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As I've received more messages from people with kids born hairless or with goiters, I've become more interested in the topic of iodine and goats because those symptoms occur in kids that are iodine deficient.You don't usually hear anyone talking about iodine and goats unless the topic of kelp comes up, and then the conversation can swing wildly between people worried about deficiency or toxicity. In today's episode, I am joined again by Dr. Robert VanSaun, Professor of Veterinary Science and Extension Veterinarian in the Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences at Pennsylvania State University.We talk about symptoms of iodine deficiency in adult goats, as well as newborn kids. We also take a deep dive into providing kelp for goats and how labels don't always give you the information you need.Full show notes here --  https://thriftyhomesteader.com/iodine-deficiency-in-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit  ForTheLoveOfGoats.com

Coxiella burnetii is the bacteria that causes coxiellosis in goats and Q-fever in humans, and although it is not super common, all goat owners need to be aware of it so that they can prevent their goats and themselves from being infected.Coxiellosis in goats is highly infectious and can cause abortion storms in herds. Humans can be infected via aerosols (like COVID), birth secretions, feces, and raw milk. This disease can be especially bad in pregnant women.In this episode, I am talking to infectious disease expert Dr. Charles Gaiser from the USDA about the transmission, symptoms, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of this devastating disease.Full show notes here --  https://thriftyhomesteader.com/q-fever-and-coxiellosis-in-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit  ForTheLoveOfGoats.com

Have you ever wanted to produce 100% of your food? Well, that's exactly what Alexia Allen and her husband Daniel Kirchhof did in 2017. In this episode, she talks about how goats played a central role in their year of hand-harvested food. They ate nothing — not even salt — that was not harvested by them or their friends. How did they get the idea to go a whole year without purchased food? What did they do to prepare? How did goats fit into the picture? Alexia talks about her experience making cheese without purchased cultures or rennet, as well as how she as a former vegan was able to butcher some of their baby goats to make rennet from the stomaches. This episode includes my favorite laugh-out-loud moment when Alexia tells us about a 6-year-old's assessment of the cheese she made with her homemade rennet. I also share our experience from many years ago trying to make cheese without store-bought cultures, and we talk about how much tolerance we have for learning things by trial and error. And ultimately, how important is it that we strive for total self-sufficiency?Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/goats-in-a-hand-harvested-food-year/To see the most recent episodes, visit  ForTheLoveOfGoats.com

Although everyone pretty much agrees that goats do a good job of consuming just the right amount of loose minerals when they are available free choice, there are still a lot of people who don't think goats (or other animals) can selectively choose to consume plants that they need when they need them.The concept of "nutritional wisdom" is something that Dr. Fred Provenza wound up studying throughout his career at Utah State University. I've heard about Dr. Provenza's research for about as long as I've raised goats, so it was really interesting to be able to talk to him in this episode.While most people would look at goats eating urine-soaked rat houses or a cow eating a rabbit and assume that it had no clue what it was doing, Dr. Provenza asked why.Full show notes here ---  https://thriftyhomesteader.com/nutritional-wisdom-of-goats/ To see the most recent episodes, visit  ForTheLoveOfGoats.comFor more informationRead about Dr. Provenza's research and other researchers studying "Behavioral Education for Human, Animal, Vegetation, and Ecosystem Management" at Behave.net.

After writing about our experience when one of our does had squamous cell carcinoma, I've been contacted by quite a few other goat owners who have had a goat that also had that form of skin cancer.But Mary Brennan really got my attention when she emailed and told me she has had six goats with confirmed squamous cell carcinoma! She noticed that some of the goats were related, which caused her to dive deep into the history of the Nigerian dwarf breed, as well as skin cancer in other species. Ultimately that led her to a researcher at the University of California at Davis, who is now collecting data to study the potential role that genetics might play in this deadly disease.Full show notes here ---  https://thriftyhomesteader.com/squamous-cell-carcinoma-in-nigerian-dwarf-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit  ForTheLoveOfGoats.comYou can visit Herron Hill Dairy online at...WebsiteFacebookFor more informationCancer in Goats: Squamous cell carcinomaWhat’s So Great About Nigerian Dwarf Goats? 

Someone emailed me after her first experience tattooing goats and said, "There has to be a better way to identify goats. What can you tell me about microchips?" Luckily I had already scheduled an interview with Allysse Sorenson, Chief Executive Herder of The Munch Bunch and webmaster at HireGoats.com.Allysse has microchipped all of her caprine "employees" to not only identify them but also to keep track of them. In this episode, we are talking about why she decided to microchip her goats, how a microchip works, and some common misconceptions about microchips.We also talk about Scrapie program requirements for identifying each goat, the different brands available, and where to place the microchip on the goat, as well as who might not want to microchip their goats.Allysse goes on to talk about apps and technologies related to microchips and how they can make your record keeping easier.Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/microchipping-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit  ForTheLoveOfGoats.com

Zinc deficiency is often suspected when a goat is losing hair, but there are other reasons for hair loss, and that is not the only symptom of zinc deficiency. In this episode, we are talking about zinc with Dr. Robert VanSaun from the Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences at Pennsylvania State University. First, he talks about how zinc affects 200 different functions in the body, and it is unfortunately deficient in all forage in the U.S. Goats need at least 40 ppm zinc in their diet, but most forage is closer to 25 ppm. Then we discuss interactions with other minerals and how too much of some minerals can cause a zinc deficiency. Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/zinc-for-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit  ForTheLoveOfGoats.com

Some people talk about sheep and goats as if they are practically the same species, but nothing could be further from the truth. I've been breeding and milking Nigerian dwarf goats since 2002 and LaMancha goats for about 10 years. It may come as a surprise that I also bred Shetland sheep for 12 years and have had Katahdin hair sheep for six years now.In this episode, I am talking about how the two species are similar and different and why you might prefer one species over the other.Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/goats-vs-sheep/To see the most recent episodes, visit  ForTheLoveOfGoats.com

When my daughters were teenagers, they loved showing our goats. It was a great way for us to learn about goat conformation and to see how our goats compared to others. It also provided an opportunity for us to meet other goat owners.In this episode, we are talking to Ellen Dorsey of Dill's-A Little Goat Farm in Oklahoma, who has been raising goats for two decades and showing for almost as many years. She talks about why she started showing goats and provides tips for anyone who wants to get started showing goats or improve their herd with an eye towards showing.Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/showing-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit  FortheLoveofGoats.comYou can visit Dills-A-Little Goat Farm online at …WebsiteFacebook 

Because barber pole worm (haemonchus contortus) causes so many deaths among goats, we don't talk about other worms much. Barber pole is the worm that sucks blood and causes goats to become anemic, which can cause a goat to go downhill rapidly and even die.Goats can be walking around with a host of other worms in their body, however, and ironically most of those worms are unimportant and don't cause disease. So, why are we talking about them? Because most people think that all worms must be killed, and ultimately, the attempt to kill all the worms can result in the barber pole worm killing your goats.Since barber pole worm can become resistant to dewormers, we should only use dewormers when the health of the goat is being negatively affected by worms. The more we use a dewormer, the sooner barber pole is going to become resistant to that dewormer — and then barber pole can kill your goats.In this episode, I am talking about these common but unimportant worms with Dr. Ann Zajac, Professor Emeritus of Parasitology at Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech. We're discussing tapeworms, threadworms (strongyloides), pinworms, whipworms, and lungworms, and why we don't usually need to be worried about their existence inside our goats.Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/common-but-unimportant-worms-in-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit  FortheLoveofGoats.comFor more information:American Association of Small Ruminant Parasite Control Copper Oxide as a DewormerDeer Worms in GoatsNatural Parasite Control with LespedezaRoundworms and GoatsUsing Dewormers CorrectlyWorms During Kidding Season

If you have goats for very long, you may realize that some never need deworming while others need it frequently. There is definitely a genetic component involved in a goat's natural resistance or resilience to worms.In this episode I'm talking to Andrew Weaver, Ph.D., Small Ruminants Extension Specialist at North Carolina State University about genetic resistance to worms in goats and sheep. Although there has been a lot more research done on genetic resistance in sheep, goat owners can learn from their playbook and use some of the same selection tools for improving the worm resistance of their herds.Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/genetic-resistance-to-worms-in-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit  FortheLoveofGoats.comFor more information:American Consortium for Small Ruminant Parasite ControlWorms During Kidding SeasonRoundworms and GoatsDeer Worms in GoatsUsing Dewormers Correctly

If you look online for a list of plants that are poisonous to goats, you might think you need to chop down trees and pull up dozens of weeds to keep your goats safe. Those lists can include things like oak and maple leaves, which my goats eat regularly because my farm is covered with them. The fact is that goats actually have a much higher tolerance for poisonous plants than horses and some other animals. So, what's a conscientious goat owner to do? In this episode, I'm talking to Kim Cassida from Michigan State University as we talk about the fact that many weeds can actually very nutritious for goats while the number of plants poisonous to goats is actually pretty low. Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/healthy-weeds-and-poisonous-plants/To see the most recent episodes, visit  FortheLoveofGoats.com

If you ever wanted to sell your goats or sheep to someone in another country, then you are already familiar with the US's problem with scrapie. It's not a huge problem, but having anything more than zero cases for seven years means that most countries will not allow our sheep and goats to be imported into their country.In this episode, I am talking to Charles Gaiser, DVM, MPH, DACVPM, who is a sheep and goat epidemiologist with the USDA, APHIS (Animal Plant Health Inspection Service), VS (Veterinary Services), RHC (Ruminant Health Center), Small Ruminant Health Team, and we are talking about scrapie, which is a spongiform encephalopathy similar to "mad cow disease" but in goats and sheep. Because we have animals in the US with this disease, breeders can only sell goats and sheep to other countries if they have a herd or flock that is certified scrapie free, which takes seven years of testing and surveillance. Every time I get an inquiry from someone in another country who wants to buy my goats, I have to say no because my flock is not certified free of scrapie. I've thought about enrolling, but then I just keep hoping that the US can go seven years without any cases. I got really excited in 2019 when I heard that we had gone three years with no positive cases of scrapie! But then there was another one, so that resets the national clock back to zero. In this episode, we are talking about the disease, the symptoms, testing, and what you can do to get your herd certified free of scrapie and sell goats internationally. Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/scrapie-in-goats-and-sheep/To see the most recent episodes, visit FortheLoveofGoats.comFor more informationMain USDA Sheep and Goat Webpage:USDA APHIS | Sheep and Goat HealthNational Scrapie Eradication Program (NSEP) Webpage:USDA APHIS | National Scrapie Eradication ProgramNSEP Standards:Microsoft Word - nsep_program_standards 2019 final.doc (usda.gov)Designated scrapie epidemiologists in each state for questions on scrapie:Official Designated Scrapie Epidemiologists and Local Points of Contact List (usda.gov)To request official sheep and goat tags, a flock or premises ID or both, call 1-866-USDA-Tag (866-873-2824).  Free tags can be provided if producer has not received free tags in the past 5 years or as an incentive for providing scrapie surveillance samples from their animals.SFCP Webpage:USDA APHIS | Free Flock Certification ProgramSFCP Standards:standards_current.pdf (usda.gov)

Margaret Hathaway and Karl Schatz first entered our lives in 2004 during their Year of the Goat when they traveled from coast to coast learning about all things goat. They were enamored with these amazing creatures, and they knew they wanted to do something with goats. But what?Instead of just reading a couple of books, they decided to literally write a book, as they visited goat dairies, the circus, pack goat operations, slaughterhouses, and even homesteads that had goats as an integral part of their plan for greater self-reliance.After 12 months and thousands of miles, they ultimately settled on a small homestead in Maine and decided to start an agritourism business with goats as the centerpiece.In this episode, I'm talking to Margaret about their trip, their experiences, and why they ultimately decided on tourism rather than one of the other many goat businesses they learned about. And what it's like sharing your farm with total strangers, both pre-Covid and during.Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/agritourism-on-ten-apple-farm/To see the most recent episodes, visit  FortheLoveofGoats.comYou can visit Ten Apple Farm online at ...WebsiteFacebookInstagramIf you are thinking about starting an agritourism business, also check out previous episodes on ...Avoiding Diseases with a Biosecurity PlanZoonotic Diseases and AgritourismGoat Law

There is an old veterinary saying that most animal diseases are bought and sold. It can be so tempting to buy every cute goat that you see, but there are some very good reasons to only buy your animals from reputable breeders who have herds that have tested negative for common diseases.In this episode, I am talking to Patty Scharko, DVM, MPH, a Field/Extension Veterinarian at Clemson University in South Carolina about keeping your goats health with a good biosecurity plan. It all starts with buying healthy animals and then being careful to not bring home any germs that will cause diseases. We talk about annual herd testing for the most common diseases, as well as how to keep your goats safe when people visit your farm or you go to goat shows. To learn more about caprine arthritis encephalitis, check out the "Working to Eradicate CAE" podcast we did a few months ago.Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/avoiding-diseases-with-a-biosecurity-plan/To see the most recent episodes, visit  FortheLoveofGoats.comTo learn more about biosecurity:Dr. Julie Smith’s biosecurity grant funding provides:Biosecurity Training (videos)Youth, 4-H and FFA Biosecurity Learning ModulesIowa State University Center for Food Security and Public Health:Small Ruminant Diseases and ResourcesFor more information on infection control:Disinfection (info about disinfectants, bacteria, and viruses)

Most of us love our goats so much and want to share their awesomeness with the world. Unfortunately, that is not a risk-free proposition because there are some diseases that goats can transmit to humans — even healthy goats!In today’s episode, we are talking to Megin Nichols, DVM, MPH, DACVPM, at the Center for Disease Control where she leads the team that investigates multi-state outbreaks of salmonella, E. coli, and other zoonotic diseases. I first heard her speak at a conference of the American Dairy Goat Association where she talked about a huge outbreak of E. coli that occurred in Connecticut when a farm decided to have an open farm day where visitors could get up close and personal with their goats.We are talking about how you can protect yourself, as well as guests who visit your farm. In addition to that, we also talk about protecting yourself when delivering baby goats, butchering chickens, and doing just about anything that involves poop or bodily fluids that come from livestock.Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/zoonotic-diseases-and-agritourism/To see the most recent episodes, visit  FortheLoveofGoats.comStickers to hand out at events:Washing hands after petting zoo: https://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/images/social-media/v1-wash-your-hands-ig.jpgWashing hands after an animal exhibit: https://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/images/social-media/v4-wash-your-hands-after-exhibit-ig.jpg

If you're confused by everything you've heard about copper needs in goats, then hopefully this episode will clear things up.We are joined again by Dr. Robert VanSaun who teaches veterinary science at Pennsylvania State University and specializes in ruminant nutrition, and he debunks common myths while explaining symptoms of deficiency and toxicity, and how they are different, as well as where to start in your copper supplementation program. He also drives home the idea that all nutrition is local, and you can't simply copy what someone is doing on another farm. Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/copper-deficiency-and-toxicity-in-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit FortheLoveofGoats.com

Although we are finally getting the word out that current research shows that you should not routinely deworm goats or deworm the whole herd at one time, one of the last old-fashioned ideas about dewormers is still hanging on -- the idea that you must deworm all does after kidding (or within a week or two before kidding). The fact that does have often have an increase in their fecal egg counts around the time of kidding has caused people to believe that deworming is necessary. However, this comes from a misunderstanding of how correlation in this case does not mean there is a cause and effect.Most people are not aware that worms do NOT hatch inside the goat, so more eggs in a fecal does not equal more worms in the goat. Worms need oxygen to hatch, so they only hatch on pasture. That means that the increase in fecal egg count does not cause the poor body condition that you may see in some does after kidding. In this episode, I am once again talking to Susan Schoenian, a sheep and goat specialist at the University of Maryland Research Center, as we talk about how kidding affects a doe's immune system, as well as what we need to do about it -- or not. And what can we do other than administer a dewormer? Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/worms-during-kidding-season/To see the most recent episodes, visit  FortheLoveofGoats.comFor more informationCopper Oxide as a Dewormer Using Dewormers CorrectlyNatural Parasite Control with Sericea LespedezaAmerican Association of Small Ruminant Parasite Control

I've always referred to colostrum as liquid gold. Whenever someone asks me what they should give a kid when it's born, the answer is short and simple -- colostrum. When a kid is born, the number one goal is to get colostrum into it as soon as possible. After recording this episode, I am even more appreciative of this amazing food that mama goats make for their babies.Dr. Robert Van Saun, a professor of veterinary science at Pennsylvania State University, returns to talk about all of the amazing properties of colostrum, as well as how much kids need, when they need it, and what can mess things up. (Hint: do not milk your goat before she kids!) Dr. Van Saun also talks about how you can tell if colostrum is higher or lower quality, including recent research and how to test colostrum. Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/colostrum-for-baby-goats/To see the most recent episodes, visit FortheLoveofGoats.com

Whether you live in Florida or Canada, odds are good that you will be worried about your goats giving birth when it is cold out. However, the definition of cold can vary dramatically between those two places. When I'm talking to people in southern states, they are worried when temperatures are dipping below 50. Whereas those of us in Illinois and other northern states don't worry too much until it looks like temperatures will be dipping into the single digits or below zero.We've had more kiddings below zero than I can recall at this point, and personally I'd be happy if it never happened again. There are so many things to worry about at those temperatures, which are not a concern at warmer temperatures. In this episode I am talking to Lisa and Michael Davis of Sweet Doe Dairy, whom you first met in Episode 18, which was about their gelato dairy in Vermont. Since they have temperatures that are similar to Illinois in winter, I thought it would be interesting to compare stories and experiences about goats giving birth in cold weather. You can follow Sweet Doe Dairy on Facebook and Instagram.  Full show notes here --- https://thriftyhomesteader.com/kidding-in-cold-weather/To see the most recent episodes, visit FortheLoveofGoats.com