Milk Misconception

I'm not sure how common this misconception is, but many people assume that female cows and goats produce milk all the time, automatically.

The truth is, that in order to produce milk, a dairy animal must first become pregnant and give birth. Therefore, in order to produce milk, female goats (does) must be bred regularly. Since keeping un-castrated male goats (bucks) in the city would be inappropriate (they can be very smelly), urban goat owners will need to take their does to a breeder who provides this type of service (for a fee, of course).

After a 5-month gestation period, the mother goat will give birth to 1 to 4 offspring (called kids). Goats can generally give birth unassisted just fine, but it's a good idea to be prepared to assist or call for help. To avoid overcrowding (especially important in the urban setting), you will have to find homes for most, if not all, of the kids. The baby goats can be retained by the owner (all male kids will need to be castrated), sold to another dairy farmer, sold or retained for meat (yes, you can eat goats), or sold as pets.  

Pro-Goat Argument 6: Make your own dairy products

With access to fresh creamy milk, you will be able to make butter, cheese, yogurt, and ice cream whenever you want. In addition to the milk itself, you now have 5 things you can cross off your grocery list!

Pro-Goat Argument 2: Save money on your grocery bills

So lets say you read my last post about factory-farmed cow's milk, and you decide you don't want to buy it any more. What are your other options?

Organic and/or Hormone-free cow's milk or goat's milk is much more expensive to purchase than regular cow's milk, if it can be found at all. Keeping your own dairy goat is more economical in the long run.

According to Story's Guide to Raising Dairy Goats (2010), a gallon of store-bought goat's milk costs at least $11 (although I've heard prices much higher than this). On the other hand, after factoring in feeding costs, goat's milk can be produced at home for approximately $2.25 per gallon (which is also less than regular store-bought cow's milk, not to mention organic cow's milk).

Pro-Goat Argument 1: Support ethically produced milk

I'm generally not one to preach about the moral and ethical issues behind commercial food production, but I would be missing a huge pro-goat argument if I didn't mention the problems with factory-farmed milk.

Lansing residents have few options when it comes to purchasing milk. We are basically forced to buy factory-farmed milk at the grocery store.

• This factory-farmed milk generally has hormones, antibiotics, and other unnecessary additives in it that may cause human health effects.
• This milk is either pasteurized or ultra-pasteurized. The choice to drink raw milk has been taken away from the modern consumer even though raw milk has been consumed for thousands of years.
• The living conditions for cows on factory-farms vary widely and are generally not nearly as good as what could be achieved in a backyard dairy goat herd. Factory-farm cows may never set foot on grass or see natural sunlight.
• Store-bought milk is a mixture of milk from thousands of individual cows, therefore monitoring for quality and disease is much more difficult than if your milk came from just a couple backyard animals.

In addition, hormone-free cow's milk or goat's milk is much more expensive to purchase, if it can be found at all. Keeping your own dairy goat is more economical in the long run. According to Story's Guide to Raising Dairy Goats (2010), a gallon of store-bought goat's milk costs at least $11 (although I've heard prices much higher and much lower than this). On the other hand, after factoring in feeding costs, goat's milk can be produced at home for approximately $2.25 per gallon (which is also less than store-bought cow's milk).