Karen and Chris Burris quickly went from having a couple goats as pets to running a breeding operation in their own backyard.

They raise Nigerian Dwarf Goats, the second smallest goat breed behind Pygmy Goats.

“It’ll be six years in August we went to Fawn-Doe-Rosa, a petting zoo down in Hudson, Wisconsin. And they had baby goats,” Karen said. “And my daughter and I were picking them up, loving them, carrying them around. And I was sold. I’m like, I need goats in my life.”

She started with two boys, Lincoln and Noah, then brought home a third named Kevin.

“He was mischievous. So the doorknob on the garage is reversed because Kevin could open doors,” she said. “Kevin is probably what really started the whole thing, like wow, I want to breed these.”

As of early May, they had 43 at their property near Forbes. They’ve dubbed it the Goat Shack. This year, they had 19 kids with a few more on the way. The Burrises bottle-feed one of the runts who doesn’t get enough milk from mom Ebony. But the kids don’t get names unless they’re being kept.

“Every goat is different. Every goat has a different personality. Every goat likes to be pet in a certain place. Some goats love certain treats better than other treats,” Karen said.

They sell most of the babies, which pays for their hay. Karen also makes soap, lotion, and shampoo bars from their milk when she has time.

“They’re just so much fun. They’re really just expensive pets,” she said. “It’s a very expensive hobby.”

They post photos and updates on The Goat Shack Facebook page.