Dakota Pygoras

Start Your Own Fiber Farm

If you are reading this, then you are considering owning your own fiber goats. The temperament of this breed is lovely. I chose the Pygora because I did not want to harvest the animal for meat, and I didn’t think I wanted to be a dairy farmer. I wanted a pet that I could handle, take care of our land, and provide me with fiber that I could market to fellow fiber artists. The Pygora fit that niche.

Owning a Herd

Pygoras For Sale

Resources

Pygora Goats

A Pygora® is a fiber goat purposely bred to produce fine fiber for hand spinning. The Pygora goat produces a beautiful, lofty, soft fiber that does not coarsen as the goat ages. Add in an affectionate, engaging personality, a manageable size, good health, and fleece in a range of colors, and you have the perfect fiber goat.

Pygoras were developed by Katharine Jorgensen in Oregon. The Pygora Breeders Association (PBA) was formed in 1987 and maintains the registry herd book. All Pygoras come from registered parents and can trace their lineage back to two specific parent breeds: American Angora Goat Breeders Association (AAGBA) -registered goats and National Pygmy Goat Association (NPGA) – registered goats.

The only goat that may bear the name ‘Pygora’ is a goat registered with the PBA. In addition, all Pygora goats must conform to the Pygora Breed Standard, which includes conformation, color/patterns, and fleece characteristics.

Basics to Owning a Herd

Pygoras tend to be very healthy goats as long as they receive proper care, including appropriate feed, such as good-quality hay and/or pasture and browse, access to free-choice goat minerals, and clean, fresh water. Pygoras also need regular hoof trims and vaccinations and should be dewormed as needed. They breed and kid easily and are naturally good mothers. To ensure a healthy goat, find a good goat veterinarian and establish a relationship with them before you need them.

Space/Habitat

Remember, goats are herd animals, so at minimum, you need to plan for 2 to be in your herd.

Are you going to breed them?

Will you keep a buck on your premises or rent one?

If you have a buck on your premises, you must make a habitat specifically for the buck. Remember, the buck needs a buddy too. When I planned my herd, the owner I purchased my goats from helped me pair up the goats, so no matter what, I had a buddy for each goat. That is where a wethered goat becomes the universal solution. He is a neutered buck. This allows you to pair the wether with a buck or a doe.

How much space do you need?

How you plan to keep them will tell you quickly what amount of space you have to work with. It would be best if you had enough room in your herd’s inside space (covered/wind protected/ able to have deep fresh straw and water and access to hay or feed) to allow your goat to rest and feed without interruption and comfort. They need enough dry space to lie down simultaneously and stretch out and enough feeding places to eat without aggressive competition. Continual dampness underfoot and poorly ventilated enclosed spaces lead to health issues. As active and curious beings, goats need space to exercise and a varied environment to explore.

Feed

We can talk feed all day. Consider where you live.

What do the area ranchers and farmers use to feed their livestock?

Do you have acreage that will grow grass, alfalfa, or other vegetation?

Is there a farm supply store in your shopping area that sells goat feed?

When tending to a fiber goat, you need to think, “ clean and healthy animal = clean and healthy fiber” When you purchase a goat from our farm, we will help you learn about what you can and will be feeding your goat. A sample of their feed is sent along with your goat to help you transition your feeding routine from ours.

Health/Care

At our farm, we support using the CDT vaccinations, leaving the horns on the animals, looking for signs of worms, hoof trimming, and making sure they have access to fresh water and feed. As fiber farmers, we shear each goat two times a year. We have found that shearing the goat when the goat’s fiber is at its peak is best.

Fencing

We would hear the saying, “ If it can hold water, it can hold a goat!” and we would laugh. Now, whenever our fence has a breach, or the goat shows us what we still need to do, we understand that saying. A goat is a browser; they are curious, have breeding cycles, and the grass is always greener on the other side. They prefer a bush to a blade. They will climb on your $50,000 Mercedes if you give them access. Here is an example of why you need a good goat proof fence –Turbo finding the weak link on our fence line.

Gates

Large enough to accommodate what is going to go through them.

Will it be a pickup truck?

A tractor with a front bucket?

Will you need to move the fence around?

Access/Maintenance

Keeping goats and keeping your life in balance is important. Consider the game I would play before I made a goat-tending decision. I would play farm. You know, where you get out your box of toys and pretend. I would envision what it would be like when I needed to feed the goats. Then I would think about the day I would give them water.

Was it super hot out?

Super cold out?

What was it like when I wanted to clean the pen out?

Did I have the equipment I needed to keep me from hurting my back or making the job too impossible?

Safety is a biggy when you are heading to the goat habitat to do your chores.

Can you see the path there?

Do you need a light?

How big is your gate?

Can you open the gate with one hand?

Helping you consider how you are going to set up for your herd is not impossible. You

simply need to play farm for a while!

Claim your next herd member

New kids arrived March 2024

Our kidding season 2024 began March 12, and ended March 23rd. Breeding season began October 15th, 2023.

The kids for 2024 have all been born and are waiting for folks to adopt them. We have a selection of amazing bucks this year and one doe.

Contact Carol by texting 701-220-1950 to start a conversation on what is available for you currently. 2024 prices are:

Does & Bucklings $475

Wethers: $325

terms of sale.

Normal reservation steps (what you will do for upcoming 2024 kidding season)

❖ Contact us to let us know which doe/pairing you want a kid from.

❖ Tell us the specifics of what you are looking for ( doe/buckling/wether)

❖ We will place you on that doe’s list when we receive the $100 deposit required to reserve a kid. You will be placed on the list in the order in which it was received.

❖ Once you have chosen your kid and I mark them as reserved (the kid needs to be live-born), your deposit will not be refundable. * they get marked reserved when your additional deposit of $100 is received

2024 Kidding Season

Buck: Dakota Pygoras Norman #21-41M

Norman is registered as the color Brown Agouti with his fleece Caramel B. Notice his fleece coverage. There are no bare areas. He is a fleece-producing machine!

Paired with Doe: Little Hawk Farm Denarii Wren # 16-56F

Wren kidded twin does -white & light caramel – SOLD

Paired with Doe: Blackberry Blossom Farm Nellie # 22-32F

Nellie kidded one doe- light caramel -born 3-23-24 currently available

Kidding Season 2024

we paired Cowlitz River Cash with our Doe Little Hawk Farm Elizabeth ( we call her Liza) #19-49F

Liza Kidded twin bucklings 3-19-2024.

These 2 bucks have deep rich red tones of brown. The color is unique and not often seen in Pygoras. We are offering one of these bucklings for sale. You get to choose between Finn or Dunkin.

Best laid plans are often not the plans of your herd! We planned on not breeding Annabelle until the fall of 2024. Cash was our dominate buck and he was crashing through fences and disrupting our well made plans for kidding season 2024. In full disclosure; Annabelle was minding her own business when Cash broke through the fence and in a split second bred her. We managed to keep all the other pairings on track. We did not know Annabelle was expecting. We were 100% complete with our Spring kidding when I went to do evening chores and noticed an extra kid in the corner of the barn. Annabelle had delivered unassisted here first kid. He continues to thrive and Annabelle is proving to be an excellent mother. You may want to consider keeping these 2 as a pair. Annabelle and Caboose are both available for re-homing.

Turbo is one of our 2 bucks.

He is available for stud services.

In the fall of 2023 he was paired with 2 of our does. The does were pre-sold and the agreement was the does would stay on our farm and be bred with Turbo.

After we had the does ultra-sounded and had health certificates issued we transported them to an agreed upon meeting place for the new owners to pick up there pregnant does.

Spring 2024 brought the farm 2 sets of healthy twins.

Congratulations Turbo!

We are adding more bucks to ou r herd to keep breeding options available