[AntonyMullen]

Hello,
First a little story. I am a husband and father of 3 boys, 19, 16, and 13. We are all animal lovers. Two large but gentle dogs, a rabbit and a chinchilla currently. All get along well. We live on just over 5 acres of land, so plenty of room.

In late May we rescued an abandon fawn that was all over our property. He was truly abandon, as his mother had apparently stepped on him. He had a broken nose and jaw. I know you are not supposed to, but local DEC would have just put him down.

Long story short, infections in the nose, antibiotics, e-coli, late night feedings, lots of love. He was getting better, and doing quite well.

I was planning to give him vaccine for Clostridium perfringens, but everything I read about fawn said to wait until they were weaned. I am afraid I was too late. He passed away the other day suddenly with all the symptoms. Bloating, panting, could not stand. He went from healthy to passing in just a couple of hours. I tried to treat him with what I could, but it went so fast.

We are all heartbroken about it, as he brought us joy and happyness, and I hope we did to him as well for his short time.

We all talked last night and decided that we liked this type of animal. Although another deer is out of the question, we were thinking possibly somthing like a Nigerian Dwarf. We are used to large pets, so it is not a big deal. Our Golden Retriever is 133lbs! We are looking for something that will be gentle enough, but playful with the family and dogs. And will be allowed to come in and outside as it pleases.

All our pets are family members, not just locked up in cages. Even the rabbit has the run of the house almost every night for a while.

So, I am just looking for a little insight from current owners. I have done some research, but getting it dirrect is best. Any input would be appreciated.

[JeanMcaleer]

First I'm very sorry for the loss of the little deer. That is sad. Second, welcome to the goat forum.
Many people keep goats as a house pet. They even house train them to potty out side. I'm sure some one will chime in on that. As for best options, a doe or wether pet is best. But you don't want a wether that has been banded too young as they are less likely to pass stones if they build. Not usually a good outcome. Look up Urinary Calculi. So if you decide a male is best suited for you .plan on banding him when he's between 4 and 6 months old or older if you can stand it lol. A doe would come into heat every 21 days. Some are mouthy, other will act like a male but over all less likely to have Urinary calculi crisis.
I will say while some keep a single pet goat, they tend to be happier with a buddy of their own kind. And two bouncing balls of joy are so much fun to watch. If you get two...and one is male the other female....keep in mind brother can and will try to breed her and capable of doing so as young as 2 months old. Or sooner. Two wethers are fun and two does are great. Makes things a little easier. Nigerian dwarfs are so so cute and Hardy little beings. Ask all your questions here and read through everything, and when you think you have made a decision..let us know!! There is a medicine thread in Health and Wellness and you will need to have some stuff in hand in case if emergency.
Best wishes and again..welcome

[KetyElly]

We bottle-fed one of our goats, and it was a lot of work, but it really built a strong bond.
Honestly, as long as they’re around the family a lot, they’ll get super friendly either way.
For their setup, we’ve got a mix of indoor and outdoor areas. They’re total explorers and love climbing and nibbling on literally everything, so be ready for some mischief.
Indoors, we use a big crate for when they need to chill out, and outside, sturdy fencing is a must—they’re little escape artists and will test every bit of it.
If you’re into creating cool setups for your smaller pets, like your rabbit or chinchilla, check out postpods.co.uk. I’ve added isopods to a few enclosures here, and it’s made cleaning so much easier while keeping things natural.