“Backyard Goat Husbandry” with Farmer Dan

Raising and hand milking multi-purpose dairy goats for 20+ years at LDF has been a grand adventure! They learned a lot and grown an abiding respect for the intelligence, whimsy, hardiness, and GENTLENESS… of our caprine cousins.

Tending goats on a small scale is surely a labor of love, the ultimate rewards of which cannot be simply quantified in mere liters of milk or ounces of cheese… Perhaps therein lies the greatest potential of small-time, caprine husbandry, above and beyond their delicious products, whether compost, milk, cheese or meat: the reciprocal nurturance of humans and goats through a deep, archetypal, and intuitive partnership that can’t be fully described.

In this workshop you’ll meet and interact with the whole herd, while covering all the practical and esoteric aspects of backyard goat care for an “entry level” audience, including housing, feeding, milking, breeding, kidding and more. They will also answer all questions and offer simple instructions on making fresh chèvre and kefir. Farm tour and snacks included.

Space limited, please RSVP here, or 413-863-8696.
Suggested donation:$25-35, no one turned away.