Transcript Oklahoma Meat Goat Boot Camp

Oklahoma Meat Goat Boot Camp
Situation
 Producers started coming to OSU Extension for information about meat goat production.
 Many were small first time livestock producers with little or no livestock production background.
Solution
Oklahoma Meat Goat Boot Camp
 The Boot Camp is a three day
workshop that uses a mixture of
hands-on and classroom exercises
to teach producers about meat
goat production.
 Cost $100 and class size is limited
to 50 producers.
Results
Completed 7 workshops with 369
participants from 25 states.
Instructors show how to band a male goat kid.
 Different production practices are
demonstrated on live goats by the
instructors.
 Participants are then encouraged
to perform the same practice on a
goat.
 Participants can also come back
during free time for more practice.
Two participants practice tubing a goat.
 In the classroom instructors
provide short presentations
followed by exercises.
 Participants are then put into small
groups to work on the exercises.
 Groups are brought back together
to discuss the exercises.
Impacts
First extension meeting attended
Adoption rate of recommended practices
Change in knowledge gained
Estimated total value of workshops
68.5%
69.8%
37.9%
$810,000
Comments from Participants
A small group works on the forage exercise.
 “I loved it and I hope that there will be more because I
personally learned more in three days than I ever knew
about goats.”
 “I am leaving this program full of excitement and
motivated to have the best operation that I can afford.”
 “It has helped me decide if I want to go into the goat
business.”
In the Future
Topics
Tagging, Castration, Hoof Trimming, Aging,  With a grant from Southern Region RME Center video
Fecal Egg Counts, FAMACHA, Herd Health,
presentations of boot camp sessions are being created.
Ration Balancing, Farm Business Planning,

Videos
will
be
presented
on
OSU
Meat
Goat
website
Forage Planning, Reproduction, Pregnancy
Testing, Tattooing, Fencing, Forage Testing,
http://meatgoat.okstate.edu
and more. We also tour a goat operation.
An instructor helps participants with fecal egg counts.