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If owning a goat is your dream we would suggest you check off it from your bucket list immediately. This forgiving creature that was previously categorized as a farm animal has now got recognition as a fun companion and the friendliest pet.
So, there is no legitimate reason to delay it any further. It’s fair to think twice as not everyone is as rich as Richie Rich to afford almost everything.
In this brief post, we would be enlightening our readers on how much would a goat cost? As if they are planning on getting one, they would know how much they have to save to get one.
How Much Does A Goat Cost?
Goats are not categorized as a “terribly expensive farm animal” but they are not that cheap to get either.
Purchasing a goat can cost you around $100 to $800. Purebred and nannies are a bit expensive whereas bucks are quite economical to own. Few factors directly affect the cost you would have to bear to bring one home. The factors that determine the price are;
- Breed
- Sex
- Age
- Color
The regular goat breeds are not that expensive but some are overly expensive and exceptional. If you try to get a “Gulabi” goat breed, you would be charged more than any other goat breed in the world.
However, pygmy or Nigerian dwarf, and some mixed goat breeds would be much more economical to get. Dera Din Panah and Nachi goats are very expensive in Asia.
Like so, age and sex can also bring down or take up the price of a goat. The female goats are usually pricey as they are more in demand than the bucks or male goats.
If breeding or increasing the goat population is not an issue, buying a male goat would be economical. Preferring a male goat would help you save $50 to $100.
Color does not affect the price as much as the other factors do but it can add a few more dollars to the cost. Black, brown, and white colors are more in demand so if you are okay with having any other color, you may get a goat pet at a reasonable price.
As the story does not end on getting one, you would have to spend every day, week, and month so let’s not forget the upkeep cost.
The region is another factor, in Asia like Indian and Pakistani goat breeds are cheap.
How Much Does It Cost to Keep Or Raise A Goat?
Just before we get into details, upkeep cost is a cost that involves all the expenses a person incurs to keep anything.
Goats, like all farm animals, need to eat, drink, and get checked by the vet to live a balanced life. So, it’s mandatory to discuss each cost separately. The upkeep cost involves;
- Feeding cost
- Water cost
- Vet bills
- Deworming cost
- Trimming cost
- Medical supplement cost
Feeding cost
We all know goats are herbivores, they can eat almost everything being offered except meat and dairy products.
Typically, goats prefer weeds, grasses, grains, hay, and tree bark. Other than the typical goat feed, they eat fruits, vegetables, and food scraps occasionally.
According to Research, Feeding costs would be minimum if you allow your goat to graze otherwise most of your savings would go to feeding costs.
As you should be feeding the typical goat feed and fruit and vegetable treat just like every goat owner out there.
A detailed diet plan would be needed, it would be better if you get it made from a professional vet. The thoughtfully made diet plan can cost you around $45 to $60 a month.
Water cost
Like all living things, goats can not survive much without water. Though this poor creature does not require as much water as camels and horses do, the three to four-gallon water requirement can not be neglected at all.
However, the lactating goats require more water than the regular cases. As water is almost free, the cost is barely noticeable.
An aspiring goat owner can expect to pay $10 to $15 a month to get his/her goat access to freshwater.
Vet bills
Like dogs, cats, or any other pets regular Veterinary examination is mandatory to keep them safe and healthy.
Moreover, this poor animal needs to be vaccinated for tetanus, enterotoxemia, corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis, rabies, chlamydia abortion, orf, Pasteurella multocida, or Mannheim haemolytica pneumonia, etc.
So, you would be taking your pet goat to the vet to get checked or vaccinated as often as the regular goat keepers do.
Vet bills would not be even each month but on average, they can cost you around $40 to $200.
Deworming
Lethargy, poor appetite, diarrhea, anemia are the obvious announcements of deworming needs.
It is important to prevent internal parasites from causing diarrhea, anemia, weight loss, and some serious digestive issues, deworming is performed for this purpose.
Usually, goat’s deworming is performed every 4 to 6 six weeks through September.
Dewormers are usually expensive, most of the hot-selling goat dewormers are being sold at a price above $100.
Medical supplements
Sometimes goats need iron, manganese, zinc, iodine, copper, and cobalt additionally.
According to Studies, Medical supplements can be added at the time of need. If the goats are not deprived of their natural feed or they have the access to all the nutrients they need to live a balanced life, there is no need for medical supplements.
If the scenario is different, adding medical supplements would be a great help in minimizing the annual vet cost. It’s hard to tell how many medical supplements cost but even the expensive ones would not make you bankrupt. Sometimes mineral supplements like Red cells can be added.
Trimming
Like horses, goats do need trimming to keep their hooves from over-growing. It’s hard to tell how often goats need hoof trimming as their hooves grow at different rates. Sometimes Goats dehorner adds an additional cost.
On average, trimming is usually done every 2 to four weeks.
The uneven trimming or negligence would affect the goat’s ability to walk. So, you would be needing to get your goat to the fairer as well. The fairer would charge you around $30 to $40 for each visit.
One time costs
It’s must be noted that the one time cost would be much higher than the regular costs as it involves building or buying housing, bedding, hay feeders, waterers, and some other basic accessories like feed container, feed scoop, and some medical supplies; dewormer, probiotics, and thermometer, etc.
Housing
Goats are not that sensitive but they need a good shelter to live in peace. Mainly, the purpose of housing is to provide shade and protect goats from drafts.
The house you would build for your goats does not need to be luxurious, it can be cheap as this farm animal is not demanding.
The cheap goat shelter is built using lumber and screws mainly. So, an average goat housing can be built for under $400.
Bedding
Just like all farm animals, one goat needs at least 15 square feet of bedded area to be comfortable. Straws, shredded paper, corn cobs, and shaving are mostly used to prepare a comfortable bedded area.
As you can tell, the material used in bedding is cheap, so it would not cost the aspiring goat owner more than $50 to $60.
Feeder
Goats are messy eaters, investing in a good goat feeder would not let a noticeable portion of feed go to waste every other day.
If it’s going to bring down the feeding cost, why should one not get one for his/her goats? The goat feeder can be expensive or cheap, they can be bought online for around $9 to $45.
Waterer
Having a waterer is as important as a goat feeder, just so the goats have the access to clean fresh water all the time.
As mentioned above one goat needs three to four gallons of fresh water every day, so the pot must be able to hold this amount of water.
The well-known brands are demanding around $20 to $50 whereas an average waterer would be cheap, it might not demand you more than $10.
Other accessories
The list of goat accessories just does not end on getting a feeder and waterer at all, you would be needing a feed scoop, and feed storage container to avoid feed waste, and a few medical supplies; dewormer, probiotics, and thermometer, etc.
The said goat must-haves would be costing the aspiring goat owner somewhere between $70 to $150. But it’s a one-time cost, right?
I would like to mention here that do not get disheartened if owing a goat sounds expensive. Only the first year would be a bit expensive the rest of the years would be manageable. Raising a goat is much more affordable than any other farm animal.
On average, the aspiring goat keeper would need to have $1500 to $2000 for the first year and the rest of the year expenses would fluctuate between $390 to $415.
Summary
Having a goat as a companion or pet would be a wonderful experience. It’s just not cheap to get but super fun to raise as well. Typically to get one goat you need to have $100 to $800 in your pocket. Breed, sex, age, and color can affect the price.
Once you bring it home, you would have to pay for feed, water, vet visits, medical supplements, trimming, deworming, etc. Monthly vet bills would cost $40 to $200, feeding cost $45 to $60, water $10 to $15, deworming around $100, and trimming $30 to 40 each visit.
There are some one-time costs as well like bedding, housing, feeder, and waterer, etc. The one-time costs altogether can make you pay somewhere between $700 to $750.
Lastly, I would like to mention that this is just a rough estimate the true figures can only be obtained from an existing goat keeper. I hope you have found this post helpful, would love to hear from you.
Resources
- Let’s talk about goats
- https://www.ifad.org/en/web/latest/-/blog/let-s-talk-about-goats
- Goats sustainable Production
- https://ucanr.edu/sites/Mendocino/files/131469.pdf
