So, what can one do with goat milk? If a dairy operation is a licensed grade A dairy with the right equipment, it can bottle and sell the goat milk, use the milk to make cheese, fudge or ice cream to sell. All this is based on meeting legal requirements including health department regulations. Without being a licensed dairy one is very limited in what they can do with the milk. It can be used as an ingredient in skin care products like goat milk soap and lotion. Some people sell the raw milk as a food supplement for young puppies, cats, etc. However, it must be labeled as pet-grade milk. This is rather a risky endeavor (and one I cannot recommend) as it "skirts" the issue of being legal if not used for its labeled purpose! Some dairy goat owners feed the raw milk to feeder pigs or calves, which they claim makes for very tender, flavorful pork or beef.

Many meat goat producers are learning if they save and freeze the milk from dairy goats, it can be utilized to feed orphan goats in place of milk replacer. And, dairy goat colostrum (the yellow milk from the first few days of production) can be used to feed newborn goats who may have been abandoned by their new mothers. The colostrum from dairy goats offers the same antibodies for orphan meat goats.

Dairy goats can be exhibited in dairy goat shows, just like other types of livestock.

Now you have been fully versed on the virtues of dairy goats, you should have a greater appreciation for dairy goats as a multipurpose animal and a viable animal for nontraditional livestock production with built-in value-added features.

This article first appeared in the AL Farm News, August 2009.

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