Doe's Pride: From the Beginning

The Dairy Goat Journal, Vol. 67 No. 4 April 1989 pg. 235.

It all started about eight years ago at the Dutchess County Fair in Dutchess County, New York on a beautiful August day. The sky was sapphire blue dotted with soft billowy clouds. After strolling along for a while, my husband and I leisurely wandered through the goat barn where 4-H'ers tended and primped their goats in anticipation of the afternoon show. There was one charming lady around thirteen or fourteen years old dutifully trimming her goat's hoof. Having always loved to speak with the children about their animals and care required in tending a goat, we listened contentedly as she enthusiastically showered us with information. Being city dwellers, we had little knowledge concerning the care of any animal other than a dog or a cat. She spoke with us for over an hour, giving us a taste of her goats milk and lavishing us with her knowledge. Ever since I had been this girls age, I had always been interested in goats, and I could not help but envy her. My city did not permit me the pleasure of goat ownership. That afternoon we intently watched the goat show for hours. Thoughts of the show and those delightful creatures remained with us long after the fair was over.

In mid October, dear friends of ours announced to us that their son wished to join the 4-H goat club. Immediately I wondered if their son's goat would need a companion. I could supply some financial support to the project and my goat could board with his. For the first time, I too would be able to own one of those enchanting animals. My suggestion was taken graciously and we agreed to purchase two kids the following spring. A great deal of studying went into the project as we considered housing, fencing, and perhaps most important, breed selection. I attended several 4-H meetings soaking up whatever knowledge I could.

Finally the great day arrived. We had decided upon a Toggenburg and chose a very reputable local breeder. On our visit to the farm, we were no less excited than a mother going to pick up a newly adopted infant. As we inspected the selection, one tiny infant kid resting in a cage in the breeder's kitchen caught my eye. This newborn kid, with her tiny cries, captured my heart. She had to be mine! We agreed on a purchase price and at last a life's dream was realized with a signature.

We decided to name her Tiffany, and because of her young age, we concurred with the breeder as well as our friends that we would take Tiffany to our home in suburban New Jersey until she was ready to be on her own in the barn. We wrapped her in a soft pink blanket and held her for the two hour jaunt home. Having been instructed on the care and feeding of an infant kid, we made a bed for Tiffany in a warm comfortable box in our kitchen. No one had told us how fast this precious creature would grow and by the fourth day, she was able to get on the couch, bed and almost the kitchen table, which she accomplished a few days later.

When Tiffany was about two weeks old, she was romping through the house, and with one bounding leap she landed in my husband's dinner plate. It was clear to us that it was time to make alternative housing arrangements, and quickly! We dashed off to a local lumber yard and purchased wood to construct a pen in the garage. This would allow her to see us through the kitchen door and she would have controlled visits in the house to watch television which she adored.

Tiffany loved to romp in local parks and to our amazement, most people thought that she was a dog. Some people even asked us what breed she was and when we replied a Toggenburg they looked puzzled. We explained that Toggenburgs were a rare breed in the New York City area. With this explanation they studied her awhile, and walked off scratching their heads.

When Tiffany was three months old, we decided it was time for her to join her goat companions and learn to be a goat. This was more difficult for us then it was for her. I had to give up my "baby" to a barn 145 miles away. However we did adjust, and we visited her on weekends, taking her for rides in the car.

Tiffany grew to be lovely young lady and the following spring presented us with twins, a buck and a doe. We were fortunate enough to find homes for the babies. With Tiffany now in milk, we decided to explore the show circuit. As time passed we learned more and more about goats. We were surprised by how little people in the northeast knew about goats, and even worse how they did not think very highly of them. Many thought that goats were "smelly." This image troubled us as we had become so fond of these animals. Tiffany did not fair well in shows but this did not deter our love from her. She did however give us gallons of milk.

On a bitter frosty Sunday morning some time in late October, we went to one of the last shows of the season. At the show I happened to be examining some of the products that other goat owners had been selling. I picked up a single crudely cut bar of soap and with my usual inquisitiveness, asked what it was and why it was so special. The woman who was selling it explained that it was goat's milk soap. This was a product I had not run into before. I purchased just one bar of the soap because I have extreme allergies and sensitivity to soaps and cosmetics. After about two weeks use, I had no allergic reaction and my skin was soft and smooth. The more I used the soap, the more my skin improved. I began to complain to my husband that I was sorry I had not purchased more. At this point we found the woman who made it. She was very kind and explained that the special part of the soap was the milk and the recipe was a basic old family formula that she willing shared with us.

Immediately I began to read anything and everything I could about soap making. Having a full time job coupled with weekends visiting Tiffany and my new-found interest in soap making, life became very hectic. I started to make soap in the evening after work, rendering the fat, cleaning it and producing the soap. I was so enthusiastic about this wonderful new product, I wanted to share it with all of my friends, especially those with skin problems. To my surprise almost everybody I knew with allergies to other soaps had no reaction to the goat's milk soap. I continued to produce batch after batch, and soon friends had told other friends and it became increasingly difficult to keep up with the demand.

My husband came up with the idea to commercially produce the soap and set out to find how this could be done. We contacted several major soap manufacturers and chemists, but they all told us that it could not be done because of the extreme heat used in commercial soap production. This heat would ultimately destroy the milk and protein. It took many months of research and discussions with private label soap manufactures to find a company that would permit us to use a formula that we developed to preserve the protein and the cream in the milk.

During this time of involvement with the manufacturing of the soap, we had become close friends with the breeder that we purchased Tiffany from. On a weekend visit, we found out that a tiny Alpine buck had just been born, but little hope was given for his survival. My son pleaded with me to take him home and try to keep him alive. Once home, we kept him on a heating pad and fed him every hour or so with an eyedropper. After a week, he was up and about, and quickly he was becoming a new member of the family. We fell in love with this little fellow and named him Mr. T. Soon he too would-be too large to keep in our house in the suburbs. A major decision would have to be made, or we would be facing the reality that our precious little Mr. T might be destined to be meat.

After pondering over our financial position, my husband and I decided that we would be able to afford to purchase a new home that was close enough to our jobs yet that would be zoned for farming. A friend of mine in real estate helped with the search and we were fortunate enough to find two acres not too far away. Mr. T would be spared and Tiffany could come home.

We settled into our new home as soon as possible and building a barn became the number one priority. After the goats were settled, we began to focus our energy into the soap business once again. We had many samples to test and adjustments in the formula to make to be assured of good quality. We wanted a product that would hopefully sell well in the areas of the country where people are unfamiliar with goats. Our goal was to present a positive image of goats through a quality product.

Our packaging was very important to us, and we wanted it to be unique and attractive. After many hours of discussions and disagreements, we finally decided to use a pint milk carton that would hold three bars of soap. Cost being a major consideration in the project, we decided to use a standard size carton in order to cut the cost considerably. We took great care and time with the selection of the name for our soap. We had to be sure that the name reflected the most positive and gentle image of a lovely doe and therefore decided upon "Doe's Pride". We acquired a full grown Nubian doe named Ellie May, and chose her picture for the package because of the type of art required, and because the Nubian could not be mistaken for any other animal. We took several dozen photos of her and shipped them off to a friend involved in commercial advertising. His art staff' worked up a few drafts for us and we quickly settled on the one we liked.

My kitchen soap making had become a tremendous investment in both time and money, and offered no guarantee of its success. We could only try, and we were determined that we would only offer high quality at a fair price. Our project was finally launched with our first run of 10,000 bars of soap. My husband and I visited the factory on production day to make sure of quality control. We were pleased with the company's manufactured soap. They produce for some of the top labels in the country.

As with any business, we are not without obstacles. The pint cartons are flat when shipped, and we had to figure out a way to seal the bottoms and tops, without purchasing a costly machine. We do all of our work by hand in the evening after our household and farm chores ( our herd is now numbering seven, the maximum allowed for our zoning). As we hand package the soap in the evenings we are forever thinking of new ways to improve our operation.

We introduced our soap to the market a year ago and have found people to be very receptive to it. Generally once someone tries "Doe's Pride" they remain a user. We continue to receive letters from all over the country requesting information on Doe's Pride. We are now on our second run of 15,000 bars of soap, and have added a single bar box to the line. We are also working on a shampoo and milk bath soak for dry skin.