because of changes in the industry.   He raised milk goats in conjunction with the pig operation, using the milk for his family and for the young pigs.  When he no longer needed the goat milk for the hog operation, he switched from milk goats to meat goats. This occurred at a time when Boer goats were being promoted as a fast growing meat goat and when the market for goat meat became more acceptable and profitable.   

Neil formerly raised vegetable on vegetable contracts, but started selling his vegetables at the Lee County Farmer's Market when the vegetable contracts were no longer available.  Since Neil has a mixed animal and vegetable production operation, he is able to use the manure from his goat barn as a fertilizer and soil amendment for his vegetable plots.

Economically, Neil stresses that goat producers need to view their nannies as fixed assets, with goat production returns calculated as returns per nanny. This means selecting nannies to have as many triplets as possible, helping during kidding so a to prevent kidding losses, and then keeping animals healthy and disease free throughout their lives.  

Out of his interest, and long-term involvement with goat, Neil helped form the Eastern Kentucky Goat Producers Association 13 years ago. This organization has helped goat producers in Eastern Kentucky get started and stay in business. They hold an annual field day to educate producers on productive goat raising techniques. The lobbying efforts of this association were also partly responsible for the establishment of a goat specialist position at the University of Kentucky.  

In the future, Neil foresees maintaining his operation as it is, except that he may quit raising tobacco. He also is working to reduce goat production costs in terms of feed and labor.   

Enterprise budget:  

Neil averages a return per nanny per year of $50 to $70 or approximately $20 to $25 per kid.   This return is higher than the approximately $40 per nanny per year average that is usually reported in goat journals.

Total return to labor: Neil estimates in his calculations of returns per nanny that he is pricing his labor at around $8 to $9 an hour.

Production Other Than Goats

20 chickens for egg laying with some of the eggs sold off farm; 20 broilers raised in movable pens, for home use, 1.5 acres of tobacco, 1.5 acres of broccoli, 0.2 acres of blueberries consisting of 60 bushes, 0.1 acre of strawberries, 0.1 acre of vegetables for farmers' market sales. The remainder of the production land not used for goats is used to produce hay, most of which is sold off the farm.