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Kalona Dairy Goat Facility Tour a Success
by Dr. Larry Tranel
Dairy goats continue to offer a profitable opportunity for beginning, expanding, and transitioning producers. As part of SDGA programming, ISU Extension and Outreach hosted a Dairy Goat Facility Tour near Kalona, Iowa, on July 29, 2026, to help producers learn from successful operations and explore best practices in facility design. Participants visited working dairy goat farms to observe milking systems, housing facilities, and management practices that can improve efficiency, animal comfort, and profitability.
The tour attracted approximately 75 producers and family members, representing a mix of experienced dairy goat producers, new entrants, and individuals interested in exploring dairy goat production. Feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive, with 100% of survey respondents rating the event as good, very good, or excellent.
Participants reported moderate to significant gains in knowledge across several key management areas. The greatest learning gains were in goat housing and facility design, followed by ventilation and animal comfort, and milking system and parlor design. Attendees also increased their understanding of dairy goat profitability, financial management, labor efficiency, kid-rearing practices, and herd health management.
The tour's impact is expected to extend well beyond the event itself. Survey respondents indicated plans to apply what they learned by:
- Evaluating improvements to goat housing and ventilation
- Considering upgrades to milking systems and parlors
- Modifying kid-rearing and feeding practices
- Assessing enterprise profitability
- Improving milking procedures and labor efficiency
- Adopting new herd health management practices
When asked about the most valuable information gained during the tour, many participants highlighted the importance of proper ventilation and facility design. Producers recognized the role these factors play in supporting animal health, milk production, and overall farm performance.
Interest in future dairy goat educational programming remains strong. Participants identified nutrition and feeding, reproduction and genetics, cheese and value-added processing, milk quality, and marketing dairy goat products as priority topics for future events.
The success of the Kalona tour has already generated follow-up conversations, farm visits, and requests for additional information. By connecting producers with practical, on-farm examples and proven management strategies, SDGA aims to strengthen the nation's growing dairy goat industry while empowering producers to make informed decisions about facility improvements and management practices.
