Storey's Guide to Raising Dairy Goats: Breeds, Care, Dairying,   ISBN:9781580172592

Customer Rating: 

We knew that we wanted to have some goats for years now so in order to be prepared we bought the book "Storey's Guide to Raising Dairy Goats". First I thought that this one is just going to be one of a couple books we will have to buy. But after reading it I can definitely say this is the only book you need.

The book includes these chapters: 1. Basic Information about goats; 2. Milk; 3. Getting your goat; 4. Housing; 5. Fencing; 6. Feeding; 7. Grooming; 8. Health; 9. The Buck; 10. Breeding; 11. Kidding; 12. Raising Kids; 13. Milking; 14. Keeping Records; 15. Chevon; 16. Dairy Products; 17. Recipes for goat products

I had no idea how much we have to think about when getting goats. This book is going to be our guide when buying our first goats this year. It does have many useful drawings and guides for example on how to build your own manger and milk stand plus it's packed with tips and information. If you are thinking about getting dairy goats and you just want one book with everything you need to know this is it don't look any further.

Customer Rating: 

JD's book is very informative, although he stresses a larger homesteader herd throughout most of the book, as well as the standard breeds. You can easily extrapolate the info for smaller breeds such as ND's. I would have given this a higher rating as a book, until I came to the page last night where he recommends 'culling' newborn kids and says "The easiest way is to simply (!*) drown them in a bucket of water". Come on now, JD, get with it. I get that you're all about thrift here, HOWEVER - the AVMA (for those who don't know: the American Veterinary Medical Assoc.) does NOT condone drowning under any circumstances as a humane method for euthanasia. I also get that you are about eating your unwanted goats and kids so you don't want to have any chemicals in them when you snuff them. But drowning? NO WAY. Try having someone hold your head in a bucket of water sometime and see if you find it humane. If you're culling newborns at approx. 8lbs. each, you could easily use cervical dislocation, which is also an ugly method, but accepted as humane because it is quick and relatively painless when done properly. STOP DROWNING THE KIDS, JERRY. For this reason alone, you get a 2 star review, because the info within the 2 stars is available in other books. STOP DROWNING THE KIDS, JERRY. It is cruel and inhumane and wickedly ugly. I hope you revise this BOZO suggestion. You spoiled your book for me, period. BTW, I am not an "animal rights" freak, I am a trained Veterinary Technician and a Licensed Wildlife Rehabilitator for almost 20 years...I too know of whence I speak.

* - my addition of the exclamation mark = my astonishment at JD's insensitivity.

Customer Rating: 

We got a couple of goats just to keep as pets and this guide was recommended by the breeder. Its very straightforward, easy to read and addresses many issues.

Customer Rating: 

When we decided to advance from making our own yogurt to making our own cheese, we quickly realized that we wouldn't be able to get the raw milk needed to make the best cheeses unless we could produce our own milk. Certainly that didn't mean keeping a cow, so we began to research goats-ownership. The first book we read was interesting but filled with "tips" that required some familiarity with keeping goats; we needed something more basic. By accident, our next book acquisition was Gail Damerow's YOUR GOAT, which it turned out was aimed at a youth audience. This was not a bad place for us to start because it provided really helpful definitions and pictures. Storey's Guide to RAISING DAIRY GOATS was the perfect second step. Now we are ready to start constructing housing & fencing as well as places for milking & storing feed; we understand ads in the Farmer's Market Bulletin; we have a feel for the real challenges (a dairy goat must be milked at the same time twice each day, every day of the 10-month-or-so milking cycle); and we have a feel for reasonable time frame for this undertaking. I can't imagine how we would have dealt with goat-ownership if we hadn't read this book first!

Customer Rating: 

Fantastic book. So much helpful information. Answers every question clearly. Great ideas to use. Exactly what I needed to start milking goats. Recommended to everyone who want to raise from 1 to 100 goats!