rachels.haven's Journal

[Mini Horses]

Goats DO have more jumpers than sheep!!!

My handsome Saanen was caught unplugging electric fence charger as well as climbing cattle panels. Had used those CP because he jumped the 4' fence, after unplugging the electric he was sold. Shame as he was gorgeous & easy to handle.

Yeah, goats are athletic! Their goal in life is reaching the other side of a fence! Yet, the majority of mine are fine in a fence with electric. Mostly the breeder females are not the jumpers, esp the ones with milk. It's bucks & young, almost grown females. . I have 2 who routinely jump out and back in.

It's life on a goat farm.

 

[rachels.haven]

Goat pupils...

...are round

...if they like you.

like, seriously, they almost always look like this. This is evidence.

 

[Baymule]

About the fastest my rams go is maybe a fast trot. Bangin’ balls!

 

[rachels.haven]

I listed my nigerian white buck today that caused all the drama. Yes, his pedigree, which is now cleared up, screams milk, but linear appraisal scores from the past several years have finally been published and his dam has an F in mammary and dairy strength as a 3 year old and an A in front and rear legs and G in everything else. His full sister improved to a "G" in mammary and has no F's and rear legs and back improved to V...BUT I'm not comfortable using a buck from a doe that needs that level of improvement at risk of throwing a whole herd that's just like his dam "F" and G dam when I'm trying to get V and E kids. Mammary is not something you want an F on in your buck's dam. He's very clearly an older style buck and even though I can't find honest pictures of his dam I suspect she has an older style udder.

I guess I'll use my red buck, Homelander on the 6 Oberon daughters + 1 grand daughter (by the white buck) and play off Obie's dam's side instead of the sires for the kids. And if the white buck's daughter out of the Oberon daughter has an "F" FF udder she'll go too. She "should" milk like crazy though, so I shouldn't be ashamed to sell her with papers (assuming nobody fudged on their milk testing numbers).

Oberon will get Bri, Becca, Twenty-one, Lemora, and potentially the four kids I brought in if I can get them up to size.

And we have 2 new bucklings coming in to raise up (Simon and Stag). And Oberon will be evaluated on his kids next year. I may let him go too. We will have a lot of him and I need to see exactly what I want coming through for him to stay on much longer considering I have 6 daughters with at least 4 does bred to him, and a possible 4 more this fall/winter. That should be plenty to show what he's made of.

 

[Baymule]

I never realized the grading of conformation, body parts and overall scrutiny of a dairy goat. I learn so much from your posts.

 

[rachels.haven]

Thanks. As long as ADGA keeps providing appraisals we keep getting data. I'm still confused how she got an F in mammary when her udder and foreudder and udder depth are outstanding...teat placement is okay. Supposedly she's got a good score in dairyness and strength, but zero dairy strength.

Actually now that I don't have a migraine, these scores look messed up. The udder in question from someone who listed her as the dam of their doe, which at least from the rear it does not look like she has an F udder...usually that would mean something unsightly like a swing bag or no milk, pic looks okay and numbers don't match up with the letters the way you usually see. The pic looks like the number grading is accurate, the most recent letter grading looks almost like it goes to a different goat, but who knows anymore.

Lol, either something's wrong, there's more context needed, or I still know nothing when I thought I at least knew a little.

This buck is a mess on paper. I'm going to go back to my hole now. Maybe I'll hold off selling him or using him heavily (or at all) until I know what he actually produces since I went through all that to find out who he really is? And then never let a goat from this herd back into mine again. Clearly I don't understand what's going on here. He's probably staying listed. I wonder if he will move. I wonder if I should take the chance.

Dam has no registered progeny since 2023. Five is not old for a ND. Last registered kids were at 3 years old.

 

[rachels.haven]

Basically the numbers don't back up why that udder would be a "fail", so I'm wondering if there's an error. Usually they'd code a doe if they no milk or were stale or had mastitis. The "F" in udder is what unsettles me the most.

This is his 1 year older, full sister's scores. If she had another year of scoring and looked better or the same as mom I'd be more sure of what to do.

This doe has no registered progeny and was two in 2023 when she was appraised.

 

[Baymule]

Sometimes the paper trail just doesn’t add up.

 

[Ridgetop]

Dam has no registered progeny since 2023. Five is not old for a ND. Last registered kids were at 3 years old.

Dam may be dead, or her udder got damaged somehow - mastitis or injury.

 

[rachels.haven]

Drago's, my buck pen dog, has become another "don't touch me" shy dog. He's gotten progressively worse since April and now I can only occasionally touch him from the other side of the fence so today I contacted his breeder to see if she'll take him back if I can catch him one last time. IDK if she'll answer. The last time I touched him while standing in the pen I tried to undercoat rake him back in April for the first time. Nothing bad happened, very little pulling, but he ran a way and that was that. My corner neighbors bordering his pen have also been having some kind of domestic issue involving yelling and probably copious drinking and I've caught someone I don't recognize far away along the back fence messing with him, him barking his head off at them (the other dogs don't think that way, humans aren't worth their time for the most part). Just in case he's being tormented by them I really want him to go. I also can't get him flea control or rabies booster if I can't touch him. The bucks may be out of luck.
If he runs and won't be caught he stays in control. And to a timid dog, being in control and running feels the best. It's really too bad too because the only thing I've had to correct that he's done is acting like he wants to go all obsessive prey drive on the lawn mower as it drives outside the fence, and that was a, "EEEP, NO" like twice situation and then he was done with it. He has pretty much been a plug and play LGD. One that would rather starve or miss treats than be touched by a human standing in the pen-a human that's done just about nothing but feed and praise him.

Need to feel judged? Get a Pyr, especially a shy pyr. Easiest way to become a villain.