About Sage Meadow Farm

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Life on Our Goat Farm

Our philosophy is simple: Every animal on our farm is treated as a member of our family.

We are a no-kill farm that is dedicated to providing our animals with love, freedom to roam and proper nutrition. Our selective breeding program produces top-line goats registered with the American Dairy Goat Association (ADGA). Our goats live in a large, open pasture with access to shelter from the elements and plenty of climbing toys. At night, we secure our herd in the barn to protect them from predators.

Our goats are grass-fed and have access to free-choice minerals. During milking season, they also receive grain for extra nutrition. Milking season on our farm lasts for less than half of the year. We stop milking (dry off) our does during their natural five-month gestation period to give their bodies a break over the winter. We retire our does when they pass their milking age and allow them to live out the rest of their days in our herd. Our does are members of the family and have a lifelong home at Sage Meadow Farm.

We are fortunate to have an onsite veterinarian at our family farm. This is especially helpful when our kids are “dis-budded” shortly after birth. This is not cruel or harmful to the animal. The process takes about 30 seconds while the kid is unconscious. We induce local and general anesthesia, and we remove the horn-bud before the horn starts to grow. We dis-bud for the safety of both goats and humans. A grown goat with horns can get caught in fences and milking stanchions, which could cause the horn itself to break. This could cause the goat to bleed out or develop a life-threatening infection. Goats are also constantly fighting for hierarchy within the herd, and a goat with horns is dangerous to other goats as well as their handlers. It’s best practice to “nip that right at the bud.”

Our farm is a bit unusual in the goat world because we have a parasite-free herd. We achieved this by starting our herd from bottle babies on virgin soil, and we have maintained a closed herd ever since. Each year we test for parasites through blood and fecal samples and, thus far, we’ve kept a clean herd. We want to stay parasite-free, and we are vigilant with our biosecurity measures. We transport our animals to events so that others (especially children) can enjoy them, but having visitors at the farm could expose the animals and their paddock to unwanted parasites and pathogens. Sorry, folks – unfortunately, this means that our farm is rarely open to the general public.

The McCoys of Sage Meadow Farm

Stan McCoy

Stan McCoy retired from a career in telecommunications to a life on the farm. He became a master soap maker in 2010 and has extended his craft to other goat-milk products, including lotions and shaving soaps. These products are available online and at several retail locations. He is also a certified yoga instructor, and in 2016, he began Sage Meadow Caprine Vinyasa. This has evolved into an annual spring charity event that features yoga with baby goats. Each year, benefactors of the proceeds include animal and human charities, which to date have received over 38 thousand dollars from the event.

Stan holds a degree in Telecommunications Technology and also serves on the Board of Licensing for the City of Easthampton.

Stan McCoy Can be reached at soap@sagemeadowfarm.com.

Dr. Joseph McCoy, D.V.M.

Dr. McCoy is a graduate of the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine. He completed an internship in small animal medicine and a residency in pathology at Angell Memorial Animal Hospital in Boston, and he was a research fellow in comparative pathology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. McCoy is a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists in both anatomic and clinical pathology. He was director of hematology of the eastern division of Antech diagnostics prior to joining Marshfield Laboratories, and he is now at Idexx Laboratories. He also helps local farmers navigate the challenges of small ruminants.

In December of 2020, after 14 years of service, Joe retired from Easthampton City Council. He currently serves on Easthampton’s Housing Authority.
In his spare time, Joe can often be found on a court playing pickleball

Dr. Joe McCoy can be reached at Dr.Joe@sagemeadowfarm.com.

Our Goats

We raise two breeds of goats: Sables and Nubians

Sable Goats

Sables are a large dairy goat that can weigh between 150-225 pounds. Sables are easily recognizable by their upright ears. They are genetically identical to the Saanen breed, but their coats have color while Saanens are pure white. Not too long ago, Sables were often culled because they were considered defects of the Saanen line. In 2005, however, the American Dairy Goat Association recognized these beautiful animals as their own breed. Sables are large-volume milk producers, but their milk has a lower butterfat content than other breeds. Some of our girls give us up to three gallons of milk each day during peak season! We find that our Sables are quieter than the Nubians, but they tend to be more dominant in the herd hierarchy. For the past decade, our herd queen and matriarch has been a Sable.

Nubian Goats

Nubians are another large-breed dairy goat. We once fostered a male that weighed in at over 250 pounds! Nubians are recognizable by their long, floppy ears. The species originate from the Mid-East and North Africa, but they became prominent in Great Britain in the early 19th century as a meat and dairy goat. Nubians produce about half the amount of milk as a Sable, but their milk has twice the butterfat. This means their milk is ideal for cheesemaking. We have found that our Nubians tend to be less dominant in the herd hierarchy, but they are definitely the loudest! On more than one occasion, passersby have come up to our door after hearing what they believed was a scream for help. It was just our Nubians acting up!

Discover our ethically-raised farm products

When you use our goat-milk products, they’re good for you, good for our animals, and good for the planet.

Our 6 Bar Bath Box is a great value! Six soap bars for the price of 5! Or save $13 when you select our 12 Bar Annual Bath Set

We can ship anywhere in the United States!

Our Product Collections