"Backyard Dairy Goats" book

Update: Backyard Dairy Goats is now available in ebook format here on permies. The paperback and hardcover editions are available on Amazon, Book Depository, and many other bookshops.

The official review thread is here.

This thread is about the Kickstarter that funded it, with updates on the book and news about goats.



Kickstarter link

Backyard Dairy Goats is a book focusing on raising dairy goats in a way that respects their nature, on any amount of land. My aim with this book is to make backyard dairying achievable for anyone.

Most books about goats focus on keeping them on a larger scale, and don't address many issues for those who just want some milk from a couple of goats in the backyard. Topics covered include:

•Natural goat health, how to prevent and fix most issues without a vet.

•Small batch cheesemaking.

•Everything you need to know about goats - their behaviour, how to feed them, handle them, what they need to thrive, and so on.

I have set up this Kickstarter campaign as a way to fund the publishing costs of this book while (mostly) cutting out middlemen. As a result, by supporting my book in its early stages and buying it directly from me, you will get the book at a better price than the retail one, and I will be able to publish this book in the way it deserves.

What this book is about:

•Caring for goats in a way that respects their goatness.

•Getting dairy goats now, wherever you are. It doesn't have to be a dream that may happen one day in the distant future, it could happen now, and this book will show you how.

•Learning from observation, and goat behaviour in the wild to provide the right foods for goats to thrive.

•A permaculture approach, looking at the whole backyard ecosystem and the many interactions between goats, animals, garden, people, and trees.

•Cheesemaking and home dairying without artificial weird stuff.

•Goat dairy as a homemade staple food, for health, survival and self reliance. Recipes included.

Not just for backyards

This book is relevant for larger bits of land as well, especially in the early years while you're waiting for perennials to grow or waiting to build more fences. Goat milk provides an instant harvest, with a minimal amount of brought-in feed, using smaller amounts of land and food than cows, while providing manure for the garden.

Kickstarter link





Click here to find out more about my book and its Kickstarter campaign

Wow!  Looks like a great book.

Thanks for sharing it with us.

Is there any way you could share with us a snippet of the book? I'm thinking some people might like to see a bit of what your writing is like to be sure that they want to make the investment. I think one reason Raven's kickstarter was as successful as it was, was due to the fact that we already had a taste of her knowledge and experience on her given subject. Maybe giving permies a taste of yours would help?

I think your book looks great resource for those interested in dairy goats, and I'm glad you shared about it on our site!

Thank you both for the kind words.

I've been working on my book on and off for the past two years and now believe that it's the book I wish I had when I first started, and also the book I always want to have on hand now for cheesemaking recipes and answering goat questions.

Nicole Alderman wrote:Is there any way you could share with us a snippet of the book? I'm thinking some people might like to see a bit of what your writing is like to be sure that they want to make the investment. I think one reason Raven's kickstarter was as successful as it was, was due to the fact that we already had a taste of her knowledge and experience on her given subject. Maybe giving permies a taste of yours would help?

I'd thought of sharing some of the book to give people a better idea of the writing style but I don't really know where to start! "A Goat's Place in the Backyard Ecosystem" works well as a stand-alone piece to publish, although it's more of an introduction and not very in-depth. Is there anything that stands out to you (or to anyone else reading this) as something that would be good to post here?

A short section of the book has now been posted here.

I seem to be having significant difficulty viewing the video on the Kickstarter page. Does anyone else have this problem?

Shawn Klassen-Koop wrote:I seem to be having significant difficulty viewing the video on the Kickstarter page. Does anyone else have this problem?

I've viewed it in full on the site when I first launched it, and it's had a few views from other people. I just tried it a minute ago, and it stalls after a short time but I can still hear the audio.  Is this the same thing that you experienced with the video?

My internet is often unreliable with video so it could be this from my side, but if it is happening to other people I will have to contact Kickstarter.

Can everyone else see the full video?

The video has baby goats, two adult goats, and gets photobombed by a small kangaroo. The kangaroo is difficult to see and only there for a short time, but it's not just footage of the Saanen mother and her two babies the whole time, there's a Toggenburg on the milking stand and some bottles of milk later on.

The first few times I tried to watch nothing happened. One time I left it and suddenly it started... kinda. It was choppy in a way that did not seem normal.

I went to the Kickstarter page and clicked on the video - it started, then stalled, then just audio, then it resumed playing pretty normally.   (It looks like handheld iPhone vertical video.)

Thank you both for letting me know.

I've just checked it now and it seems to be working fine for me now.

It's a 'quickstarter' campaign, where we're encouraged to make a video in one day on a phone. My phone camera is not very good, but as long as the audio can be heard and there's plenty of goats in there then it should be fine.

Kate Downham wrote:
It's a 'quickstarter' campaign, where we're encouraged to make a video in one day on a phone.

I was curious as to what a Quickstarter is, and found out it's a relatively new thing at kickstarter (https://www.kickstarter.com/blog/the-quickstarter-manifesto):

The Quickstarter Manifesto:

1. The development process—from sketching an idea to launching it on Kickstarter—should take no more than three months.

2. Keep the campaign under 20 days.

3. The funding goal should be below $1,000 (or thereabouts in your local currency).

4. The main reward should be under $50.

5. The video should be shot over one day with whatever camera you have (smartphone highly recommended).

6. Don’t do any PR and media outreach (unless you get contacted).

7. Don’t run any paid ads on social media.

8. No stretch goals.

9. Include “Quickstarter” in your campaign name.

(bold added by me)

It's a pretty cool idea! The only problem I see with it is the 20 days. Most kickstarter campaigns are 30 days, so when someone sees "19 days left," they think, "Oh wow, 11 days have passed and people have only bought 3 books. There must be something wrong with this campaign." I wish it would say, instead, "19/20 days remaining."

Can you please tell us what format the ebook will be in (I want to be sure I can read it on my Kindle) and also after the Kickstarter if you plan to have the ebook available on Amazon?

I think this is a brilliant idea. I'm in.

I love your style of writing here on permies.  You are definitely knowledgeable and we need a book like this to exist in the world.


Quickstarter is nifty because it encourages us to be amateurs.  I noticed when I was doing my Kickstarter, I'm competing with people who spend months or years preparing their campaign - very polished, a lot of backhanders going on in some of the campaigns.  Stuff like that.  QuickStarter feels more authentic.  Here we have a real person, just like you or me, making a real thing that needs a helping hand to exist in the world.  I know it's only 20 days and no one knows what a quickstarter is yet, but I think it's going to catch on because it's so much like how kickstarter was in the early days - an authentic willingness to encourage an unpolished campaign that focuses on the project, not all that shiny promotional bling.

If we want to ask Kate a question, do we ask it here or (I think better!) post it in the "goats, sheep and llamas" forum?

[To post a question, click on "goats, sheep and llamas" at either the bottom or top of the page (desktop view) and then "new post" at the top right of the forum page.]

Julia Winter wrote:If we want to ask Kate a question, do we ask it here or (I think better!) post it in the "goats, sheep and llamas" forum?

[To post a question, click on "goats, sheep and llamas" at either the bottom or top of the page (desktop view) and then "new post" at the top right of the forum page.]

I boldly placed a staff note with a link to the goats, sheep and llamas forum on the original post at top. If that wasn't correct, I'll edit it or take it down.

Jocelyn Campbell wrote:

Julia Winter wrote:If we want to ask Kate a question, do we ask it here or (I think better!) post it in the "goats, sheep and llamas" forum?

[To post a question, click on "goats, sheep and llamas" at either the bottom or top of the page (desktop view) and then "new post" at the top right of the forum page.]

I boldly placed a staff note with a link to the goats, sheep and llamas forum on the original post at top. If that wasn't correct, I'll edit it or take it down.

I think that's perfect! Thanks Jocelyn and Julia!

I congratulate you as a cheesemaker. Nice content and if only Nigerian dwarfs were available in Australia, I would buy one.
Good Luck

Gonna get goats in spring for regenerative reforestation. Lots of invasive tag alders. Would like them to start on alders with clearing out leaves, twigs, and we'll come in behind to pollard. Also want to use goats to create a trail system.

We anticipate fencing to be a large investment, shelter, the basics, etc.

What will be our biggest concerns/mistakes/things we should think about before getting?

We are thinking 4 of them. All females or a weathered male.

Thanks.

Diane Kistner wrote:Can you please tell us what format the ebook will be in (I want to be sure I can read it on my Kindle) and also after the Kickstarter if you plan to have the ebook available on Amazon?

I will be converting the ebook into as many formats as possible (including the Kindle one) and either sending them all in the email for supporters to pick and choose, or contacting supporters first to find out which one they prefer, and then sending the preferred one out individually.

The ebook will be available on Amazon eventually, but it will be more expensive then, and without the extra goodies that come with it now.

Gurkan Yeniceri wrote:I congratulate you as a cheesemaker. Nice content and if only Nigerian dwarfs were available in Australia, I would buy one.
Good Luck

Thank you!

I think the 'Australian miniature goat' breed or sometimes called just 'miniature goats' here have some Nigerian dwarf genetics. I was talking to a breeder earlier in the year, he had a doe whos kid would only drink from one side, and he was getting a litre per milking out of the other side! He said that the Australian ones are technically a dairy breed, but they are selectively bred for size rather than dairy qualities.

Tamara Koz wrote:Gonna get goats in spring for regenerative reforestation. Lots of invasive tag alders. Would like them to start on alders with clearing out leaves, twigs, and we'll come in behind to pollard. Also want to use goats to create a trail system.

We anticipate fencing to be a large investment, shelter, the basics, etc.

What will be our biggest concerns/mistakes/things we should think about before getting?

We are thinking 4 of them. All females or a weathered male.

Thanks.

Goats are great for establishing trails.

My concerns would be:
-Their source of food over the winter - do you have a shed to store excess alder or other trees from the summer in order to feed the goats over winter with? Or do you have a good source of hay or other feed?
-Fencing - it needs to be done right or they can escape
-Supplementing their feed - You'll be responsible for their health, and if they're lactating or pregnant then a lot is being asked from them, so if the alder is not nutritious enough then you'll need to provide minerals, kelp, and possibly a bit of other food.
-Whether goats are there just in the short-term to clear some land, or if they're part of the long-term plan. If you're keeping them over a longer time it's worth having a rough plan in place for rotating them around the land in order to stop parasite cycles. You could always start with boundary fencing, and then divide it up later on, but it's worth thinking about the placement of a shelter if it's a permanent structure, in order to make rotations easier, and to possibly keep them close to the house if you want them to be closer for kidding and other observation.

Lots of information in my book will be worth reading for this situation, about goat health, goat behaviour, feeding trees, making tree hay and so on.

I've started a new thread for the discussion of Quickstarter campaigns here.

'Backyard Dairy Goats' is at 61% of the goal now! Still not quite there yet, but getting there (I hope), with 13 days left to go now.

Thank you again to everyone who has contributed and helped to promote my Kickstarter. I have been focusing all this time on just writing a really good book, I am not the best at selling things, making videos, or promoting anything, so I am very grateful to those who can just appreciate my goat knowledge, writing style, and the focus of the book.

Thank you to everyone involved in posting about my book in the weekyish email. If the Kickstarter campaign is successful, Permies will be getting a very special 'thank you' in the pages of the book!

Getting closer.  

Only 11 days left.

This is going to be fantastic!  Let's help make it happen.

9 days to go, 80% funded!

It's getting very close!

The full ebook is available for pledges above US$4, around US$10 plus shipping gets you the full paperback edition, and hardcover books are available too.

There's also a few signed copies left, and other rewards, including getting trees planted and other nice things.

Just over 1 week to go. 89% funded! Getting so close!

If you've always wanted for your name to be immortalised in a book about goats, so that every time someone picks it up and sees the acknowledgements page at the start of the book, they see your name there proudly listed as a supporter, this week is your last chance to achieve this.

There's also still plenty of rewards left without immortal fame.

We are getting so close now.

I wake up this morning filled with gratitude.

That my potatoes are growing well, that the possum I shooed away last night didn’t come back to eat my seedlings, that my goats and family are all healthy and growing well…

I am very grateful to see my Kickstarter campaign appear as a tiny ad in today’s dailyish email. Thank you to all those involved in this.

The campaign is $8 away from meeting the goal - it’s that close!

I am grateful to everyone who has supported this book by making a pledge, or by sharing it with others who might be interested. I am especially grateful to everyone here at Permies who has helped.

Now that we’re nearly at the goal, I can start to look at giving back…

Everyone who now makes a pledge using this link (it's the same as the one in the first post) will see 10% of their pledge donated back to the Permies empire.

If anyone would like an affiliate link of their own to share with their mailing list or page, please send me a message here or on Kickstarter and I will make one for you.

Thanks again to everyone that’s been involved so far. It means a lot.

I just went and checked, and you're 100% funded!!! WOOT WOOT!!!

Congratulations, Kate! I'm so excited this is happening!  My goat kids want to congratulate you too :-)

Yes! Now funded! Definitely time to post lots of baby goats!

My baby goats say ‘thank you’ to everyone that supported this.

There’s still a few days left to be a part of this Kickstarter. By supporting the book now we cut out the middlemen so that you can get a discount on the book, extra goodies, and other exciting options that aren’t available later on.

You’ll get updates on the book’s progress, and you get to be a part of something. It’s an experience very different to just buying a book - you are helping to create a book.

I am building a better world here in Tasmania, and contributions to the Kickstarter campaign now that’s it’s reached its goal mean that anything that doesn’t get spent on printing and shipping goes towards good stuff like planting perennials, getting solar panels instead of using generator fuel, building fences to grow more food, water harvesting systems, staple crop experiments and so on.

Thanks again to everyone that has helped make this happen!

71 hours to go now...

Here is the link if you'd like to get involved before it's too late.

If we reach 150%, I will change the wording of the "very special thank you to Permies" to something even better.

If we get to 200%, I will print on the back cover that the book was made possible with Permies and pie (and print a picture of the Permies pie slice on it if it's not under any weird copyright restrictions).

Every pledge above $10aud (~7usd) gets a digital copy of Pip magazine issue 8, as well as the full 'Backyard Dairy Goats' ebook. These magazines normally sell for around $9, so if anyone would like to upgrade their $5 ebook pledge to $10 they are getting really good value and lots of good reading, and the immortal fame that comes with making a $10 pledge is entirely optional (I will send surveys out first).

46 hours to go now!

Thank you Nicole and everyone else involved for posting about my book in the dailyish email. We are now over 200% funded! I can put a picture of pie (if allowed), and special thank you words with bacon, cheese and sparkles! Thank you Permies!

The bacon of course being homemade, from happy pigs raised in the forest and fed with goat whey. I wish I could share the actual bacon with all you wonderful people who have supported my book, but I am far away from most of you, so my recipe for it and a photo of the stuff will have to do that instead.

https://thenourishinghearthfire.com/2018/07/15/curing-bacon-and-ham-without-nitrates/

I wasn't able to make it to the staff meeting where this was talked about, but this is what I heard back from those that were there:

"At the staff meeting, Paul said what he would prefer is a shout out that goes to the community at permies.com vs naming him in particular.

Especially nice would be something that says "This book would not exist if not for the warm support of the massive community at permies.com," or something like that.  Something to get across the idea that this community can really help a project like this get over the finish line."

I don't know if they talked about the use of the pie image, but I'm 99.9% positive it would be okay. I'll try and get a definitive answer about that for you.

And, I'm ecstatic that your kickstarter is doing so well!!! over 200% funded is SO AWESOME!!!

Less than 24 hours to go now!

Nicole Alderman wrote:Especially nice would be something that says "This book would not exist if not for the warm support of the massive community at permies.com," or something like that.  Something to get across the idea that this community can really help a project like this get over the finish line."

I am very happy to say something along those lines.

32 minutes to go. 239%! I will probably be offline when it ends, but will post a big thank you tomorrow.

Thank you to everyone involved in putting up a tiny ad about my Kickstarter in the dailyish email again : ) I continue to be amazed at the helpfulness of everyone at Permies in getting the news out about my book. Thank you!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/706848724/backyard-dairy-goats-book-quickstarter/posts/2351004

I've just sent out an update thanking all of my Kickstarter backers, and everyone at Permies.

The book wouldn't have been successfully funded if it weren't for the help of everyone on Permies. I owe a great deal of this campaign's success to Permies. Thank you all so much!

I'm about to start on the back cover (and online blurb) of the book and would greatly appreciate if anyone could give me some feedback to help with this...

There are only so many words I can put into these descriptions, so I am wondering which parts of the Kickstarter campaign stand out the most?

Is there anything that stands out as something that definitely has to be on the back cover?

The book is getting to the stage where it's so close to being printed, it is really exciting to be so close to sharing all this goaty goodness with everyone that's been a part of this.

This is my draft for back cover, cut and pasted and edited from your previous post here on Permies, hope this helps!




Backyard Dairy Goats is a book focusing on raising dairy goats in a way that respects their nature, on any amount of land.

Backyard dairying is achievable for anyone. It doesn't have to be a dream that may happen one day in the distant future, it could happen now, and this book will show you how.



•Everything you need to know about goats - their behaviour, how to feed them, handle them, what they need to thrive, and so on.

•Natural goat health, how to prevent and fix most issues without a vet.

•Learning from observation, and goat behaviour in the wild to provide the right foods for goats to thrive.

•A permaculture approach, looking at the whole backyard ecosystem and the many interactions between goats, animals, garden, people, and trees.

•Goat dairy as a homemade staple food, for health, survival and self reliance. Recipes included!

•Small batch cheesemaking.

Thank you for the pie, Kate! I'm glad if I could be of some help. Looking forward to suggestions from other forum members!

I think this book is  important on many different levels. Perhaps the most important of them is how it will help more people on their way to becoming more self-sufficient. Goats can be great animals for homesteaders. The trick to successful goat keeping is respecting their goatness and this book will help people to understand this goatness.

Keep up the good work, Kate!

Today the book files were sent the printer, and if that goes smoothly then it won't be long until the books are printed!

I've attached pictures of the back cover (with pie) and the acknowledgements page.

It's really exciting to have the book at this stage, and to be able to thank everyone that has helped.