Possible Goat's Milk Source - What questions to ask?

[JMJ]

I found what looks to be a great source for goat's milk less than an hour away. In my state, raw milk can only be bought from the supplier. This place sells raw milk on site and pasteurized products in local shops. I want to call and ask some questions about their pasteurization process, and I was wondering if there are other questions I should ask when I call. I know that for cow's milk, you really want grass fed. What are goats supposed to eat? Their website talks about how they've won awards for butterfat and protein content and breed for somatic cell count, how they work to give their goats a happy life and have policies to keep their goats from getting sick. They give antibiotics only to sick goats and dump the milk of goats being treated with antibiotics.

[1jooj]

Goats are browsers so ideally they eat grass and also leaves and brush...at a large-scale dairy I imagine they'd be fed almost entirely hay. Milkers typically get some grain. Ask what grains they feed, ask why if you're interested. It is an interesting conversation and can get you inside their minds a little as far as their ethical positions.

Ask whether the goats are on pasture. How much time they spend outside. How many goats on how large a pasture. What breeds of goats they keep. Whether they get access to any browse. If pastures are rotated, and/or whether they deworm. How they support natural goat behavior (look for playgrounds). You could ask how long a milker typically remains in production with them. Average productive lifespan can say something about how well animals are treated.

[mamadelbosque]

Everyone I know who keeps goats has them on "pasture" although idealy, its not grass (or at least not, 100% or even 70% grass), so much as it is woods w/ lots of underbrush for browsing. We have meat goats and feed them a little bit of grain (1-2 cups) in the evenings, mostly in order to entice them to come back to the barn so they can be locked up safe over night. We do also feed a good bit of hay (3-4 flakes for 3 does, 1 buck and 6 kids), but probably 80% of their diet or more is grass/browse. I don't think grains are as detrimental to goats as they are to cows simply because their diet needs to be much more varied, and likely includes berreis & seeds & such naturally where as a cows natural diet is 100% grass. Good luck!!