Paring down the herd has been a process.
I pared down in three steps and wrote several blogs posts along the way. The first post, Selling Goats – How I Changed My Business Mindset, was a collection of my farm and business thoughts geared towards keeping manageable numbers. I wrote the second post, Pruning- It Isn’t So Easy, after I realized that selling the goats was more difficult than I had originally thought.
Very recently, not long after I published the third blog post, I realized that I needed to pare down the herd even more. I am so elated to be able to say that no sadness rolled over me when I made the decision to sell. I was determined. I knew the end result that I wanted. I just did it.
We are now down to our original goat herd. Some of the older gals on our farm are in retirement. We own a few boer goats that will be bred occasionally. We have six dairy goats that will bred to keep the girls in milk for Annie’s Goat Hill milk-based products.
We are now purposely breeding for a warmer kidding season. Gone are the days of kids born in sub-freezing temperatures. Gone are the days of a barn full of kids. We are breeding only for exact needs.
Just a few mornings ago, the day after the last sold goats left our farm, new kids were born. Ask me if I smiled. Babies (purposely) born in May. It is warm. The kids are healthy. I am totally enjoying the newest dairy youngsters!
Annie’s Goat Hill Handcrafted Soaps – Where you can Smell and Feel the Goodness!
Annies Goat Hill Handcrafted Soaps 
Been there, done that!
Amy
Sounds like you’ve got things down to a more manageable size. Amazing how much time you can find to enjoy things when you are not running like a chicken to get things done. It’s gonna be a great day!!!
And I shared great goats with other people. It feels good all around.
Congratulations, Mary! What super news! I love how you have matched your breeding habits to the needs of your business. It sounds like you will be able to be more in control now. I know “control” is a relative term, especially when it comes to caring for animals who depend on you completely to meet their needs. But it does sounds like you have created a way for things to me more manageable than ever so you can move forward with more freedom to set goals and achieve them. So excited for you!
It was an evolving thing, dM. I felt it was worthy to write about. Sometimes what appears as the “given” to others isn’t so much that. The process involves decision making, painful at times, uncomfortable at times, but with the right choice clarity is brought forward. With that clarity we see so much that we did not see before. It feels good. It is a part of growth!
After today we’ll be down to 12 goats then in a couple of weeks we’ll be down to even less than that when my brother-in-law and sister’s picks up 4 or 5 of our younger goats.
Amy