Goat Names

I do believe one of the biggest challenges I face every spring is picking goat names for all those baby goats. It seems almost silly for a grown man to spend so much of his time and brainpower trying to pick just the right name for his goats. As a breeder of registered Boer goats, I always hold out hope that one or more of “my” goats will someday become famous, and with that in mind, I try to choose a name that will do them proud. It was fairly easy for the first couple of springs, and then my ideas ran out. Yet I still shudder when I think of people talking about “Southern Star’s Ennobled Stanley the Goat.” (I try to have names picked out well before the kids hit the ground as my young daughter is always quick to name a baby goat with such a name as Stanley or Flower.) I’ve always struggled naming my own goats, but I hope with my help you’ll have an easier time, so here’s some goat names we’ve used in the past, as well as some we thought about but never could bring ourselves to actually do it.

Goat names for bucks, billy goats, and other male goats

Thunderbolt-Our first born. He was born with a lightning bolt on his forehead, just like his great-grandfather, Mojo Magic.
Doc Holliday-Thunderbolt’s brother. My wife liked the name because she liked Doc Holliday in Tombstone.
Rowdy-I wanted to name a goat after Clint Eastwood, one of my all-time favorite actors, but Clint just didn’t work, so I choose Rowdy from Rawhide.
Kemo-Sabe-Duh, the sidekick of Tonto.
Tonto-Duh, ditto. Brothers, of course
Maverick-The name just fit this wild little buck He was a gambler and a player.
Casper-A handsome little white pygmy. He just disappeared one day.

Goat names for does, nannys, and other female goats

Cheyenne-Our first doe and the grand dam of our operation
Chrisma-Cheyenne’s firstborn. She actually lacked personality.
Karma-I came up with this from ‘My name is Earl.’ She was not the smartest goat.
Miss Daisy-My daughter named her Flower, I improvised.
Copper Penny-A beautiful red doe I lost to parasites.
Shananny-I knew better than to name her Shania. My wife would be suspicious. A pack of dogs killed her.
Jesse-A great name in my opinion. She was a great goat.
Aunt Lizzy-She never gave us any kids, but she loved to play with all the youngsters in the pasture. A true Nanny!

Goat Names I was afraid to use

Sir Lance-a-lot-It seems like the perfect name for a billy goat.
Jose Huevos-Not sure if it translates to Joe Eggs or Joe…?
Big Kahuna-See, it’s a good name…but again not sure about the exact translation.
Big Red-Name you goat after a stick of gum…Hey, how about Juicyfruit?
Barney Fife-‘One Bullet Barney’
Dirty Harry-‘Go ahead, make my day.’
The Duke-I really wanted to use this name but wanted a goat worthy of the honor.
Festus-A cool name for a cool old goat.
8-Seconds-Does it really matter as long as he gets the job done?
Bud Light-A goat named Bud.
Hoss-Just never seemed to fit a goat.
Boss-I really like short names, they are easy to pronounce.
Buck-Like naming your goat ‘Goat’ don’t you think?
Billy-See, I’m fresh out of ideas

OK, you want more suggestions? Here’s an exhaustive list of hundreds of possible goat names, from A to Z. Find a name for your goat!