July 22/12 South Island Goat Show

July 22/12 – South Island Goat Show (Victoria, BC)

              Yes – I show goats. It’s like a dog show in some ways, except goats are livestock and the exhibitors don’t tend to dress up as I’ve seen at the dog shows. If you have animals and want a good laugh, rent the move “Best in Show”. It’s a bit over the top but the fundamentals aren’t that different and the personalities….

              I show for a few different reasons. One is to get my livestock into the public and show them off, hopefully generate interest and make some sales. It’s also a way to compare my goats with others & see how they stack up. However, mainly it’s the socializing and hanging out with friends I have made over the years. We talk, talk, catch up on each other’s lives, and generally have fun.

              I took three bucks to the South Island Show. A buck is what an intact/un-neutered male goat is called, not a billy. An adult female is called a doe, like a deer. Nannies are British childcare experts. A baby goat is a kid and the teens are called bucklings and doelings, or brats (maybe that’s just me).

              Mousse attended his first show, he is originally from California, & we had him shipped to us when he was 3 weeks old. His official handle is Cactus-flower VG Meadow Mousse and is a very nice buck – I hope he will sire some lovely kids to be born next February.

Two of the bucks are twins – Sultan and Max (originally called Tali and Ban). They are 18 months old and all the babies (kids) born on the farm this year were sired by them. Max fathered about 30 kids with 80% being males. Sultan fathered 10 kids with it split 50/50 male and female.

With a dairy, you generally prefer to have female babies. You can keep the girls, raise them up, and add them to the milking herd. Baby boy goats can be raised for meat but unlike calves are not kept in confinement with no exercise.

It remains a problem for our dairy – what to do with the extra male kids. All baby goats are bottle raised on our farm, and it is a ton of work but lays down a great foundation. In the end, especially with the girls, hand raising makes them into a much happier, healthier, and more “bomb-proof” adult. They look to people as part of their social herd and are happy with handling and experiencing new and novel situations.

This year we decided not to raise the boys and used the kids for meat for our dogs, at least there was no waste. It is a difficult problem and any ideas would be welcome.

The show results: Mousse won Junior Champion Toggenburg. He was the only entry but the judge is under no obligation to give him a 1^st place. Sultan won Reserve Grand Champion Toggenburg with his sire Emissary taking the Grand Champion. Emissary also won Best in Show over a number of other very nice bucks. Our good friends Sharon and Al Lamontagne, who have just received their dairy license, own Emissary (www.dogwoodridgefarms.com). It reflects well on Sultan & Max to have a sire that is a permanent Grand Champion. Well done Sharon & Al!