Whether to have your male dairy goat kids banded or castrated is an important decision for anyone keeping goats. We take our kids to the vet and have them banded or castrated at the same appointment when they get disbudded. Many 4H people we know band their kids themselves. If you are keeping a wether as a pet and feeding him alfalfa, you might want to castrate him instead of banding because eating a high protein diet of alfalfa for wethers can cause kidney stones. Castrating is, however, much more expensive than banding. If your wether is foraging instead of being confined and eating alfalfa, kidney stones won't present much of a problem.