I've been looking into raising Cashmere Goats. Most websites that I go to say that it is the wave of the future, with great profit potentials.

It doesn't appear to be true to me though.

I found a buyer that pays 32.00 per pound of unprocessed under down. A good fiber goat will produce, conservatively, one half pound per year. This means that I would have to raise over 1,800 goats in order to sell $30,000 in fiber. After operating costs are subtracted, I don't think that I would be happy with the returns, especially since I would have to employ outside labor to handle such a large herd.

Am I missing something?

-- Christopher Dennis (frankthehedgehog@hotmail.com), May 29, 2002

Answers

You are missing something: sale of male kids for meat, roughly 50% of the kid crop, and sale of breeding stock. Now here is the tricky part: in order to sell the breeding stock, get good stock to begin with, and do a convincing job of promoting cashmere goats as a great business to get started in!

Oh by the way, don't forget- the goats do eat...it isn't as though the feed is free and the fiber, meat, and stock sales will be pure profit. In order to produce good quality fiber and strong, multiple kids that grow well, they need a decent diet, especially in the winter.

Still, I think cashmere goats could add some side income if managed properly. I just wouldn't put all my eggs in one basket. Try a few of them (like 5-6) first, and sell the fiber to handspinners, where you'll get top price. If you spin it into handspun yarn, it'll go for even more. Time the kidding dates so that the kids will reach meat size about the same time as Easter and other holidays when they will command top price. If you cannot make a profit with a small herd, chances are that getting hundreds will not make them any more profitable.

What I think is the wave of the future--fiber goats that are dual purpose, that milk 3 quarts or more a day as well as providing usable fiber (and meat of course).

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), May 29, 2002.

As with any "exotic" livestock, the people making the biggest profit are those who sell the initial breeding stock at extremely high prices. Just think llama, potbellied pig, ostrich, rhea, etc.

-- Scotsirish (notreal@anywhere.net), May 30, 2002.