Our venture into Kiko goats was perhaps by chance. In 2007, I started to look at Kikos for an associate of mine who needed some livestock for a small acreage plot that he had next to his home. Being practically raised up close to John and Jerry Hancock of Hancock Kiko Farm, I began talking to them about Kiko goats. Ultimately, I (not my associate) was the one that ended up venturing into the goat business. This decision wasn´t a difficult one to make either as I was very impressed with the maternal characteristics, hardiness, vigor, and low maintenance of the Kikos that could be found on the Hancock´s farm. The most important aspect of this was that I knew that my young daughter would love and feel more comfortable around goats than she is around the cattle that we also raise (in other locations).
In the Summer of 2007, we purchased our first common goats from Jerry and John Hancock to ease us into the goat business. This purchase was made to also see how our bulldog would behave herself around the goats. Being that our bulldog and the goats were able to get along, later that Fall, we were lucky enough to be able to use one of the great bucks that the Hancock´s own, Sport, to breed our common goats to.
Since then, we have increased our herd through retaining some of the offspring and making additional purchases of 100% New Zealand doelings and embryos. Although we are still in what we call a "build up" stage, we believe that we currently have the genetics in place to propel our herd closer toward the fleeting goal of producing the "perfect" Kiko in the near future. Although this goal can not ever be truly obtained, I do believe that through strict culling criteria and linebreeding the best to the best, we will be able to get close to it.
Neal McIntyre
