Myagdi farmer finds success in goat farming

Myagdi. Krishna Gauchan from Lamsung, Dhaulagiri Rural Municipality-2, has achieved significant annual income from a goat farming business that he started with an investment of Rs 52,000.

In 2074 BS, 60-year-old Gauchan became self-employed and self-reliant through his Lokesh Agriculture and Goat Farm, which he launched with a subsidized loan of Rs 38,150 from a revolving fund and Rs 15,000 in seed capital.

“I bought three mother goats with the loan and seed capital, adding them to the two I already had at home to make five, but two died,” he said. “After receiving a Boer buck from the Veterinary Hospital and Livestock Service Expert Center to improve the breed of my Jamunapari goats, the number of goats in my shed grew to 120.”

Currently, there are 70 goats, kids, and mother goats. The farm sells more than 15 goats and an equal number of kids annually. Customers come directly to the shed to buy goats for meat and kids for rearing. They are sold at different prices based on age and weight. Gauchan started goat farming after abandoning the traditional buffalo farming business.

Gauchan stated that the income from goat farming has made it easier to manage household expenses. His wife and daughter have been supporting him in running the business. With the income from the farm, he sent his youngest son, Lilendra Gauchan, to Australia for studies. His eldest son, Surendra, who worked in Portugal for a few years for foreign employment, has returned to his birthplace to assist his father in goat farming.

Surendra mentioned that he returned home to support his father after not finding the expected success in foreign employment. “I learned from my father's business that one can do something within their own country with the same hard work and sweat spent abroad,” he said. “I have experienced life abroad. Now, I am thinking of managing the goat farm systematically here.”

Gauchan has built sheds in two places, Lamsung and Mareni, for goat farming. He moves the sheds between Lamsung and Mareni every two months for grazing. Gauchan mentioned that the Veterinary Hospital and Livestock Service Expert Center recently provided Rs 150,000 in support for the construction of the sheds.