Got Your Goat on Watershed Wednesday 3/2/11

Denise Warren of Stone & Thistle Farm co-hosts Farm Chatter on Watershed Wednesday with Tara Collins of the Watershed Agricultural Council. This week's topic? Goats...

Bearded, horned, hooved, and miraculously mischievous, goats (and their meat and dairy products) are carving out more than a niche for themselves in farmstands, groceries and consumer refrigerators. Goats are small ruminants that many beginner farmers and small farm owners intuitively add to a farm business model for various reasons. Goats are small (by comparison to cattle), easy to handle (still up for debate) and have a lot to offer a farm struggling to solidify its bottom line. Goats are quick to put on weight, eat grass, produce offspring regularly, and provide a variety of products. But there are some tricks to raising these wonderful creatures. Denise will explain how to prepare and cook them. Pure Catskills member Linda Smith of Sherman Hill Farm (Franklin) joins the show to talk about various types of goat cheese and how it's made. Want to learn more? Or just curious how we're going to fill an hour on goats? Listen to Watershed Wednesday on WIOX Community Radio 91.3FM at 1 p.m. and post your questions to the Watershed Agricultural Council's Facebook Page.Have a funny goat story of your own? Do tell below!