Family, friends, goats

ALBANY, Minn. — After five years of not milking cows, dairy goats were welcomed to Andy and Rachel Varner’s farm.

“We were talking to some people about dairy goats and I wanted to be able to use the barn and make an income from it,” Andy said. “We started putting some numbers together and thought goats would be a good fit.”

The Varners’ milking herd consists of almost all the different breeds of dairy goats. They milk 60 goats and plan to milk year-round.

“I already leave the lights on until 9 p.m. to trick them into thinking it is still the middle of summer,” Andy said. “From what I’ve heard goats will keep milking, unlike cows, until the days get shorter.”

As fast as they can, the couple wants to increase their herd count to 150.

“We probably won’t get there by winter but we have 20 that are bred,” Andy said.

After getting settled in with 150 goats, Andy said if they can arrange the barn to fit 200 they will consider increasing their herd size again.

They are milking in a single-10 parlor. If they increase to 200 the couple plans on putting in another single-10 to keep milking time under 90 minutes.

“We ended up waiting around three months for that parlor,” Andy said. “Besides the parlor, we just had to switch some pipelines and we were good to go.

Along with getting the parlor set up, the couple also had to transition the holding pen.

“We were already building pens for lambing and kidding with our meat goats,” Andy said. “In the holding pen, we were able to just pull out the mats and set up the feed alley.”

One other step was putting in a 600-gallon bulk tank. This size allows for herd expansion and the same route for the milk hauler.

“We get our milk picked up every five days,” Andy said. “Then it gets shipped to Wisconsin.”

A positive the couple found with starting dairy goats was how it allows their daughter, Hailey, to get out and work with animals. Her connection with the goats is the reason they made the decision to join 4-H next year.

“The goats are great with Hailey,” Andy said. “There is no better way for kids to learn.”

Hailey being able to be in the barn playing without bothering the goats, paired with her love of the goats is one of the main reasons they are going to stick with the dairy goats Andy said.

“Her helping is grabbing her goats and us grabbing the rest,” Rachel said. “At first she couldn’t reach so we had to buy her a pink step stool.”

The family has also learned about the differences between goats and cows in this process.

“Goats are nice because the bedding pack and parlor stay a lot dryer,” Andy said. “There just needs to be a lot of airflow for goats.”

The Varners are planning on utilizing pastureland with their meat goats and sheep. Currently, they rent all their land. But next year Andy plans on farming half of it. Even with farming Andy plans on continuing to buy grain mix to feed his goats.

“They don’t eat a lot, so what they do eat better be good,” Andy said. “If the leaves fall off, they will just leave them lay, unlike cows. That’s why it’s important to have good hay.”

Another reason hay is important to goats is because it impacts milk production. With cows, Andy said, if you do not have a normal crop of hay, protein can just be supplemented in and they will not drop in production. Goats are different.

“Anyone who thinks they are going to milk goats really should have milked cows first,” Andy said. “It’s a lot of the same processes but cows aren’t as touchy.”

One of the advantages the Varners have found with goats is their milking time can be adjusted. Also, they have a set milk price for a year. When it comes to milking every night, Hailey can be found in the barn helping her parents.

“We love that she is out here and wants to help,” Andy said. “There is no better way to raise a kid.”