To get a buck or not...

Bucks stink. It is a very simple fact. If people think goats stink then they probably had a run in with a buck. Or knew an uncle that did :-) Well in their defense they are cute when they are little. They are darlings when they are first born but…well…eh…um…they get big. Most people don’t get one unless they have to or when they do get one he’s gone before he can cause any problems - well it might be after he causes a problem that they didn‘t want him. The best thing to do is to make sure you know what your getting yourself in to before you get a buck. Lets look at the pros and cons of keeping a buck.

Pros
1. You don’t have to transport your does any distance to breed them- No long car trip, no getting the doe to the stud and have her go out of heat, no fussing over which day you can come over to the studs place, etc.
2. You know how healthy your own buck is but, you don’t with the stud.
3. You can pick the breed of buck you want whereas you might not be able to with a stud.
4. If you have a buck you can provide stud services and make some extra cash to pay for his hay. (Note: If you buy a higher quality buck you will be able to ask more for your stud fee.) (Higher quality bucks discussed later in this article)

Cons
1. It’s an extra goat to care for and when you’ve worked with him, you stink.
2. If he gets out he may breed all your does when you don’t want him to. (Or eat your neighbors flowers)
3. Stud services are a once a year purchase whereas if you have a buck you continually have to pay for his hay.
4. You have to make a pretty secure pen for him- more so then the does. Like they say “if it isn’t bull strong, pig tight, and horse high it’s not going to hold them in.”

But, let’s look at this in more detail:

If it costs you $5.00 (it varies from state to state) for a bale of hay per four days for one buck in a years time you will spend around $460. This is only the hay but let’s just say you paid $400. for the buck (you can get bucks for less then $60 but, generally the high quality bucks are anywhere from $150.-$400. Since the buck is half your herd you really want to get a high quality one. If you spend the extra money now, you don‘t have to buy a new one for the next 8-12 years.) and for any little fees, like deworming, buying him a collar, etc. that in fact you pay $40 more than the price of your hay so, the end total for the buck, extras, and hay would be $900 your first year. Every year after that would be $500. On the other hand, if you have four does that you need a stud fee for, you pay $150.00 for each doe making it a $600 a year cost. So technically it is cheaper to have a buck in the long run then to pay for a stud fee year after year. Your first year you would “spend” $300 extra. In the second year you would “spend” $200 not taking into consideration that you might want to keep a few does from last years kids to breed for milk also. Then your third year you would “spend” $100. Once again, if you didn’t keep any does from the last breeding. Fourth year you would break even. Every thing is up hill after this. The average productive life span of a doe is ten years or ten breedings. If you started out with first freshener does at this point you break even and you will still have six more “money making” breedings. There are as many Cons as there are Pros so, really the decision is up to you and what you think you can handle. I hope that this article has helped you make a more informed decision on buying a buck!