Just for fun turns into a business

LAKEVILLE, Minn. — Matt and Jackie Thomas started a new venture when they added goats to their existing herd of dairy cows.

“The first one showed up in 2018, and they kind of became like potato chips — you just can’t have one — so it blossomed quite a bit,” Matt said.

The Thomas family now averages over 75 goats on their farm, milking 8-15 goats and 50 cows at the farm owned by Matt’s parents, Clayton and Cheryl. They milk their herd of Holsteins, Jerseys, Milking Shorthorns and Ayrshires in a tiestall barn.

The milking goats are kept in the back of the same barn as the cows. A two-bucket milker is used to milk the goats on a small milking stand. The non-milking goats are on pasture at the couple’s house down the road. The Thomas family started with meat goats and have slowly transitioned into production breeds.

The goat milk is used for different goods including soap, body butter, lotion, lip balm, shampoo and conditioner, laundry soap and liquid soap. Jackie is in charge of the goat milk products which led to the start of Jax Soap Company. Any extra milk is fed to the calves. Their products are sold online and at vendor markets and stores.

The Thomas family also farms 450-500 acres for feed and cash crops, raise laying hens and do custom baling. This is done with the help of their children, Calvin and Miranda.

“A lot of kids have a great life that isn’t in agriculture but it’s one way to create a pretty successful life,” Matt said. “Some days are going to be a good adventure and some days not so much, but there is always something to do.”

The couple likes to see the responsibility and life lessons their children learn from living on the farm.

“It is pretty cool to see that Calvin can change a tire (in seventh grade) and take apart a four-wheeler and he learned all that here,” Jackie said. “(Miranda) is a very hard worker and it’s nice to see that. It’s pretty cool to see them enjoying the farm life.”

Both of the children have animals on the farm they are excited to work with. Calvin enjoys the chickens and the chance to experiment with pricing the eggs to ensure he covers the cost of feed. He also enjoys how many different breeds there are. Miranda, who is in fourth grade, likes the goats because she can play with and show them.

The family is new to 4-H, with the summer of 2024 being the first time Miranda showed at the Dakota County Fair. Next year, Calvin plans to show goats as well.

“(Miranda) did really well, and what I liked about it was that it was our own show stock,” Matt said. “We didn’t have to go out and buy one or anything like that. It’s just fun that we have potential to grow into showing.”

They did not intend to show goats initially, Jackie said. Now however, they have purchased a few animals to improve their herd genetics. Previously, the family had a wide variety of breeds in the herd including Toggenburg, Alpine, Saanen, Nubian, Lamancha, Savanna, Boer, Kiko and Myotonic. Once they chose which breeds to focus on, they began looking for a buck to improve their production and type.

The family started raising goats for something fun to do. As they got used to them however, the goat herd has continued to grow and started to create income for the farm.

“We have seen potential for growing them,” Jackie said. “It’s been good to see what they all can do. It is nice to have additional income with the goats.”

A challenge they have faced is how to treat and vaccinate the goats because they have heard conflicting advice from veterinary professionals. Another struggle is fencing. The couple’s next project for the goats is building a strong paddock system so they can rotate the goats more efficiently.

For the future, Jackie would like to open a small shop on the farm so people can have the opportunity to see the goats and connect with agriculture.

“It is a great experience that the kids have,” Matt said. “If you look at the statistics it is less than 2% of the population is in (farming) and we are one of them.”