Goat-Buyer's Guide And Checklist

FOR MORE INFORMATION

The Dairy Goat Journal ($7.00/ year from Box 1908, Scottsdale, Ariz. 85252) is devoted entirely to goatlore and is a must for any serious dairy goat enthusiast. Countryside ($9.00/year from Highway 19 East, Waterloo, Wis. 53594) has a regular goat section in addition to articles of general interest to homesteaders and back-to-the-landers. Both magazines are published twelve times per year.

Although there are numerous smaller dairy goat organizations scattered around the country, the single largest national group is the American Dairy Goat Association, Box 865, Spindale, N.C. 28160, which sponsors shows, publishes a yearbook, and offers other services to goat owners. Membership costs $15 the first year, $10 per year thereafter.

As for books, Helen Walsh's Starting Right with Milk Goats($3.50) and Jerry Belanger's Raising Milk Goats the Modern Way ($3.95) are perhaps two of the finest dairy goat primers ever written. Both are available from bookstores, Garden Way Publishing (Charlotte, Vt. 05445), or Mother's Bookshelf (Box 70, Hendersonville, N.C. 28739). Be sure to enclose 75¢ for handling when ordering by mail.

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Before you buy any dairy goat, isolate the animal ... then [1] check her up close, [2] stand back and take a long, hard look at her overall appearance, [3] watch the doe (from the front, side, and rear) as she walks, and [4] go over all the points on the following list. If the nanny falls to meet two or more criteria, consider her a waste of money ... no matter what a "bargain" she may be.