I milk my pension every month from 50 animals

James Nyagah feeds a goat in his farm in Ruai, Nairobi. The former Kenya Armed Forces engineer keeps 50 goats in the farm. PHOTO | PETER CHANGTOEK | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Nyagah started with a single Kenya Alpine dairy goat that he bought at Sh15,000 and he has increased the number to 50, rearing other breeds like the Saanen, French Alpine and German Alpine.
  • The former military officer is also the organising secretary of the Nairobi Dairy Goats Breeders Association.
  • On a section of his quarter-acre, he has 62 cages measuring 4 by 3 feet.
  • The goats should be dewormed after every three months and always seek the services of a vet.

What started as a pastime for James Nyagah, 60, a former Kenya Armed Forces engineer, soon after retirement in 2012 has turned into a lucrative business.

Nyagah started with a single Kenya Alpine dairy goat that he bought at Sh15,000 and he has increased the number to 50, rearing other breeds like the Saanen, French Alpine and German Alpine.

“I did not have plans to buy the animal. A neighbour in my rural home in Embu had some financial problems and asked me to buy it. So I bought the goat and came with it to my Nairobi home in Ruai. At that time it was producing half a cup of milk,’’ he narrates.

The liking for goats developed, compelling him to purchase more animals from Thika, Murang’a, Embu and Meru. On a section of his quarter-acre, he has 62 cages measuring 4 by 3 feet.

The structures are raised at 1.5 feet from the ground and are in three rows. The first row contains 16 cages, the second 18 and the third 28 cages.

“Initially, I found it hard to feed the goats since I thought the animals only needed napier grass, which is hard to come by in Nairobi. But I now make my own feeds.”

A single dairy goat consumes 1kg of feeds per day, he says, which costs about Sh50.

“If an animal offers 2-4 litres a day, the venture is profitable. I milk seven goats since some are expectant getting on average 20 litres a day.”

PROPER GOATS' MANAGEMENT PRACTICES

On a good day, he milks in total up to 25 litres that he sells at Sh150 each.

The former military officer is also the organising secretary of the Nairobi Dairy Goats Breeders Association.

The group, he says, has an outlet in Ruai, where members sell their produce. “We buy at Sh150 from members and sell at Sh200,’’ says Nyagah, adding that they have employed two people at the milk shop.

According to him, the group’s aim is to make goats the main animals farmed for milk as land sizes shrink.

“We encourage farmers that before selling milk, they keep at least a litre for their home use because goat milk is good, especially for people with diseases like HIV/Aids and children,’’ he states.

He uses goat manure for planting crops such as bananas and vegetables on a section of his farm.

Keeping high standards of hygiene by cleaning sheds regularly to avoid diseases are some of the management practices one should adhere to.

“One should keep removing the manure so that the sheds are clean. The goats should also be dewormed after every three months and always seek the services of a vet.”

One of the challenges he faced while beginning is losing four goats due to failure to consult a vet.

“The first three died because of diseases since I was offering them drugs following advice from an agrovet. The other died of a snake bite,” he says, adding farmers ought to learn how to offer drugs to the goats as long as they don’t self-medicate.