Six years ago, Cynthia Maddock’s children were raising Nigerian Dwarf goats and showing them in 4-H. Nigerian Dwarf goats are raised for their milk and, at the time, Cynthia used it to make goat cheese for her family. They began to generate a surplus of milk, and Cynthia soon had to find something to do with it. She liked some goat’s milk soap she had purchased from a friend and thought “I could do this.” 

Cynthia soon started to experiment with recipes. It took her two years to formulate the recipe for goat’s milk soap that she uses today. The Madd House Hill “Udder Madness” soap is made from simple, clean ingredients in Paola, Kansas. Cynthia uses her goat’s milk along with coconut, shea butter, castor, rice bran and olive oil, along with all-natural colors, botanicals, and therapeutic-grade essential oils. Cynthia uses no palm oil or animal tallow in her produces. 

In addition to bar soaps, Madd House Hill also makes and sells a line of all-natural bath products that complement their soaps, including lotion, lotion bars, scrubs and bath bombs. She also makes a variety of goat milk cheesecakes she sells by the slice or whole. Goat’s milk is high in vitamin A and has natural fats that are beneficial for conditions like eczema, psoriasis and dry skin.

Cynthia believes putting heathy stuff on our bodies is as important as putting heathy stuff in our bodies. She says most commercially-made soap has a long list of ingredients you cannot pronounce, and most bar soap is made with water. These soaps are created in a lab with fragrant oils. Since Madd House Hill uses only therapeutic essential oils, the health benefits of those natural oils come through in the soup. 

Cynthia is the CEO of Madd House Hill, but it is a family affair. Cynthia’s husband, John, and their four kids assist with the operation. The kids work mostly behind the scenes packaging, labeling and doing cleanup. This summer, daughter Julia often helped mom at their Lenexa Farmers Market booth. Occasionally Justin makes an appearance, and twins Joseph and John are usually found helping at the Sunflower Orchard booth.