Goats and sheep for sale on the Big Island. (home, buying)

[cagary]

Craig's List has lots of goats and sheep for sale at around $100 or more each.

I know these animals are expensive to care for and worth every penny, but are these people actually getting these prices now a days with the Hawaiian economy the way it is?

[lauleahere&there]

Originally Posted by cagary

Craig's List has lots of goats and sheep for sale at around $100 or more each.

I know these animals are expensive to care for and worth every penny, but are these people actually getting these prices now a days with the Hawaiian economy the way it is?

It depends. Are they milking does, bucks or wethers? (neutered males)

I don't know about sheep prices, but a milking doe with a certified clean health record, dehorned, innoculated and wormed can go for $250-300. Nobody wants intact males. They stink and they're mean. A neutered male in good health can run you $150. Usually you want to get more than one. Goats are social and do better if they have company.

If all you want is a lawn mower and don't care about its CAE status, reproductive status, and other veterinary issues, you can probably get one cheaper.

Does that help?

[hotzcatz]

Yesterday I paid a fellow $20 each plus a hat and scarf made of the wool for two merino fleeces, he doesn't sell his animals, but if he did, they'd go for at least that much. As it was, he gave me a screaming deal on the fleeces but he's a friend of a friend. Some other friends have Nubian milking goats, they sell the milking does for at least twice that amount but the baby bucks aren't worth much. Some other friends have Clun Forest sheep, they sell them by the pound after they've sent them to the USDA slaughterhouse and they get about twice that amount by the time it is all sold. They keep most of the does and usually the bucks are the ones who become dinner.

They aren't that expensive to care for, either, at least from what I can see. The wool fellow sheared, trimmed hooves and dewormed the sheep all in one sitting. He then castrated another person's sheep who had brought the sheep to him, so he had a profitable sheep day and got to keep all of his sheep, too. The folks with the milking goats spend more time taking care of their animals than the wool sheep folks.

I sell "micro-sheep" which are better known as English angora rabbits for $75 each and there's a waiting list to get the white does since folks like to spin their wool and it dyes nicely. At the moment there are a few black wool bucks who haven't found a home yet, but I'll list them on Craig's List again sometime soon. There's a waiting list for the show bunnies and they go for twice the price.

My friends who raise mini-wiener dogs aren't raising any more litters, though, since they've had trouble selling the last litter. It seems if it's a useful animal, then the price is still there even though the economy isn't as good as it could be. It would also seem that the folks who are buying a sheep, goat, cow or fiber animal (angora rabbit) are producers of something instead of mere consumers so they would still have an income of some sort.

[jeffington]

Originally Posted by hotzcatz

Yesterday I paid a fellow $20 each plus a hat and scarf made of the wool for two merino fleeces, he doesn't sell his animals, but if he did, they'd go for at least that much. As it was, he gave me a screaming deal on the fleeces but he's a friend of a friend. Some other friends have Nubian milking goats, they sell the milking does for at least twice that amount but the baby bucks aren't worth much. Some other friends have Clun Forest sheep, they sell them by the pound after they've sent them to the USDA slaughterhouse and they get about twice that amount by the time it is all sold. They keep most of the does and usually the bucks are the ones who become dinner.

They aren't that expensive to care for, either, at least from what I can see. The wool fellow sheared, trimmed hooves and dewormed the sheep all in one sitting. He then castrated another person's sheep who had brought the sheep to him, so he had a profitable sheep day and got to keep all of his sheep, too. The folks with the milking goats spend more time taking care of their animals than the wool sheep folks.

I sell "micro-sheep" which are better known as English angora rabbits for $75 each and there's a waiting list to get the white does since folks like to spin their wool and it dyes nicely. At the moment there are a few black wool bucks who haven't found a home yet, but I'll list them on Craig's List again sometime soon. There's a waiting list for the show bunnies and they go for twice the price.

My friends who raise mini-wiener dogs aren't raising any more litters, though, since they've had trouble selling the last litter. It seems if it's a useful animal, then the price is still there even though the economy isn't as good as it could be. It would also seem that the folks who are buying a sheep, goat, cow or fiber animal (angora rabbit) are producers of something instead of mere consumers so they would still have an income of some sort.

That is a fascinating post. Capitalism is a wonderful thing. Whatever it takes to survive. Awesome.

[winkosmosis]

People need to start keeping goats as pets. I had one when I was a kid