I totally get the goat horn ignorance in people who just want a pet goat, but actual breeders/herd owners have got to get real and educated about horns... #1. Goats are not more aggressive because they have horns any more than a dog is more aggressive because it has teethe. #2. It is not more likely to get its head caught. (Sounds weird, but if you have a goat prone to that behavior, they'll do it with or without horns. ) #3. Goats have pecking order. Depending on what personality type your goat is, (mama, scout, queen... Etc) The horns might be crucial in making sure they get enough to eat and free of injury. For example, a docile mama type missing her horns will be beat on regularly by a hornless queen that thinks all the food is hers. That mama could really use those horns if nothing else to protect her previously burned head from stronger personalities. #5. Do you have weather above 80 degrees at any given time? Goats use their horns to stay cool. Much like a rabbits ears circulate blood to keep them cool, a goats horn works the same way. This is precisely why horn removal is so difficult, and why when driving by a hornless herd on the road, so many are just laying there panting instead of eating grass. #6. Dis-budding does more harm than good. Say your goat is 1 in 5 that got the whole area burned enough that no scurs later grow out, causing pain its entire life, its now a 50/50 chance your goat has brain damage and now has no way of learning from mistakes like.... Getting its head stuck over and over without learning the lesson... I will admit brain damage goats are easier to manage. They just eat all their food, (no ability to tell what their body needs and doesn't need) they don't care when you take their babies away, (most likely assisted births as well) and escaping areas or getting into trouble just isn't a brain damaged goats cup of tea. In fact, they don't have much of a personality at all that way. Easy peasy. #7. (Final point.) Like most people say, "just want a cute puppy? Get a stuffed animal because puppies grow into adult dogs." Same rule goes for most animals... Don't like horns, don't pick goats as your farm animal of choice. Don't like risks?? Don't be a farmer period. End of rant..
