I have wanted to own goats for years. Full disclosure: I’ve wanted baby goats for years. In the course of our farm journey, I let Bryon convince me that sheep were the better option. But then I spent some time with our neighbors’ goats, and now I’m torn.

Back when I was growing up in rural Mississippi, my family actually had goats for a while, but I was too young to remember much about it now. (Also, my mom loves to tell people how I hated to go outside in my youth, but I blame that on mosquitoes and humidity and my love of reading.) Aside from that, the most time I’ve spent with goats has been in petting zoos, until recently.

Through a local ‘buy nothing’ group, we met some nice neighbors a road over who have pigs, goats, turkeys, an alpaca, cow, and maybe more. Last month I asked Jeanne if she had any extra goat milk. As a result, I spent several mornings with three does and their adorable kids and learned how to milk a goat. Plus, I made a couple small batches of tasty cheese out of the deal.

Baby goats are precious. They will bleat and jump their way into your heart in a matter of minutes. But kids grow up, and then you have adult goats. And that means dealing with all matter of concerns. So as farmers with limited time and resources, we really have to weigh the pros and cons of adding new chapters to our adventure.

Pros

• BABY GOATS

• Goats are fun and full of personality

• Goat milk=cheese

• Goat milk=chance to try my hand at soap, beauty products

• Goats help clear out brambles, weeds, etc

Cons

• Goats are notorious for escaping pens and fences

• Once out, goats will eat whatever is in their path: including my lovingly tended plants

• Goats also eat plants that are toxic, like our rhododendrons and lilies and such

• To get milk (and babies), we’d have to consider buying an already pregnant doe, keeping a buck (they’re very gross and troublesome, from what I hear) or renting/borrowing a buck

• Milking adds another chore to the ever-growing list of chores

• Goats are prone to parasites and other diseases, and I hate losing animals

Okay, as I type those out, it seems clear that sheep are probably the wiser option, as they are better grazers, less eager to destroy things, also produce milk, and LAMBS. I’m still torn, but there are only so many hours in a day and only so much money to spend on housing and feed. Then again, baby goats! Sigh.

We’ll keep you posted as we move forward.