Have you visited local breeders? I'd really suggest meeting some of the goats. When I got my first sheep, I couldn't decide whether I wanted Shetlands or Babydolls, so I bought one of each, and within an hour of having my Babydoll, I realized I preferred the Shetland. If only I'd visited the farms before I decided to buy, I would have been able to easily make up my mind. With the goats, it's really going to depend on what you want. If you have small children or are getting older yourself, you might prefer the smaller size of the ND. If you just want more milk, you might prefer a mini, although if milk is your goal, I'd really suggest researching the lines, because some minis make less than NDs. I bought mini manchas and was so disappointed with the production. Now I have two la mancha does and am attempting to make my own minis with proven milking lines. Sometimes the quality of the minis just isn't that good, especially when there is something like ears in the mix. With mini manchas and nubians, those ears have to be just right, but they could be poor milkers or poor in other areas of conformation. Butterfat also tends to be higher in the NDs, if you want to make cheese.
Have you visited local breeders? I'd really suggest meeting some of the goats. When I got my first sheep, I couldn't decide whether I wanted Shetlands or Babydolls, so I bought one of each, and within an hour of having my Babydoll, I realized I preferred the Shetland. If only I'd visited the farms before I decided to buy, I would have been able to easily make up my mind. With the goats, it's really going to depend on what you want. If you have small children or are getting older yourself, you might prefer the smaller size of the ND. If you just want more milk, you might prefer a mini, although if milk is your goal, I'd really suggest researching the lines, because some minis make less than NDs. I bought mini manchas and was so disappointed with the production. Now I have two la mancha does and am attempting to make my own minis with proven milking lines. Sometimes the quality of the minis just isn't that good, especially when there is something like ears in the mix. With mini manchas and nubians, those ears have to be just right, but they could be poor milkers or poor in other areas of conformation. Butterfat also tends to be higher in the NDs, if you want to make cheese.
Have you visited local breeders? I'd really suggest meeting some of the goats. When I got my first sheep, I couldn't decide whether I wanted Shetlands or Babydolls, so I bought one of each, and within an hour of having my Babydoll, I realized I preferred the Shetland. If only I'd visited the farms before I decided to buy, I would have been able to easily make up my mind.
With the goats, it's really going to depend on what you want. If you have small children or are getting older yourself, you might prefer the smaller size of the ND. If you just want more milk, you might prefer a mini, although if milk is your goal, I'd really suggest researching the lines, because some minis make less than NDs. I bought mini manchas and was so disappointed with the production. Now I have two la mancha does and am attempting to make my own minis with proven milking lines. Sometimes the quality of the minis just isn't that good, especially when there is something like ears in the mix. With mini manchas and nubians, those ears have to be just right, but they could be poor milkers or poor in other areas of conformation. Butterfat also tends to be higher in the NDs, if you want to make cheese.
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As Deborah said - good milking lines is important no matter which you choose.
With the goats, it's really going to depend on what you want. If you have small children or are getting older yourself, you might prefer the smaller size of the ND. If you just want more milk, you might prefer a mini, although if milk is your goal, I'd really suggest researching the lines, because some minis make less than NDs. I bought mini manchas and was so disappointed with the production. Now I have two la mancha does and am attempting to make my own minis with proven milking lines. Sometimes the quality of the minis just isn't that good, especially when there is something like ears in the mix. With mini manchas and nubians, those ears have to be just right, but they could be poor milkers or poor in other areas of conformation. Butterfat also tends to be higher in the NDs, if you want to make cheese.