Although we still appreciate the angora goat breed, we are now working on a nigoras, a cross between angora goats and nigerian dwarf goats. These goats can have one of 3 different fleece types or a cross between types and also produce milk. As our farm grows and develops, we are learning what works best for us. With a small property and a love for fiber as well as goats’ milk, this breed is perfect for us. Stay tuned for more information! HGF London is still a part of our farm’s genetics as we loved her udder, and the amount of fleece her kids produced for us. We will be using her buckling out of a nigerian dwarf breeding to get our herd started!
While researching fiber producing livestock before starting our farm, we became extremely intrigued by angora goats. We already loved the personality of goats and want to produce quality fiber on our farm for yarns and other crafts, so we decided angora goats would be a good fit for us. Angoras produce mohair, a soft, lustrous fiber, that adds warmth, strength and sheen to any item. It also holds dye well and doesn’t felt easily. It’s moisture wicking and naturally flame retardant.
We shear the goats ourselves twice a year. Mohair grows about 3/4 inch a month and is typically 4 to 6 inches long at shearing. Then we skirt, hand wash and scour the fleeces. Fleeces can be hand spun in lock form or prepared by carding or blended with other fibers. Some people use the curly locks for doll hair. We like to blend it with our own angora and sometimes add some locally produced wool or alpaca.
Wethers (neutered male) are valuable in the angora world because the energy it takes for intact males and does to produce reproductive hormones actually affects fiber production. You will get the best fleece and longest fibers from wethers.
