CALLING ALL PHOTOGRAPHERS!

This year Have U Herd is hosting a Photography Contest!  Participant photos will be featured on TMGR’s Facebook page.  Winning photos will be selected to be featured on the blog and in our 2015 calendar! 

 

Winners will be selected from the following categories:

1.     Best Mini Alpine Photo

2.     Best Mini Nubian Photo

3.     Best Mini LaMancha Photo

4.     Best Mini Oberhasli Photo

5.     Best Mini Saanen Photo

6.     Best Mini Sable Photo

7.     Best Mini Toggenburg Photo

8.     Best Goat in Winter Photo

9.     Best Goat in Spring Photo

10.   Best Goat in Summer Photo

11.   Best Goat in Fall Photo

12.   Best Goat Kid Photo

If we do not receive submissions to any of the categories, we will use runners up from the other categories in the calendar.  Please submit new photos that have not been featured in previous calendars.

The contest is for TMGR members only. 

To submit your photos, please send your photos to swgoats@yahoo.com with the Subject: TMGR Photo Contest.  Full size files are best.  If you are submitting multiple photos, please submit each one in a separate email.   

In the body of the message, please supply the following information:

1.     Your Name

2.     Your Herd Name

3.     Name(s) and breed(s) of goat in the photo

4.     Any contact information you would like shared with your photo on Have U Herd (email, website, etc.)

5.     Which category(ies) you are submitting the photo to.  (The same photo can be considered for up to 2 categories.)

 
We will be accepting submissions until June 30^th.  We will start posting submissions to Facebook on June 11^th.  We will allow the general public to vote for their favorites by “liking” the photos.  This is a great opportunity to get publicity for our registry and our farms.  We look forward to seeing your photos!!

Notes from the February Board Meeting

The Board of Directors had a meeting February 8th.  We have added two new board members. MaryLisa Lynch of California raises Mini Nubians with the herd name Irm’s Girl.  Cari Zisk of Idaho raises Mini Oberhasli, Mini LaMancha, Mini Toggenburg and Mini Alpine goats under the herd name Cherry Butte.  We look forward to what they can bring to the board! 

We discussed the need to edit the TMGR website.  If anyone sees something they do not understand or that does not function properly on the website, please email your suggestions to Donna Elkins - reg@tmgronline.org or Douglas Clark info@tmgronline.org .  We are making the final tweaks on the I-Goat online evaluation program and hope to have that up and running shortly.  If anyone has advanced skills in web-design, html, etc., we would welcome your volunteer services.  We appreciate your patience as we work through these issues. 

A committee has been formed of Mini Nubian breeders for reviewing the Mini Nubian breed standards.  We will be reviewing photographs of high generation Mini Nubians.  If you have Mini Nubians, be looking for an upcoming post about the kind of photographs we need.  Our goal is to create a group expectation for quality based on an informative breed standard reflective of a truly obtainable goal. 

We are also working to get new registry software for Donna to make her work easier and more efficient.  We experienced an increase in memberships and registrations in 2013, and in 2014 we are experiencing a membership and registration boom.  We thank Donna for her service as registrar as she works to process the new registrations in a timely manner. 

We are scheduling our next board meeting for March.  We are discussing forming a by-laws committee to review the by-laws so they can be updated and published online.  We are also discussing forming a show committee to help members start new TMGR shows and discussing how to make dual sanctioning go smoothly, so there will be more opportunities for our members to show and get recognition or our Mini breeds.  As always we welcome input from our membership. If you have an item that is high priority for you, please contact one of the board members.

Mini Nubian Goats Bring History Alive

We think of our Mini breeds as something new, but in fact they are not all that different from the first domestic goats brought to North America by English settlers.  The Old English goat was a small, thrifty dairy goat, with excellent feed conversion, thriving primarily on forage – sound familiar?  After more than a century of “improvement” is the dairy goat industry starting to come full circle?

Goats certainly were some of the first domestic livestock to be brought over from the Old World.  The first dairy consumed by the colonist came from goats and sheep, and we all know that goat milk has saved many a baby whose mother was unable to provide.  Goats are ever present in human history.

Interest in living history events, reenactments, is alive and well.  My family has found this to be an excellent way to get the word out about our wonderful goats.  We attend two events a year in Indiana – The Spirit of Vincennes Rendezvous in May and The Feast of the Hunter’s Moon in October.  We dress in colonial costume and demonstrate goat milking, cheese making, and sell homemade goat milk soap.  In Vincennes we are allowed to let the children young and old try milking, and this creates a lot of excitement.  I have trained my goats to stand patiently on the stand without feed.  The Mini Nubians were super sweet with the kids.  I don’t know when I’ve been prouder of my little goats!

Reenacting may not be for everyone.  We do primitive camp right next to our goats who sometimes feel the need to talk to everyone who walks by in the night.  Proper tentage and costumes are not cheap, but goat milk soap sells well and helps offset the costs.  Taking goats requires temporary fencing and shelter, buckets, feed, hay, and milk stand.  Even though it is at times hard, I have found it hasn’t really ruined the pastoral fantasy.  If anything it is strengthened it for me, because when I let go of how I feel (hot or cold, uncomfortable or dirty, tired or thirsty) and look around, there sure is a lot of beauty in life!  The greatest part is seeing people enjoy the goats.  We may take them for granted and even see them as a chore sometimes, but when we see them through the eyes of others – goats are magical creatures indeed!

Angelia Mercer
Editor
www.stillwatersfarm.blogspot.com

Accessorizing to Accentuate

Recently, while perusing show result web sites, virtual show pages and breeder’s pages in general, it became obvious that what the goat wears around its neck really affects HOW that goat looks, so the topic this time around will be collars.

While not the highest score on the score card, “dairy character” certainly does play a part in the final score.  The long, lean, smoothly blended neck should also display a clean throat latch.   What you chose as a show collar may be killing your score in this category before you even get your goat set up for the judge the first time.

Our model was pulled in out of the pasture and had not been clipped or bathed, but you can clearly see the difference that a collar can make!

 

In this first photo, our lovely, aged Mini LaMancha doe is being shown in a nylon “barn” collar.  The collar is new, unfaded and clean and is in the proper position for controlling the animal.  The color of the collar, however, shows in sharp  contrast to the coloring of the doe.  It also creates a visual line, which causes the eye to see the neck in two short, choppy pieces.



In this second photo, our model is being shown in a collar made from plastic dairy chain.  The chain fits into the doe’s throatlatch neater than the nylon collar does and we can see more of her neck – see how much longer it looks?  But, the chain is still “clunky” and the color is distracting.



In this photo, our model is wearing a narrow dog show lead made of nylon cord.  We do see this in the show ring quite a bit – But I would prefer to see the cord match the color of the goat as closely as possible.  Also remember – dairy goats are NOT to be shown with any type of lead or leash, so any extra  “lead” should removed or held discretely in the hand.

The most commonly accepted collar for show ring use is a metal chain collar.  Most exhibitors use a dog “choke chain” collar.  They come in various lengths and the chain links even come in various sizes.  It is important to note that the collar should NOT be used at choke chain!  Oval quick link fasteners are inexpensive, discreet and work very well.

The photographer had the models attention in this “win” photo.  Aaron had a very fine “herringbone” choke chain on her that we’d purchased off eBay.  It fit right in the groove of her throat latch and the Judge and onlookers barely noticed it!

 

I truly believe that most of our animals know that when the show chain goes on, it is time to be serious and settle down to work.  We work with them at home in a show collar a few times before a show to get them used to the feel  - it does feel different to them than a worn barn collar or frayed piece of baling twine.

 

The same care should be taken when posing goats for photos – you are selling that goat to the public and the goat should look its absolute best.

 

Feel free to contact us with any questions or comments at cherrybutte@msn.com

Good luck in the show ring and may your spring be filled with many bouncing baby kids!



Cari and Aaron Zisk own Cherry Butte Dairy Goats in Southern Idaho.  They breed and show ADGA/AGS Nigerian Dwarves as well as miniature Alpines, Lamanchas, Oberhasli and Toggenburg goats.

Our Road Trip to the National Goat Expo

When I found out the National Goat Expo was going to be held in Bloomington, IL, I knew I had to find a way to get there.  I’ll be honest, the idea of showing is a little nerve wracking to me.  I’m defensive about my babies.  (Hey, I’m human!)  Conformation and style are only part of the package.  Like most Mini breeders, we consider our goats part of the family.  We know which goats are hardy and resistant to parasites, which goats rarely need their feet trimmed, which goats are good mothers and will foster another doe’s young, which goats will stand quietly on the stand for an hour at a reenactment and let little children try to milk…  These are factors that make for a beautiful breeding plan and create an exceptional breed, yet they are not evaluated at a show.  But I digress, there have been so few opportunities to show minis, I felt it was important to go in support of our registry and breeds.

We packed up the truck the night before and laid out our clothes, so all we had to do was get up, dress, and load up the goats… and toss hay to everybody left behind, and fill water buckets…  We woke at five in the morning and drove most of the two and a half hour trip from Indiana to Bloomington by cover of darkness.  As we gained an hour, we arrived at the fairgrounds to check in around seven.  I’m not sure the geographical layout of Bloomington, IL, but it feels like being up on a plateau.  The sky is very large and the sun seems very near, making one feel quite small.  The fairground where the Expo was held consists of several long open shelters.  The shelters are airy, and on this early fall day, I was quite comfortable in their shade.  It was perhaps a little too dusty there.

 

I’ve been wary about showing for biosecurity reasons, but I can honestly say my goats really had no meaningful exposure to other goats.  Although I had reserved a stall in the goat barn, I ended up housing them in a pen ring side all day where they were quite comfortable.  It appeared it would be possible to show from the trailer quite comfortably there.  Many folks staying overnight protected their goats from contact with other herds using tarps.

The turn out for the show was light.  As I was coming by myself with my three younger elementary children, I had decided to bring four Mini Nubian doelings who could fit comfortably in two dog crates in the back of the pick up.  The Studdard’s of J Bar G Farms in Missouri are to be commended.  They not only brought their herd of Mini Manchas and Mini Nubians, but they picked up goats from other herds in order to round out the show.  We showed all the minis together, as we did not have enough goats to break it down into breeds.

We had two TMGR shows – the first judged by Denise Fraser and the second judged by Donna Elkins.  The results of the first show were accepted as the first MDGA show as well, and a second MDGA show was judged by Tim Flickinger.  It is important for our members to note that TMGR does have different breed standards and a different score card.  It is important to note that when making breeding selections and considering feedback.  However, we try to maintain good cooperative relationships between registries, being something of a necessity with participation numbers remaining low.

 

This was my family’s first showing experience, and the judges were kind and patient with my children who are still learning the routine and my doelings who are still learning to lead well, but thankfully for the most part walked willingly around the ring.  It was a good learning experience, and I think everyone had a nice time.  We returned home after dark, returning our babies to their dams who were uddered up and ready to nurse.

I’m not quite sure why there was not more interest in this show.  As a member of the Board of Directors and Mini Nubian breeder, I am interested in hearing from TMGR members and Mini breeders, particularly in the Midwest, about what interests them.  Do you wish to show?  Or have more of a fun family playdate with costume classes and milking contests?  Or have a get together for a one day milk test or for classification?  Or hold a clinic or cheese-making classes?  Is there a time of year that is better for an event?  If you have thoughts, please feel free to comment on this article, post to the TMGR facebook page or Yahoo! group, or email me directly at swgoats@yahoo.com.

Angelia Mercer

Editor

www.stillwatersfarm.blogspot.com

Mini-Mania Minutes- Not Just A Goat Show

TMGR sponsored two Mini Dairy Goat Shows at the recent Mini-Mania event on July 14th in Norco, CA.  Exhibitors of many minis made a showing at this weekend long event which included shows for pygmies, nigerian dwarfs and the mini-dairy goats.  There was also an exhibition of the mini-silkie fainting goats!

The days included a special guest speaker, Lorrie Boldrick, DVM along with a Goat Agility course that anyone could participate in as time allowed throughout the day.  The Tri-tip BBQ was an excellent source of dining cuisine for our lunch break as Dr. Boldrick explained the structure and components of the goat.  There was a question/answer session and we were so fortunate to have her present the information at our show.

Judges Dotty Clark and Rusty Repp kept things moving on Sunday and the exhibitors appreciated the upbeat atmosphere and camaraderie among the breeders and show personnel.  MJ Midstokke really helped encourage folks to support the silent auction and raffle, and overall, the general consensus was "we need to do this again!"  So stay tuned and we will post the next dates for Mini-Mania 2014 when they are available.

 

Donna Elkins

Shedding Light on Breeding Livestock

With breeding season rapidly approaching, there are a few things breeders have to keep in mind. The ongoing issue of In-Breeding, Line-Breeding & Out-Crossing our livestock can boggle the mind. I’ve had many new breeders tell me they would never breed a buck to a doe that is related. Please, let me put some light on this subject. I will go over each kind of breeding practice to shed some light.

 

First and foremost: Don’t put the human aspect into breeding livestock. They are not humans, they are not our babies, they are the animals that we care for and give us food or others things, such as wool, in return. Do we love them, yes.

 

There are 3 different ways to breed when it comes to their genetics. First is In-Breeding which for most people, is a no-no and I do agree with this. This is when a sire breeds his daughter, son breeds his dam, uncle breeds a niece, nephew breeds an aunt, or a full brother to a full sister. As an example: if the sire of a doe has a twin brother, or the dam of a buck has a twin sister. For me, they are just too closely related and I won’t take the chance of getting kids that won’t sell. They aren’t worth a flip at the auction either. That is from my own experience for “oops’’ that have happened over the years. And they do happen when your favorite buck decides that a 7ft fence is not high enough to keep him from breeding that sexy little doe that he knows is in her cycle. He doesn’t know she’s his daughter and could care less.

 

The 2nd way, and in my opinion the best way, to breed your girls is Line-Breeding. This is done several ways and I can’t list all of them. The closest is a half brother to a half sister.They carry 50% of the same bloodlines. The other 50% are 25% from the buck and 25% from the doe, say they have the same sire, they have different dams. Using 50% of a common bloodline, for the most part, will give you the best qualities in their kids. It can also go the other way. Line-Breeding is also when they are cousins and may be a generation or more back. A grandson breeding his grandmother is close but I’ve had some very good dairy goats come from this breeding as I was adding her genetics for a wonderfully attached udder into the offspring. For me, this is the way I like to breed my herd.

 

There is also Out-Crossing and this can add genetics that are good and awful. This is adding in the human thinking of breeding, when the animals are not related at all. Over the years I have Line-Bred but this year I am adding 2 young bucks that are not related to my herd. In time it will be an interesting kidding season but these boys will be too young for this years breeding season so their job for a year is to grow.

 

All this is an investment and no matter how you breed your livestock, it’s all a gamble anyway.  

 

Suzy Minck

milkmaid@embarqmail.com

www.milkmaidranch.com