Pet Pointers: Goats as pets
Most of the animals kept as pets in the U.S. are dogs, cats, birds, fish or reptiles. But a growing number of people are adding goats to their families. Lisa Chelenza has more about goats and how to care for them in this edition of Pet Pointers.
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There are a wide variety of goats kept as farm animals, as well as back yard pets. Some people keep small pygmy goats as pets, and others like the Synder family also keep goats to produce milk, making cheese and others products for their own use and to sell.
Tricia Snyder teaches classes in goat management and has seen the interest in working with goats increase steadily over the past few years.
“The most important thing is to make sure you get a disease free goat. There are a lot of diseases around so get one from a good, healthy farm. The other thing is to know how to care for a ruminate animal since they have four stomachs, you want to know how to care for them correctly. More and more people want to learn how to care for them properly because they are an investment and have a long lifespan,” said Snyder.
Goats are also smarter than you might think and become even more interesting once you get to know them.
Goats are not for everyone, but if you would like to know more about them you can contact a local 4H group in your area and visit a few so you understand what you are getting into.