The early 1990?s saw the import of a new breed of goat to the U.S.†The Boer (the Angus Cattle of the goat industry), has quickly grown to become a viable option for small farmers in Texas to diversify their operations and become more sustainable.† Unfortunately, due to the newness of the industry and few sources for research-based information on care and handling of the meat goat breed, many producers that have invested their time and money into starting operations that have been anything but sustainable.
Recognizing this lack of readily-available information applicable to farms in East Texas, the Northeast Texas Community College Agriculture Program has expanded its operation to include a commercial Boer goat herd on its instructional farm. The goats were added this August.
?I first became aware of Boer goats and meat goat production while working as a county extension agent in Cherokee County prior to my employment as Agriculture Director for NTCC.†Despite my own lack of knowledge on the breed, I purchased my first goat in 2006 and with the aid of the PVAMU International Goat Research Center specialists and the East Texas Goat Raisers Association members received a crash course in the requirements of a goat farm in East Texas,? Rene? McCracken, said.
The NTCC Sustainable Agriculture program lends itself to the support of alternative agriculture enterprises.††The diversification of pastured poultry and commercial meat goat production to the traditional cow-calf and hay farm was a natural progression for the conversion of the college farm to a more sustainable operation.†As an added benefit, area goat producers now have the option to take a hands-on continuing education course aimed at providing much needed techniques and management guidelines to arm those novice goat producers to the ?tenured? professionals with the knowledge they need to improve their own goat farms.††The first, Meat Goat Management Course is scheduled for Saturday, October 12, 2013.††Enroll now by contacting Lisa York at 903-434-8134 or†lyork@ntcc.edu.
McCracken is the instructor for the course, which will run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Topics to be covered include: general herd health, internal parasite control, nutrition and breeding.††Registration and fees are $45 per person and will include all materials and lunch. Additional Continuing Education courses will be planned for the future and other topics in agriculture are currently available.††For a full list of continuing education course offerings go to www.ntcc.edu/continuinged.
