For 20 years, raising goats has been a passion for Michelle Portell.
She owns a 30-acre farm outside Montgomery City that has 26 goats. She is also an owner of the Sassy Nanny Raw Milk Dairy, where she makes goat’s milk.

“I think they just bring me so much happiness and joy,” Portell said. “It’s not work at all. I absolutely love it. I love being their servant.”

Now, Portell has brought her passion for goats to the Montgomery City Public Library, where she is conducting a monthly seminar called Goat Talk in which she talks with community residents about the best ways to raise a goat.

The first meeting was held on Jan. 4 with 22 people in attendance. A second meeting was held on Feb. 8. All meetings are held at the library’s Community Room.

“People were asking a lot of questions about goats and different things and homesteading, which I used to do quite a bit of,” Portell said. “Somebody commented, ‘Hey, why don’t you check out the (community) room at the library?’ So I messaged (MCPL director Gaylee Harris) and I came in and had a conversation. She said, ‘If you want to have a monthly meeting or just a couple of meetings, that would be great.’”

During the Feb. 8 meeting, community residents learned about how goat’s milk is the most consumed milk in the world. They tried a sample of goat’s milk after the meeting.

“Milk is super good for you,” Portell said. “There are so many health benefits to drinking goat’s milk.”

Residents also learned about how to take care of goats, which includes housing, feeding, fencing and handling supplies.

“They’re just really smart stock all together,” Portell said. “There are a lot of ways to make money with them. The cost of taking care of them is way less than anything else.”

Portell had her first goat farm in 2004. It was originally in Hermann before it later moved to the Montgomery City area.

“It started out with a goat and with the intention of giving it back to the lady,” Portell said. “Then, we ended up keeping her and we decided that she needed a friend. We got to (a point) where we were breeding. I was doing it to make soap and lotion to make extra money. I was going to do that to make extra money. Then, once people found out that I had goats and milk, they were just demanding the milk. So I didn’t have much milk to make any other products. I was selling it all for consumption. It just turned into a dairy bin and I’ve been doing it ever since.”

Portell’s first goat was named Nanny. She said she had a sassy attitude, which inspired her to come up with the name of her milk dairy business.

“She used to head butt my girls,” Portell said.

Portell is hosting the first annual Missouri Goat Festival on Nov. 4 at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. Ruby Leigh, who recently finished second in “The Voice” TV show, will be performing at the event.

“We’re hoping it’s an annual thing,” Portell said. “It’s going to be huge.”

Portell is also the owner of Mimi’s Shaved Ice and Fresh Squeezed Lemonade in Montgomery City. The business has been open since 2021.