Tough one! I will step aside and see what the experienced ones say- I like your line of thinking I have thought to cross with kikos too for increased vigor and parasite resistance....
Which is best?
So I compiled six pictures of kiko/kiko cross bucks for sale across multiple states that I drive through yearly.
I have been battling parasites all summer and would really like to cross my registered alpine with something a little more hardy and my favorite that I have come across is the Kiko. However, I would like the resulting offspring to be more conformationally dairy correct if that makes sense.
What I am interested in is a quality herd that produces enough milk for me to raise kids, and still make cheese and soap. I was hoping that you all could offer your vast knowledge and let me know how you would rank these bucks if you were going to breed them to conform to a more "dairy" conformation and why. Ages are varying and I if it isn't ok for me to take pictures off craigslist please let me know! I don't want anyone offended.
Thank you very much!
Conglomeration of bucks:
I have been battling parasites all summer and would really like to cross my registered alpine with something a little more hardy and my favorite that I have come across is the Kiko. However, I would like the resulting offspring to be more conformationally dairy correct if that makes sense.
What I am interested in is a quality herd that produces enough milk for me to raise kids, and still make cheese and soap. I was hoping that you all could offer your vast knowledge and let me know how you would rank these bucks if you were going to breed them to conform to a more "dairy" conformation and why. Ages are varying and I if it isn't ok for me to take pictures off craigslist please let me know! I don't want anyone offended.
Thank you very much!
Conglomeration of bucks:
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First, if you can, find out how worm-resistant they are and how well their dams milk. Conformation comes third...IMHO. But with that said, I agree with Scottyhorse; I like the look of 2 and 4 best.
But with that said, I agree with Scottyhorse; I like the look of 2 and 4 best.
I will see if I can dig up pictures, this computer is severely lacking in goat pictures! Unfortunately my does also happen to be fairly steep behind and have "posty" legs.
Found a picture of one of the does on the day I brought her home (shes has since had free choice minerals/kelp, copper, and has lost the roughness) :
Found a picture of one of the does on the day I brought her home (shes has since had free choice minerals/kelp, copper, and has lost the roughness) :
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Will definitely take parasite resistance and milk production into account, but I find them to be the traits that I can't evaluate for myself. It is more information that will be gathered off from the breeder/owner or from pictures of the dam.
Conformation is something that I would love to get better at understanding and can look for myself once I train my eye to see what I'm supposed to be looking for! So thought that would be the "easiest" place to start expanding my knowledge!
Thank you both for the input! What points are drawing you to 2 and 4 over the other goats? 2 is my favorite topline as it looks the most level, but I'm not sure where to go from there?
:whatgoat:
Conformation is something that I would love to get better at understanding and can look for myself once I train my eye to see what I'm supposed to be looking for! So thought that would be the "easiest" place to start expanding my knowledge!
Thank you both for the input! What points are drawing you to 2 and 4 over the other goats? 2 is my favorite topline as it looks the most level, but I'm not sure where to go from there?
:whatgoat:
I actually like 1 & 2 the best; I see 3, 4 and 5 as having topline issues, and 6 looks generally unhealthy. Since 2 is only a kid, his current conformation might be unreliable, so I would be sure to get pictures of his dam and sire before making any decisions. I really like your idea of crossing with Kiko! Hope it works out well for you
Thanks for the explanation
At what age does a kid's conformation become more "reliable"? Or I guess a better way of saying it would be when do they mature enough to get a better idea?
Thanks everyone so much!
At what age does a kid's conformation become more "reliable"? Or I guess a better way of saying it would be when do they mature enough to get a better idea?
Thanks everyone so much!
2 looks the best to me because he seems like he has a nice, level topline, fairly good brisket for a kid, nice angular legs, and his neck blends well into his withers and chest. His rump, from what I can see, looks okay. I would say it looks good for meat goat standards, but not dairy goat standards. They are, after all, very different
I would say at about a year, but the older the better IMO.Thanks for the explanation
At what age does a kid's conformation become more "reliable"? Or I guess a better way of saying it would be when do they mature enough to get a better idea?
Thanks everyone so much!
I would say that at 3 months of age, they start to develop and reveal their 'forever' qualities, but at 4-5 months is when you will see a smaller version of what they will look like in adulthood.
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