Hi friends!  Today we’re talking about weaning goat kids, different methods for weaning, timing to prevent unintentional breeding by buck kids, if you should wean wether and doe kids at all, and how to decide what weaning strategy will work best for your goat herd and management system.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Mentions:

46 | Early Banding vs Late Banding in Buck Kids: Will Your Goats Be Healthy if You Band Them Early?

Related Episodes:

14 | When Should My Goats Kid? Timing Your Production Cycle to Optimize Goat Fertility and Forage Nutrition

20 | Lessons from Raising Livestock: 5 Problems That Can Be Avoided or Solved with a Good Mentor

26 | Is My Goat Old Enough to Breed? How To Decide When Your Does Are Ready Have Their First Kids

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/

Hi friends!  Today we’re talking about youth livestock programs, gaining wisdom by learning from experience, and the importance of teaching kids about livestock and where their food comes from.  Whether kids are involved in a formal program or have their own projects on the homestead, farm, in the back yard, or even a rented space at a nearby farm, raising livestock can be a life-changing experience for kids.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Related Episodes:

12 | Raising Kids and Livestock? Teach Life Lessons, Build Character, and Strengthen Your Relationships While Raising Animals

18 | Interview with Sage Bradshaw on Life with Livestock and 4-H Projects PART 1

19 | Interview with Sage Bradshaw on Life with Livestock and 4-H Projects PART 2

70 | How Livestock, Chores, and Good Mentors Create Resilient, Confident Kids Who Are Prepared for the Challenges Life Brings

75 | How Livestock Shaped My Life and Why I’m Here to Help You

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/

Hi friends!  Today we’re talking about winter grazing and the different ways you can feed your livestock in a sustainable, regenerative way while meeting their needs and promoting nutrient cycling and land improvement.  We’ll define terms like swath grazing, bale grazing, cover crop and residue grazing and discuss how each of them could benefit your management system.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Related Episodes:

28 | Winter Feed for Livestock: Calculate How Much Hay You Need and a Strategy Save Money

35 | Winter Hay Feeding Evaluation:  Meeting Nutritional Requirements of Goats and Reducing Hay Waste

42 | Surviving Extreme Cold with Livestock When Your Animals Aren’t Adapted to Freezing Temperatures

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/

Hi friends!  Today we’re talking about preparing for winter on the ranch and homestead, and what we do to make sure the animals and people are taken care of through the cold winter months.  We’ll talk about livestock feed and water, general fall clean up that makes winter work easier, and a quick overview of what we prepare for our family that supports us through the winter as well as the rest of the year.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Related Episodes:

28 | Winter Feed for Livestock: Calculate How Much Hay You Need and a Strategy Save Money

31 | Are Winter Heat Lamps Bad for Chickens? How to Prepare Your Flock for a Comfortable Winter

36 | What We Miss the Most While Building Our Off-Grid Life

49 | 3 Strategies to Make the Best Use of Bulk Meat Storage and Avoid Freezer Overwhelm

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/

Hi friends!  Today we’re talking about selecting replacement bucks, the criteria we use to qualify bucks as breeding stock, and we’ll walk through the sorting process and how we handled it this year.  I’ll also be sharing some interesting things we observed while sorting and how it’s going to affect future decisions and data collection.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Mentions:

46 | Early Banding vs Late Banding in Buck Kids: Will Your Goats Be Healthy if You Band Them Early?

Related Episodes:

24 | What Is That Smell? The Bucks are In Rut! Should You Buy a Buck to Breed Your Does or Is Leasing a Better Option?

38 | Buck Management That Will Keep You, Your Goats, and Your Neighbors Happy

62 | The Buck Effect: What Is It, What Causes It, and How It Affects Goat Herd Management

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/

Hi friends!  Today’s episode is a little different.  I’ve been deep in thought as I’m sure many of you have been also, reflecting on all that has happened recently.  I want to share some of what I’ve been thinking about, particularly as it relates to why I care so much about raising livestock, healthy food, and self-sufficiency, as well as what’s coming up for our ranch, the meat business, and this podcast.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Related Episodes:

01 | The Story Behind "Get Goat Wise" and How I Went from Ranch Kid to Homesteader

25 | Concerned About the Food Supply?  Simple Ways to Ensure That Your Family Will Be Fed in the Event of a Food Availability Crisis

49 | 3 Strategies to Make the Best Use of Bulk Meat Storage and Avoid Freezer Overwhelm

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/

Hi friends!  It’s time for a chicken episode! Today we’re talking about what to do with all those roosters you ended up with after buying straight run chicks this year – because that was all you could find, right?  We’ll talk about options to deal with this year’s roosters as well as long-term strategies for your flock, including rooster management and setting goals for meat and egg production.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Mentions:

41 | What Type of Meat Bird Should I Raise? Cornish Cross, Hybrid and Dual-Purpose Explained

Related Episodes:

06 | What Livestock Should I Get First? My Top Pick for Your First Homestead Animals

31 | Are Winter Heat Lamps Bad for Chickens? How to Prepare Your Flock for a Comfortable Winter

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/

Hi friends!  Today we’re talking about handling stress before butcher, and how it can affect meat quality.  We’ll talk about the meat science behind stress and I’ll give you practical tips you can use to make sure you and your animals are prepared for hauling on butcher day.  You’re already putting in the work to raise your own meat, and with a few management practices you can make sure that meat will be the highest quality possible.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Related Episodes:

25 | Concerned About the Food Supply?  Simple Ways to Ensure That Your Family Will Be Fed in the Event of a Food Availability Crisis

49 | 3 Strategies to Make the Best Use of Bulk Meat Storage and Avoid Freezer Overwhelm

54 | Butchering Meat Goats: How Much Meat Do I Get from a Goat Compared to Other Livestock Species?

57 | The Ideal Weight and Age for Butchering Meat Goats to Get Premium Quality Meat

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/

Hi friends!  Today I’m going over the numbers from our 2025 kidding season!  We’ll talk about our challenges, victories, and the things we learned this year and I’ll be sharing the actual production numbers from our herd.  We’ll comb through the data, pull out the important stuff, and talk about what worked great and what we’ll change for next year.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Mentions:

26 | Is My Goat Old Enough to Breed?  How To Decide When Your Does Are Ready Have Their First Kids

16 | The Results Are In! Our 2024 Kidding Season Numbers for the Meat Goat Herd, and What You Should Be Keeping Track of in Your Herd

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/

Hi friends!  Today I’ve got an update from County Fair, and then we’re talking about a management decision we’re making to sell some of the goat herd.  We’ll talk about the factors influencing the decision, which goats we’re selling and why, and how it will help us improve our herd long term.  Let’s get to it!

All the Best!

Millie

Related Episodes:

30 | Livestock Decision-Making: What to do When You Make a Wrong Decision and How to Use that Information to Make Progress

Get your farm fresh meat here:

https://drycreekheritagemeats.com

Join our email list and be first to get updates and special offers:  https://www.getgoatwise.com/insider

Join the FB Community: https://www.getgoatwise.com/community

Connect with me:

Email: [email protected]

See what’s happening on the ranch: https://www.instagram.com/drycreekpastures/