Kinder® Communique'

Pasture Management of Parasites

2012-02-11T15:33:00.001-08:00

by Sue Beck

With our days getting longer and our pastures getting greener, many of us are looking forward to being able to put our goats out on grass. But with the fresh new leaves of spring come one of the biggest threats to our herds’ health – parasites.

During the winter, the parasite eggs in your pastures go dormant, and pose very little risk of infecting our goats, making it the ideal time to get parasite problems under control. Now is the time when you should be testing fecal samples and treating accordingly, or using a broad spectrum dewormer to eradicate the parasites currently in your goats. If you can begin the summer with a clean herd, you will end it with a clean pasture.

In a recent presentation, Dr. Donald Bliss, founder and owner of MidAmerica Ag Research, recommended the following procedure to eradicate parasites in your herd:

Mid-late winter

1. Use Safeguard at the rate of 7.5 mg/kg spread over 3 days, then give Cydectin cattle pour-on dewormer orally (1 cc/ 20 pounds) on day 4.

2. Check random fecal samples 7-10 days after deworming.

3. Retreat if necessary, using wormer specific to the worms your goats still have.

4. Continue this process until your samples are free of parasites.

Early spring (as soon as the grass starts to grow):

1. Treat your herd with Safeguard at the rate of 7.5 mg/kg spread over 3 days.

2. Wait three weeks and retreat with Safeguard again.

3. Wait three weeks and treat with Cydectin as above (1 cc/ 20 pounds).

Timing is critical in this process. Parasite larva load is extremely high in the spring as dormant eggs begin to hatch, but by June, almost all these eggs have hatched and emerged. By treating aggressively at the beginning of the grazing season, you eradicate almost all existing larva from your pasture. If your goats are not dropping new eggs, the rate at which they become reinfested with parasites should decrease dramatically, and continue to decrease each year until they are virtually nonexistent in your herd. Just remember – if you can get your goats worm-free in winter and your pastures worm-free in spring, the rest of your year will be trouble free, too!

Liver Fluke

2012-02-08T10:00:00.001-08:00

LIVER FLUKE
(an often-misidentified worm that's lethal if not treated for properly)
Update 12/08
by Sue Reith.

SYMPTOMS
Liver fluke damage is generally rather slow in appearing in mature goats... In a reasonably healthy goat, it can take years of gradual decline before the owner is even aware that Liver fluke is present. Symptoms are some, if not always all, of the following: Gradual increase in unthriftiness (dry coat, guard hairs sticking up, ribbiness, pale eye membranes (indicating anemia caused by the worm's activity), a swelling under the jaw (that has erroneously been considered among the veterinary community to be symptomatic of resistance to treatment for Haemonchus contortus), and, eventually, a possibly sub-normal temp (less than 102 degrees), a distended belly (symptomatic of last-stage liver disease), and fecal pellets that are almost black in color and shriveled up with pointy ends on them.
Often the victim goat is one that has been wormed routinely, and yet still continues its gradual decline. The problem is that there's only one wormer on the market that will wipe out Liver fluke properly, Ivomec PLUS, (the PLUS part being clorsulon, specifically for eradication of Liver fluke) and many owners don't even know this wormer exists! Sadly, even when the owner finally learns about it and starts treatment, by that time there has often already been too much damage to the goat's liver for it to be saved even after proper worming.
BTW: While Liver fluke damage is often found in otherwise well-managed mature goats that despite good care continue to decline in appearance, in my experience this sudden appearance of anemia and weakness with either normal, or subnormal, temp (and sometimes swelling under the jaw as well) is not at all unusual to discover in young ruminants within the first few months of life as well. At that age it commonly shows up when they're heavily exposed to it in pastures containing wet areas, before their immune systems can get up and going to protect them. In fact, it's not uncommon for these young victims to die so fast they hardly have time to be sick.¹ This is especially true if there are any clostridial (Entero) organisms present in them, since they multiply and secrete their toxins fast in the already damaged, poorly oxygenated liver tissue .¹

TREATMENT:
I'm not one to quit without at least doing my best to save the goat... So if a goat of mine were affected with Liver Fluke I'd start it immediately on Ivomec Plus, using the appropriate worming approach as follows: All wormer packages note on the packaging that the product kills off ONLY the adult stages. So in order to get the worm load in the host down to a low enough level so that the immune system can take over and keep the problem under control, you need to worm 3X, with 10 days between wormings. The first dose will wipe out the adults already in there, the second dose will wipe out the larvae that were in the gut, but not affected by the first worming, as they become adults (but before they can start laying eggs of their own), and the third dose kills off any eggs that were left over after you started the worming regimen,when they've passed thru the larval stage, when they, too, have become adults.

And as soon as you've begun the repair process by giving the first dose of Ivomec Plus, the next step would be to immediately start the goat on subcutaneous injections of Ferrodex 200 (each 1 ml dose of which delivers 200 mg of elemental iron... BTW: If the Ferrodex 200 isn't easily accessible, go to the local Rite Aid or other drug store and buy a bottle of Iron tablets (Ferrous Sulfate, ~321% or 65mg, crush them, and feed with yogurt) (1 Ferrous Sulfate tablet is equivalent to 1/3/ dose of Ferrodex200, so 3 iron tablets would be the equivalent of 1 daily dose provided in Ferrodex200), to restore the liver's red cells, the loss of which was the cause of have caused the anemia and the blackened, shriveled, pointy-ended fecal pellets. And at this very critical time, as adjunct (supportive) therapy, I'd give it subcutaneous doses daily of 'Fortified' B-complex' (a combination of B vitamins needed for proper body function that has everything but B-12), essential because every time the patient urinates, it's losing all of those vitamins that are needed to maintenance of its body functions, and BoSe (to support his stressed immune system so that the goat can help itself to get well from inside, while I work on it from the outside), and Banamine (to reduce the goat's pain and cut the inflammation caused by the worm damage) which, once given, will encourage the goat to want to eat once again! And last but not least, I'd give the goat a preventative doe of C&D antitoxin (to prevent entero from taking this opportunity to sneak in and finish the poor victim off because while it's down its stomach is not digesting food and moving it out of its body as it should.)
BACKGROUND :
Liver fluke is found in most of the US, but it's especially common in the Southern states due to the lack of good frosts to wipe out eggs and larvae in winter. We see it often up here in the Northern states as well, but because we have colder winters, the numbers, fortunately, are somewhat lower. However during the rainy season, no matter what part of the country the goat lives in, the Liver Fluke problem becomes particularly pervasive each year!
Today, by far the most difficult problem that we as owners face with Liver fluke treatment/control is that the veterinary community in general isn't even aware that it's there. As a result, they're unable to recommend proper treatment for it. This is because the egg of the Liver fluke (Fasciola hepatica)² looks so similar to that of the Barberpole worm (Haemonchus contortus)² that when it shows up on the slide in the Vet's office it's routinely misidentified to BE that of the Haemonchus contortus (or perhaps by some general term like strongyles, stomach worms, et al). And this is despite the fact that the Merck Veterinary Manual (8th Ed. Pp.197-198)³, which, BTW, is not a text used in Vet Schools, but in fact is instead a text available to Veterinarians and Goat owners as well, in discussing its prevelance, notes: "Fasciola hepatic, the most important trematode of domestic ruminants, is the common cause of Liver Fluke disease in the USA and other temperate areas of the world. It's endemic along the Gulf Coast, the West Coast, the Rocky Mountain Region, and other areas... IT is present in Eastern Canada, British Columbia, and South America... etc and so forth.. They have even found it in Europe, Australia,in NEw Zealand, Africa and Asia, and it's been reported in Hawaii as well"...
Until just a few years ago the veterinarian, seeing what was thought to be Haemonchus contortus eggs on the slide, would recommend Ivomec to the owner as the wormer of choice to eradicate it. And rightly so, because the moment Ivomec appeared on the scene back in the early 1980's, it was recognized as the most effective general wormer to show up ever! And frankly it remains, in my view, still the best and most efficacious general wormer on the market today.
And largely because the real Haemonchus contortus has always responded very well to Ivomec, veterinarians, misidentifying Liver fluke eggs as those of Haemonchus contortus, quite logically continued recommending Ivomec for treatment. When the Liver fluke failed to respond to the Ivomec treatment, unfortunately the loss of the animal in question was assumed to be a sign of the Haemonchus contortus having developed 'resistance' to the Ivomec! This notion has now become so pervasive that the veterinary community in general believes these days that the worms affecting livestock have developed a resistance to Ivomec, the result being a recommendation to their clients that they (1) increase the doses, and (2) turn to other wormers. Neither approach has even slowed down the deaths being caused, in fact, by Liver fluke. Since neither of those suggestions are working, the most recent approach has been to set up Famacha classes to instruct owners and veterinarians alike in how to check the eyelids of the downed animals to see if they're anemic. If the animals have pale eyelids, indicating they're anemic, owners are sometimes advised to destroy the victim, fearing that if it lives, the 'resistance to wormers' will spread even further.
Sadly, neither plain Ivomec, nor Panacur, nor any of the other general wormers on the market today, are effective against Liver fluke. The fact is, this parasite can ONLY be eradicated efficiently by using a product called Ivomec Plus . It's not the Ivomec itself, but the PLUS part of the combined wormer, which is actually 'clorsulon' , that effectively wipes out Liver fluke.. And (very critically) since it only kills the ADULT of the species, clorsulon (just as all wormers) must be used at regular doses, 3 X in a row, 10 days apart, to wipe out all stages of the worm. ¹
And it will no doubt be of particular interest for those owners who are worried about using milk from does being treated with Ivomec Plus that the Pharmaceutical companies have now run the required tests on those two products that officially clears them for use in lactating ruminants!
So in my view, these days (particularly if the reader is having a hard time controlling internal parasites in his/her animals) Ivomec Plus (instead of plain Ivomec) should ALWAYS be used for general worming, 'just in case'! Just like regular Ivomec, it can be given orally although it's actually an injectable. But since right now Ivomec itself is less readily being used by people (most of whom have never even heard of Liver fluke, and many of whom have their vets ID their goats' fecal samples as well) Ivomec Plus, while its importance is gradually growing among goat owners, may not yet be available in your local feed store... However it is readily available in livestock catalogs.

Breed History

2012-02-03T13:44:00.001-08:00

"Making the World a Little Kinder" by Pat Showalter
In the late summer of 1985 Zederkamm Farm found itself with a problem. The old Nubian buck who had kept our two Nubian does fresh for a continuing milk supply unexpectedly died in his sleep one morning. The idea of hauling our does off to another farm to be bred just
didn't appeal to us after an unsuccessful preliminary search for a replacement buck. Our real interest was in the milk. What would it matter if the resulting kids were purebred or not? One of our Pygmy bucks stepped up (way up) to volunteer his services, and so began the Kinder goat. Briar Rose was born first, then Liberty and Tia in the summer of 1986. We were surprised and delighted with the appearance and rate of growth of these little does. Liberty stayed with us, while the other two little girls went to nearby owners. In 1987 Liberty freshened for the first time with triplets, and proved to be a steady and reliable producer of the best milk we had ever tasted. On her next five freshenings she produced two sets of
quintuplets, a set of sextuplets, a triplet, and a twin set. She led the way as the first Kinder doe entered into official milk test (DHIA). Liberty earned her star by fulfilling the same requirements as those set by ADGA for standard dairy goats. Other local goat enthusiasts soon became involved in the Kinder project. Three of them organized what became the
Kinder Goat Breeders Association (KGBA) in 1988. Kinders were introduced nationally through a front page article in United Caprine News, January 1989. This small nucleus of a few goats and a handful of breeders in the Snohomish, Washington area was soon followed by the entrance of Bramble Patch Kinders of Miami MO into the project. They were inspired by the UCN article to start building their own herd of fine Kinders, and in turn encouraged others in MO to join in. Kinders are now distributed throughout the United States, with
another large group in California, and on into Canada and Brazil. There are presently close to 3.000 Kinders in the herd book. Along the way we have had the help and encouragement of many individuals, including other goat breeders and judges. Special note should be given to the Considines of Herd Evaluation Service (HES- Portage, WI). The KGBA has refined the Kinder Goat Breed Standard with their expert help. In addition, HES designed a scorecard
specifically for the dual purpose (milk and meat) Kinder.

Breeding Memo

2012-02-02T13:40:00.000-08:00

Send a Breeding Memo each time you send in a registration application for a kid which is a result of that breeding. Scan and copy the memo so you will have one for each kid’s registration application from that particular breeding.

Trade Mark

2012-01-23T11:00:00.000-08:00

How we began and why the need of a trademark:

A group of breeders in the State of Washington convened on May 30, 1988 to form a committee for the organization and promotion of the Kinder goat. These same breeders gave this specific cross, Registered Nubian and a Registered Pygmy, the name Kinder. With the guidance of Harvey Considine a Kinder® Breeder Standard was set up. Harvey Considine also made a Score Card specifically for the Kinder® goat. The other crosses of these same breeds done before 1988 did not have a name and were not bred according to the Kinder® Breed Standard, Score Card and not registered with the Kinder® Goat Breeders Association. The crossing of Nubian and Pygmy lines before 1988 had no specific name, being known only as cross bred. This same statement holds true for other crosses done today. The Kinder®goat is a goat that is bred according to the Kinder® Breed Standard and Score card and that can be registered with the Kinder®Goat Breeders Association. The crosses done in the past and those done today that do not follow the Kinder® Breed Standard and Score Card and cannot be registered with the Kinder® Goat Breeders Association are not Kinder® goats and should not carry the name or be recognized as a Kinder® goat.

Trademark: Kinder® Goat

A trademark offers protection somewhat similar to a copyright. A copyright helps to protect a thought or an idea, while a trademark protects more business specific such as names, symbols and etc. In our case we are talking about a name, Kinder® goat. By trade marking this name we have separated ourselves from other competitors in the market.

You ask why this is needed. There are lots of people that are breeding a Nubian and a Pygmy but not according to our breed standards and score card. They may be breeding an experimental Nubian to a non-registered Pygmy for instance. In this case there would be no way to trace ancestry lines of either breed. Those doing this breeding are calling the off-spring goats and they are not truly Kinder goats. A true Kinder® goat is one that is bred according to our standards and Kinder® score card and registered with the Kinder® Goat Breeders Association.

Many problems have surfaced since the breeding of the Kinder goat in the 1980’s. Animals of unknown origins have been sold to unexpected buyers then that buyer is unable to register those animals with the KGBA because of the unknown origin. Now the buyer is out all the money spent and has no animals that can be registered with the Kinder® Goat Breeders Association. This is a sad situation but nothing the Kinder®Goat Breeders Association can do.

In order to start your own lines of Kinder goats you must use a Nubian that is either registered with American Dairy Goat Association (ADGA), American Goat Society (AGS), or the Canadian Goat Society (CGS). This Nubian must be a Purebred or full American Nubian. The Pygmy must be registered with National Pygmy Goat Association (NPGA), American Goat Society (AGS), or the Canadian Goat Society (CGS). The crossing of these two registered breeds results in a first generation Kinder. After this initial breeding the Kinder is bred within their own breed. All Kinder® goats are registered with the Kinder®Goat Breeders Association.

Copies of the Nubian registration papers and the Pygmy registration papers are sent along with the application of this first generation animal where they are recorded and kept on file. In this way the breeder and the buyer can trace the ancestry of those animals. All registration applications, pictures, transfers and etc. are kept on file in the KGBA data base.

It is because of unscrupulous sellers just looking to make a dollar that it was felt we must protect our name as well as buyers, by trade marking the Kinder goat name. Now these people can no longer legally use the name Kinder goat to sell their animals.

It should be understood that by trade marking the name, Kinder® goat, that the Kinder®Goat Breeders Association has no legal right of ownership to your Kinder® goats. It is not the commodity (the goat) that is trademarked but the name only.

Evaluation Sheet and Photo of Ebony

2011-12-22T12:31:00.001-08:00

Notice the length of her canon bone and her height. She goes over the breed standard.

Notice the length of the canon bone on Kaffee and her height.

Evaluation Sheet and Photo of Kaffee

2011-12-22T12:24:00.001-08:00

How would you evaluate this doe? She is a first generation Kinder.

Use your registration papers as a breeding tool.

2011-11-27T12:26:00.001-08:00

This is Oreo. Oreo’s great grand sire on his dam’s side is a brother to Bramble Patch Kinder E Lee

This is Reba’s Roma

Roma’s grand sire on her dam side is Bramble Patch Kinder Apple Jack who is the son of Bramble Patch Kinder E Lee.

I am using the buck above on this doe because he comes from my lines. By using your registrations you can do the same.

Beauty Mountain Reba’s sire was Bramble Patch Kinder Apple Jack and his dam was Bramble Patch Kinder E Lee. Reba and E Lee have both evaluated as excellent. Their lines have good udders and milk.

Oreo’s sire evaluated as excellent at around 1 year of age. Oreo’s grand sire and dam on his sire’s side both have evaluated as excellent and there is milk on both sides. His great grand sire on his dam’s side is Bramble Patch Kinder Ebony’s Black Pepper. Black Pepper’s dam (BPK Ebony) made her star in a 1 day milk test where she tested 12 pounds ( this is about 1 and 1/2 gallons) Black Pepper is a brother to Bramble Patch Kinder E Lee.

Yes, this is line breeding. If you want to have consistency in your herd then you must bring the good qualities back into your herd all the time. If you consistently out cross you will wash away all the good qualities in a very short time. In order to keep those good qualities take a look at your registrations to find the animals with the good conformation and milking ability, then look at others herds that have these same animals in their lines, then join their lines with yours. By doing this you will hopefully be keeping all those good qualities in your herd.

Concord is the sire of E Lee and E Lee is in the lines of Theo Van Goat, Oreo and Reba's Roma.

Sire and Daughter

2011-11-27T11:14:00.000-08:00

Here is Bramble Patch Kinder Concord at the top and on the bottom his daughter Bramble Patch Kinder E Lee.

Son and Sire

2011-11-27T10:58:00.000-08:00

This is Oreo on top,3 years old and his Sire at about 1 year pictured on the bottom.

2011-11-04T14:18:00.001-07:00

How many would go to the web site to read a newsletter that they have already received by email and in the regular mail?

Scrotal Attachments

2011-10-25T16:48:00.001-07:00

They need to be high and tight and a good circumference. A buck is 50% of your herd and better. You want those daughters to have well attached udders with a will to milk. Cattle people believe that the size of the scrotal is an indication of the milking ability of the daughters. We know the size of the scrotal is an indication of good reproduction too. Pay close attention to the conformation of the buck. You want him to be smooth and level across the top with a good extension of brisket. We are not looking for just a wide chest but one with an extension of brisket. Look for good width between those hind legs and good strong legs and feet. Don’t just breed your does to any buck but look for the best that you can find.

Parts of a Kinder Goat

2011-10-12T12:31:00.001-07:00

Use this sheet to help you understand the Evaluation Sheet below. The scoring on the Evaluation Sheet is dim so I have copied the scoring and it is listed below.

1...90-100 Excellent
2+..87-89 Very Good
2...84-86 Good
2-..80-83 Fair
3+..77-79 Utility
3...74-76 Utility
3-..70-73 Utility
4...60-69 Utility

Evaluation of a Kinder Buck

2011-10-12T11:50:00.000-07:00

Click on the edge of the Evaluation Sheet in order to make it bigger so you can read it.

Breeder Standard

2011-10-11T11:09:00.001-07:00

Here is a copy of the Breed Standard. Please take note; the Kinder goat is to be genetically horned. An animal that is polled is not to be used for breeding and should not be registered.

Kinder Goat Breeders Association

The Kinder is a midsize goat that is well proportioned in body length and legs. Its compact
physique conforms to dairy characteristics despite its somewhat heavy bone and lean, yet
well muscled structure. The Kinder goat is a prolific, productive, alert, animated,
good-natured and gregarious breed.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Appearance
HEIGHT: 20"- 26" at the withers for does, maximum 28" for bucks.
COAT: Short, fine textured.
MARKINGS: Any colors, any markings are acceptable.
HEAD: Strong, clean-cut, balanced, with deep jaw and wide muzzle and nostrils. Straight or
dished face. Ears are long and wide, resting below horizontal and extending to the end of the
muzzle or beyond when held flat against the jaw line. Genetically horned; disbudding and
dehorning recommended. (NOTE: in order to show at sanctioned shows, animals must be
disbudded or dehorned). Large eyes, widely set, bright and animated.
SHOULDER: Muscular, well attached at withers and set smoothly on the chest wall. Point of
shoulder behind brisket extension.
CROPS: Full, well muscled, not fatty.
BACK: Strong, laterally straight, smooth transposition from withers, blending smoothly at
hips into rump.
CHINE: Level and straight.
LOIN: Wide, level and having moderate fleshing over short ribs.
RUMP: Moderate slope from hips to pins and otherwise wide level from thurl to thurl. Pin
bones should be moderately wide, set level with the tail head and have moderate fleshing.
LEGS: Moderately heavy boned but not coarse. Strong, sturdy, straight, wide apart,
providing ample height for udder clearance. Pasterns medium length. Strong and springy
with proper slope. Rear legs when viewed from behind set wide apart and straight; when
viewed from the side, well angulated from thurl to hock. Hock cleanly molded, straight from
hock to pastern.
FEET: Short, straight, with deep heel and level sole. Toes symmetrical and tight, not curled
or splayed.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dairy/Meat Character
NECK: Moderate length, strong and muscular but not fat, smoothly blended to shoulder and
brisket.
WITHERS: Wedge shaped, slightly above and blending smoothly into the shoulder blade.
Muscular but not fat, should be slightly higher than hips.
RIBS: Long, flat, and wide apart, well sprung and deep.
FLANK: Moderately deep and arched, with some increase in depth of flank over depth at
heart girth.
THIGHS: Muscular, but with some incurving when viewed from the side and rear; set apart
and long with somewhat wide incurving escutcheon providing ample room for the udder.
SKIN: Soft, fine textured, and pliable.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Body Capacity
Relatively large in proportion to the size of the animal, providing ample lung, digestive, and
reproductive capacity, as well as strength, vigor, and stamina. Greater attention to depth and
spring of rib than to body length.
CHEST: Deep and wide, moderate angularity.
BARREL: Deep and strongly supported by ribs that are wide apart and well sprung; depth and
width increasing toward the rear of the barrel.
HEART GIRTH: Deep, resulting from long, well sprung fore ribs, wide chest floor, full at the
point of elbow.
BRISKET: Prominent, extending beyond the point of shoulder when viewed from the side.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mammary System
FORE UDDER: Extended well forward, widely and tightly attached.
REAR UDDER: Highly, widely, and tightly attached.
MEDIAL SUSPENSORY LIGAMENT: Strong and dividing neatly into a wide, quite level
udder floor with about 1/2" deep cleft.
CAPACITY AND SHAPE: Proportionately large capacity with uniform halves and soft
texture adding to capacity.
TEATS: Medium size, easy to milk, cyndrilical, uniform, plumb from rear view, pointing
slightly forward from the side view. any teat abnormality denotes a "cull" and is unacceptable.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reproductive System for Bucks
TESTICLES: Two, evenly and fully descended, of equal size, healthy and firm. The scrotal
sac is to be soft and pliable, with moderate to tight attachment.
TEATS: Two non-functional, well shaped and adequately spaced. Any teat abnormality
denotes a "cull" and is unacceptable.

Kinder Goats and Color

2011-10-06T11:03:00.001-07:00

Here is an issue that is very troubling to myself and others in the association. Color seems to have become to many, the main characteristic, when breeding the Kinder goat. Color should be the last consideration in our breeding program. Conformation, good udders, milk production and a good meat carcass should be our main focus not flashy colors, spots and etc.. It may be that there are those that will pay more money for a Kinder with lots of spots and other color combinations but this should not be. Any good serious breeder will not go this route. This type of breeding is not going to be good for our Kinder goat and in the end is going to produce animals that will evaluate as poor specimens of the Kinder breed. This is not what we want our Kinder goat to become just a goat of many colors.

Kinder breeders it is up to you personally to insure that color does not ruin the Kinder goat.

Kinder Goats

2011-09-30T08:34:00.001-07:00

A Kinder Goat is one that is bred according to the Kinder Score Card and the Kinder Breed Standard. As Kinder breeders we are breeding one type of goat and that is according to our standards. We do not have two or more types of goats but only one. The Kinder is a dual purpose animal that will milk and also provide a good meat carcass. The ideal Kinder doe is to be 26 inches at the withers and the bucks 28 inches. Those animals with longer more dairy type bodies and legs are not truly Kinder goats. There are many dairy animals for people to choose from, we do not need to try to make our Kinder one of those. If we are to continue to breed a dual purpose animal then we must breed according to our standards.

This is a good example of a Kinder buck.

DAM RAISED ARE BOTTLE RASIED

2011-09-25T11:11:00.001-07:00

I suppose I should say that this is the breeders preference but if you are selling Kinder stock then you might want to consider the buyers thoughts.

For my husband and myself this is very important because in general dam raised kids are not nearly as gentle are easy to handle as those raised on a bottle. We are in our 70’s and 80’s so animals that are easy to handle is quite important. We have owned both so we know first hand just how these animals act as kids and into adulthood. Those Kinder raised by their dams are never as gentle and trusting as those that are bottle raised. We have one older doe in our barn right now that was dam raised and to this day she is not nearly as easy to handle as the other older doe that was raised on a bottle. We have two doelings in our barn right now with one being raised by her dam and one raised on the bottle. The young doe that was dam raised is quite a challenge when trimming hooves, worming and etc..

I often hear breeders say that leaving kids on the dams is the natural and best way. It may be the natural way but it is not always the best way. When raising Kinder kids give some thought to the buyers that you plan to sell these animals too. I would almost always give more money for a bottle raised kid than one that was raised on their dam.

Here is a little hint that has worked for us: When wanting the dams to raise their kids then only leave those kids with their moms for the first week to ten days then move the kids to a separate area. Twice a day bring the does to the kid area and turn them in for the kids to nurse. Just as soon as they have finished nursing open the gate and doe will be very happy to return to the barn leaving her kids in their kid quarters. Doing it in this way the kids will become yours ( much more friendly)and they will also be able to be raised by their dams. It has always worked for us.

Election 2012

2011-09-23T15:42:00.001-07:00

If you have not sent in your ballot voting for Officers for 2012 would you please do that right away.

Nice Kinder doe

2011-04-17T13:24:00.001-07:00

Udder of Young Doe

Here is a pictures of a nice Kinder doe. Notice that her hind legs are a little posty which could be a sign of good milk production. This was a picture of her udder as a kid. This is another sign that she will be a very good milking Kinder.

The evaluation is of this buck

2011-03-27T15:38:00.001-07:00

A Genetic Defect and its Management

2011-03-03T07:07:00.001-08:00

A Genetic Defect and its Management

By Dagny Vidinish ©

All animals, including dairy goats, have numerous genetic defects of varying severity. We are all familiar with the occasional multiple teats, for instance, and with such defects as undershot and overshot jaws. Other defects are rapidly fatal, and it often is unclear whether the death of a kid should be attributed to genetics or to misfortune. The exact inheritance of many of these defects is often obscure; for instance, although most people believe that multiple teats show up when both parents carry a gene for this trait there is evidence that in some cases they are actually caused by environmental factors. In order to manage these undesirable genes breeders usually have to fall back on the "don't repeat that breeding" strategy, which is very crude and unsatisfactory.

This article will describe a recently discovered genetic defect which is easily managed and eliminated because its mode of transmission is straightforward and, more important, because a foolproof DNA test is available to identify carriers of the gene.

This defect's full names are mucopolysaccharidosis IIID, or G-6-Sulfase deficiency, and it is usually referred to as G-6-S. It was first identified in 1987 at Michigan State University, and subsequently the researchers tested nearly one thousand goats in Michigan and concluded that about 25% of Nubians carry this gene. All cases are the result of a single mutation, and appear to be confined to Nubians and their crosses; other breeds were tested initially and they do not have this particular defect.

The affected goats lack an enzyme (G-6-S) and this results in a variety of symptoms of varying severity. The main symptom exhibited by affected goats is failure to grow. Sometimes the kid is smaller than normal at birth, and grows slowly. Some breeders have reported kids which grew normally for the first three months and then stopped growing. Other affected goats grow to what appears to be normal size but is in fact small for the particular bloodlines.

They lack muscle mass, appear "slab-sided", sometimes with blocky heads. Immune function appears to be compromised, and sometimes they become deaf or blind. The longest-lived goat known to be G-6-S affected died at just under four years of age, and death is usually due to heart failure. Unfortunately affected animals can and do grow up to breed, although they often experience reproductive problems.

The same symptoms can have many other causes, so that affected animals are seldom recognized as having a genetic defect. Often they grow normally for the first few months and may be sold before any problems become apparent. In that case the breeder may blame the new owner for the goat's failure to thrive and early demise.

Every animal has two genes for every trait, one inherited from the dam and one from the sire. In turn, that animal will pass only one of those genes to each offspring, and which one it will be is a matter of chance, like the flip of a coin. On the average, half the offspring will inherit one gene and half the other. If the two genes are different, then there is a question as to which of them will determine how the animal actually looks or functions. The defective G-6-S mutation is a simple recessive gene, which means that a goat which has only one copy of it will appear perfectly normal and will not show any of the symptoms described above. Such a goat is referred to as a "carrier." A goat which inherits the defective gene from both parents shows symptoms and isreferred to as "affected". A "normal" goat, in this context, is one who has two copies of the normal gene.

If a normal goat is bred to a carrier, then all offspring will inherit a normal gene from the normal parent. The carrier parent will pass a normal gene to half the offspring, and a defective gene to the other half. Thus such a mating will, on the average, produce half normal kids and half carriers, and no affected ones. If two carriers are bred to each other, then one quarter of the kids will be normal, one half will be carriers, and one quarter will be affected. If an affected goat is bred to a normal goat, all offspring will be carriers. An affected goat bred to a carrier will produce half carriers and half affected.

As stated above, research shows that 25% of Nubians carry the defective G-6-S gene. Almost all of these are carriers, since most of the affected animals which are born would be culled, and the rest die early. Most people find it surprising that something which is in one quarter of the population can have escaped notice for so long. However, random matings in such a population would result in only one out of sixteen being carrier to carrier, and only one quarter of the kids from these breedings would be affected. Thus only one kid in sixty-four (1.6%) would be affected. Given the variable and obscure symptomsof G-6-S affected kids, it really is understandable that most Nubian breeders believe that they have never encountered affected kids.

However, many Nubians are line-bred, and this practice will concentrate certain genes in some lines while eliminating them from others. It has been observed that the G-6-S mutation is very prevalent in the same lines which are known for high milk production. Thus breeders who have been selecting for milk may have inadvertently also been selecting for the G-6-S defect. Fortunately it appears that the two traits are actually independent, that you can cull the G-6-S carriers without at the same time culling the high producers.

Usually it is difficult to eliminate a genetic defect without losing all thegood genetics for which a line is known. For instance, if a buck throws double teats, then there is no way of knowing which of his offspring will do the same and which will not. You can cull him, but that seems rather heavy-handed since the bad gene will undoubtedly live on in some of his relatives. With G-6-S we are very fortunate to have a foolproof DNA test available which will tell us whether a goat is normal, or a carrier, or affected. This test makes it possible to save the good genetics and eliminate the defective gene if that is our wish. If a superior animal is a carrier, then we can test the kids and manage them in such a way as to avoid the birth of any affected individuals.

What is a good management strategy? What is the most efficient way to save the good and get rid of the bad? The usual recommendation for such testable defects is to cull carrier males, but not the females. Remember that if a normal buck breeds a carrier doe, then only half the kids will be carriers, and none will be affected. Thus if there are some carrier females in the herd, then using only normal bucks will reduce the incidence of carriers in the next generation by one half. The average herd would start with 25% carrier females, and if only normal bucks were used the next generation of females would be down to 12.5% carriers, and the next generation to 6.25%, etc. This is in sharp contrast to what a carrier buck would do in the same herd: if used to breed all the does, his daughters would be 50% carriers and 6.25% affected. Clearly there is much to be gained by testing buck kids and retaining only normal ones for breeding.

While it is relatively easy to cull a buck kid, one might hesitate to do the same with a proven sire. In particular, there are some very popular bucks whose semen commands a high price and who are carriers for the defective G-6-S gene.

A reasonable strategy here would be to use these bucks only on normal does, thus avoiding affected kids. Then one would test the kids and cull carrier bucks.

Although the DNA tests are expensive, if testing one's bucks prevents the birth of even one affected kid then it is cost effective. Unlike tests for diseases, a genetic test does not need to ever be repeated. Also, the DNA tests are completely accurate, there are none of the gray areas which can be so frustrating. There is no need to test the kids if both parents are known to be normal. One can work back from one's foundation animals and if there really is no problem in the herd then it may be possible to establish that at reasonable cost. Normally whole blood is used for the test, but semen can also be used. If an AI buck is a carrier, that can be established by finding a carrier offspring out of a normal doe, but no number of normal offspring will prove that a buckis normal.

A number of breeders have expressed the opinion that the G-6-S defect is no more of a problem than many other genetic defects, and therefore does not merit any particular attention. They evidently miss the point that it is the availability of a DNA test which makes this defect special. One can use goats from bloodlines which are known to have a high concentration of the G-6-S defect completely safely by just testing the particular individuals and either rejecting carriers or using them with proper precautions. There is nothing to be gained by trying to sweep G-6-S under a rug, and much to be gained by sharing information about it.

One may wonder why a DNA test has been developed for such an obscure defect, and no help is available for, say, multiple teats. The answer is simple - humans don't have a problem with multiple teats, they do with G-6-S. The same genetic defect, when found in humans, is called Sanfilippo IIID; the affected child appears normal at birth but soon stops growing, looses muscle mass, has neurological deterioration and dies. When the same genetic defect was discovered in goats researchers used them as models for treatment, and goatbreeders in turn benefited from their discoveries.

Testing for G-6-S is done at the Texas Veterinary Medicine Diagnostic Lab (TVMDL) at a cost of $ (please call for current cost) US.

NAIS

2011-02-19T17:21:00.001-08:00

Posted by: "Suzanne Gasparotto" onioncrk@centex.net onioncreek1

Fri Feb 18, 2011 9:57 am (PST)

*Animal ID Update: USDA plans to propose new rules*
A year ago, USDA announced that it was dropping its plans for the
National Animal Identification System (NAIS), and that it would instead
develop a new framework for tracking animals that move across state
lines. At the same time, the USDA also announced that it would form a
new "Secretary's Advisory Committee on Animal Health."
FARFA joined with a coalition of organizations to nominate a slate of
producers to the Committee. When the Committee was finally named late
last year, three of the coalition's nominees were selected: Judith
McGeary of FARFA, Gilles Stockton of the Western Organization of
Resource Councils, and Genell Pridgen of Carolina Farm Stewardship
Association. Judith McGeary was named Vice-Chair of the Committee, and
Dr. Don Hoenig (the State Vet of Maine) is the Chair.
The Committee, made up of a total of 20 people, met for the first time
on January 20-21, 2011. *At that meeting, the USDA officials stated that
a proposed rule has already been written and is going through the
administrative process prior to publication, which is expected to occur
in April. *Since the proposed rule is already written, changes at this
stage are not likely, but USDA asked that the
Committee identify any "show stoppers" with the framework.
The role of the Committee members is to represent "constituencies" of
people and organizations who are affected by USDA's animal health
programs. Below is a list of key concerns about the new framework that
we developed in cooperation with other organizations and submitted to
the full Committee for discussion.
The next public meeting of the Committee will be on March 4, by
conference call. It is open to the public, and information on how to
participate is posted on the Committee's website at:
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/acah/
<http://mail.centex.net/Redirect/et.ratepoint.com/abae0b597f85d9d73b4e2a3e31d3b2ce/ce6b08c285e6760ca10a87cf554577ff>
The Committee website also includes all of the documents presented to
the Committee, and will have a transcript of the first meeting when
available. The core documents explaining the new proposed framework for
Animal ID are also posted on FARFA's website:
1. Summary of proposed requirements
<http://mail.centex.net/Redirect/et.ratepoint.com/3456587d6fa7c255e72e34bdd1e5682a/ce6b08c285e6760ca10a87cf554577ff>
2. Powerpoint report
<http://mail.centex.net/Redirect/et.ratepoint.com/1a4ce13341faa187990e79352bf3a534/ce6b08c285e6760ca10a87cf554577ff> to
the Committee
3. Tag
<http://mail.centex.net/Redirect/et.ratepoint.com/8d9b58f886d4b9ed4933fc13673b2afd/ce6b08c285e6760ca10a87cf554577ff>
information
*After the proposed rule is published, there will be a public comment
period. We will alert you to how you can access the proposed rule and
make comments as soon as that information in available. Please be ready
to speak up!
The USDA's decision to withdraw the NAIS plan shows that the grassroots
can be successful. We will need each of you to be involved to ensure
that any new regulations do not create unfair burdens for the hundreds
of thousands of small farmers, ranchers, and other animal owners across
the country.
*

NIAA Weekly News Bulletin for Feb. 17, 2011

2011-02-19T09:14:00.001-08:00

http://nlpa.org/niaa/bulletin.htm

The Beginnings of the Kinder Breed

2011-02-06T11:49:00.001-08:00

HISTORIC KINDERS

PYGMY

Nubian

Zederkamm Liberty, first generation Kinder doe

Zederkamm Tia

Twiss Acres Thadius (Pygmy)

Born 10/05/80 – #80469M

Bred to Zederkamm Cocoa (Nubian), daughter of Brandy, producing Zederkamm Briar Rose

6/30/86

Bred to Zederkamm Brandy (Nubian) producing Zederkamm Liberty and Zederkamm Tia

7/04/88

Zederkamm Brandy (Nubian)

Born 01/84 – #BS850003D

Zederkamm Cocoa (Nubian)

No photo of Zederkamm Cocoa available

Born 04/85 – #BS840005D

Zederkamm Liberty

Born 7/04/86 - *M AR (FM) #1860007D

Sire: Twiss Acres Thadius #80469M

Dam: Zederkamm Brandy #BS850003D

Liberty was the first Kinder doe to earn her Milk Production Star

Zederkamm Tia

Born 7/04/86 #186011D

Sire: Twiss Acres Thadius #80469M

Dam: Zederkamm Brandy #BS850003D

Hypocalcemia in Late-Gestation

2011-02-06T11:23:00.001-08:00

HYPOCALCEMIA IN LATE-GESTATION (and lactating) DOES:
Feeding to Prevent it
By Sue Reith (2/07 update)

Hypocalcemia is a life-threatening condition that shows up when a doe is either pregnant or lactating, but getting fed an unbalanced diet that doesn’t provide her with enough calcium for both herself and her growing fetuses or for milk production. It can appear at any time during the last 2 months of pregnancy, right up to the doe's due date, as well as at any time while she’s lactating.
Symptoms: The first thing she'll do is refuse to eat her grain. Soon after that she won’t want her hay either. Without quick intervention she’ll become weak and wobbly, lethargic and depressed. If still untreated by then, she’ll lie down and not want to get up. If you take her temperature when you first see these changes, it’ll be normal (102.3), but soon after that it’ll drop to sub-normal (below 102). Unless corrective measures are begun right away you’ll lose both the doe and her fetuses.
Treatment: If, because you're unsure as to why the doe is behaving this way, you call a veterinarian in for advice, he or she will probably (and unfortunately) tell you that her problem is “pregnancy toxemia”, or “pregnancy disease”, or perhaps the most likely diagnosis will be “ketosis” a secondary condition that happens when the doe stops eating (in this case because she's too weak to do so) thus has to start living on her own body's reserves*. While ketosis was not the initial cause of the doe's difficulty, after a couple of days of being too weak to eat any food it will certainly become a major part of her problem! So it, too, must be dealt with fast! A veterinarian, recognizing the ketosis but not the hypocalcemia that caused it, will want to treat with glucose, etc. But it's absolutely essential that the doe be treated with calcium supplements** at the same time, without which she will either end up dead, babies and all, or with a c-section, with babies too young to survive, and a hefty vet bill as well. So it behooves the owner to take charge of this whole process right away, to treat the doe with calcium supplements for the hypocalcemia, and, if more than a day or two has passed before treatment was begun, with glucose for ketosis as well.

Cause: It's all about the food! Most cases are seen in does that are getting a hefty grain ration along with their hay, especially when they're getting grass hay instead of alfalfa. During the last 2 months of the doe's pregnancy, this type of grain/grass hay diet does not provide enough Calcium for both the fast-growing fetuses' bone development and for her own muscle tone as well, so depending on how many fetuses are draining calcium from her to build their little skeletons, at some point the babies will drain ALL of her calcium from her for their own needs, leaving her nothing to keep her heart going (the heart is a muscle) or to go into labor (the uterus is ALSO a muscle). And the more fetuses she's carrying, the sooner this will happen! With just 1 or 2 fetuses she may make it until she goes into labor, but then be too weak from lack of muscle tone to expel the babies in a timely manner***. Or if she does succeed in birthing the kids (often requiring the owner's assistance), starting lactation in a calcium-deficient state can lead to a sudden (and very surprising!) loss of milk production at some unexpected point during lactation.
Prevention: You CAN prevent this, just by feeding your pregnant does a proper diet during pregnancy! Pregnant does need a great deal of calcium in their diets, particularly in the last two months of gestation. That's when the fetuses, now having fully developed all their little parts, focus all their energy on growing rapidly, and in so doing drain large amounts of calcium from the mother's body. Calcium is only available in the diet if the doe is ingesting at least 2 parts (and no more than 5 parts) of calcium-providing food to every 1 part of phosphorus-providing food. “The calcium-to-phosphorus ratio of a food or supplement determines how much of the calcium is absorbed.” (http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/T040600.asp, bottom of the article, #8 under “12 ways to boost your calcium”.)
The only really good Calcium-providing feeds are alfalfa and clover, because grass hay contains barely any at all. OTOH, ALL forms of grain contain a great deal of phosphorus (and almost no calcium whatsoever). So if you feed grain without the calcium available from alfalfa or clover, OR if you feed alfalfa or clover without the phosphorus available from grain, there will be NO calcium available in the diet you feed for the developing babies....
During the doe's pregnancy, there are three basic feeding approaches that will prevent hypocalcemia.
(1) Provide her daily with a small amount of grain (for a mature dairy-sized doe that would be no more than one cup per feeding) along with a regular ration of alfalfa, or,
(2) If feeding a grass hay or pasture instead of alfalfa, give her NO grain at all. That's because while grass hay does in itself contain a proper ratio of calcium to phosphorus, the total amount of each is exceedingly low. But adding a heavy-phosphorus grain ration to it would turn the balance of calcium to phosphorus upside down to something like 1 Ca to 4 (or more) P, making NO calcium available to the doe, and setting her up for hypocalcemia in late gestation. To increase the availability of Calcium in this instance, provide a good free-choice loose supplemental trace mineral mixture that contains at least 16% protein (grass hay has only ~5%), along with a ratio of no lower than 2 parts of Calcium to each 1 part of Phosphorus (the amount of which could be nicely increased with the addition of powdered Di-Calcium Phosphate, available through feed suppliers as well as online.)
(3) For those who would prefer to feed both grain and hay in late gestation, but because they don't have ready access to free choice alfalfa must instead either pasture their goats or feed them grass hay, if alfalfa pellets can be bought locally at a reasonable price, a perfect late gestation diet for prevention of Hypocalcemia would be a ration of 1 cup (by measure) of grain, added to (using the same cup) 3 cups of alfalfa pellets, fed 2X daily, along with all the free choice pasture or grass hay the does want to eat between meals, and free choice access to a good, loose, trace mineral supplement, and baking soda.
In an effort to help owners figure out just how much of what feed to give their late gestation does to provide that minimum 2:1 ratio, I recently wrote a technical nutritional analysis of how the 2 CA to 1 P balance works out in real-time farm-feeding measurements. (I'll be happy to forward a copy of that analysis to readers who'd like to read it.)
And then to translate the technical information in the article into useful terms, I calculated the actual weight of the (minimum) 2Ca:1P ratio diet I feed to my own Togg does. In so doing I found that at mealtime they each get 1 lb of alfalfa (a combination of 12 oz alfalfa pellets, ALL of which is devoured eagerly, and roughly 24 oz loose alfalfa free choice, some of which is generally wasted) along with 1 cup (1/4 lb by weight) of grain. That's roughly a per-meal ratio of 1 lb of calcium-containing food to each 1/4 lb of phosphorus containing food, translating to a daily ration of 4:1 (4 Ca to every 1 P), well-within the parameters of the acceptable calcium to phosphorus ratios of 2Ca:1P to 5Ca:1P that are needed to make calcium available in the diet.
Because when measuring them pound for pound we can see there's a difference in the volume of grain and alfalfa pellets, after calculating the above feeding ratio by weight I went back again and re-calculated it by volume. When I filled up my 1-cup grain-measuring container with alfalfa pellets instead, I discovered that it took exactly 3 of them to fill up my larger, alfalfa-measuring container. So, when measuring out a feeding of grain and alfalfa pellets for one animal, to provide the essential minimum of 2 Ca to 1 P ratio in that meal all you need to do is put 3 of the small scoops (or a larger scoop that holds the equivalent) of alfalfa pellets into the dish, and top it off with 1 small scoop of grain****!
Addendum: For readers that while feeding to prevent Hypocalcemia are concerned about other nutrients, such as protein, being available to their does as well, according to Ensminger and Olentine's Livestock Feeds and Nutrition Complete the average digestible protein content in grain is 11.2%, whereas in alfalfa it's 15.9%, in clover 10.5%, in beet pulp it's 14.1% and in grass hay 5.1%. The average digestible energy level in grain is 1.38%, in alfalfa it's 1.13%, in clover it's 0.93%, in beet pulp it's 1.32%, and in grass hay it's 1.8%. And, last but not least, the average crude fiber content in grain is 6%, in alfalfa it's 27.2%, in clover it's 25.7%, in beet pulp it's 15.17%, and in grass hay it's 28.2%.
Sue Reith
Carmelita Toggs
Bainbridge Island WA
suereith@msn.com
*When the goat doesn't get food from outside, it tries to stay alive by using its own reserves. Its own fatty tissue is used to provide energy, and in so doing it releases 'ketones' into the system. The ketones soon shut down the liver, hence the name 'ketosis'.
**The most effective calcium supplementation is done with CMPK, because it's made up of not just Calcium, but also Magnesium, Phosphorus, and Potassium, formulated to work together as a team to make Calcium more quickly available to the body, and at the same time prevent an overdose of the Calcium (which when given alone can result in cardiac arrest) during restoration. For those that have no access to CMPK, A 'homemade recipe' for it follows:

To re-create the equivalent of a 30 cc CMPK dose (650 mg calcium; 500mg potassium; 150 mg phosphorus; and 96 mg magnesium) right in your kitchen, go to the Supplements department of any large chain-type drugstore and buy a bottle of Posture-D tablets (containing 600mg calcium, 266mg phosphorus, and 50mg magnesium), and bottles of Potassium tablets (500 or 550mg) and Magnesium tablets (150 or 250mg). Calculate the amount of each pill needed to come up with an equivalent to one 30cc dose of CMPK as spelled out above, and, using a pill cutter of some kind, create that amount, crush it up to a powder and serve it orally in a little yogurt. Or add some water to the mixture and dose it in a drenching syringe.
***This delayed labor brought about by a lack of sufficient calcium to provide the uterus with proper muscle tone is also the cause of Floppy Kid Syndrome! The babies remain in the birth canal for too long before gaining access to oxygen, a process which sets up an acidosis in the brain tissue. This is why Sodium Bicarbonate is the treatment of choice to save the 'Floppy Kid”, which it does by neutralizing the acidosis in the kid's brain.
****If the pregnant doe is lactating and still being milked, you can serve that grain/pellets combo to her while in the stanchion
Sue Reith

CUSTARD PIE

2011-01-23T12:10:00.000-08:00

4 eggs slightly beaten
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 c. milk, scalded
9 inch unbaked pie shell
Dash of nutmeg

Thoroughly mix eggs, sugar, salt and vanilla. Slowly pour in hot milk. Pour into shell at once. Sprinkle nutmeg over the top and bake in preheated oven at 475 degrees for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to 425 degrees and bake for 10 minutes or longer if necessary.

Goat Trailer Made from the Back of a Van

2011-01-18T07:32:00.000-08:00

My Story About CAE

2011-01-15T10:56:00.000-08:00

Lets talk about CAE.

At the very beginning of my Kinder breeding program I was just like lots of others, looking for more genetics for my Kinder herd without using caution when buying new stock for that program.

Sure I had read all the warnings of bringing in new stock without asking about CAE, CL and etc. but just as I have already stated, I threw all caution to the wind. All I could think about was wanting new bloodlines to increase my gene pool.

Well in 1994 the chickens came home to roost, so to speak. After coming back from the Missouri State Fair, with a blue ribbon for the Kinder doe that milked the most in the milking competition, it was time for CAE testing. This was the first time for my testing the doe that had won the milking competition. It was then that my night mare started.

I had the vet to come and draw blood for CAE.The vet called when he received the test results. All negative except for one doe. This was the doe that had won the milking competition. This was the one that tested positive for CAE. I will always remember how sick I felt. I could not believe this, she didn't have enlarged knee joints, she was in great condition and her coat shown like a bright new copper penny. There had to be some mistake, the test had to be wrong. So I ask the vet to draw more blood and send it to another lab.

I held my breath waiting for those results but no amount of wishing was going to change the results of the first testing. The doe once again tested positive. Just hoping against all hope I ask to have more blood drawn and sent to a third lab. The results were the same, positive for CAE.

What was I going to do? Not only did I have a CAE doe in my herd but I had put all the rest of the herd at risk. I would not be able to sell Kinder; my reputation was ruined. No one would ever want to buy a Kinder goat from me. My time for breeding Kinder seemed to be at an end. I was sick and sick at heart.

I called a friend in the Kinder Association and confided in her. She convinced me to do what every lab had suggested. Put down the doe with CAE then use CAE prevention with all the other Kinder in my herd. This would mean that I must be there at every birth and never allow a doe to touch any of her kids. I would need to heat treat the colostrum and pasteurize all the milk then bottle all the kids. The labs had told me that I would need to do this for some years because, even if no other Kinder had tested positive for CAE, it could at any time raise it ugly head again. The one doe had CAE and I had exposed all the others to this monster.

We put the doe down that had CAE, then my work began to try to stop CAE from infecting my other animals. It was lots of work and heart breaking to never let a doe see her babies. When Harvey would come to evaluate and even mention that a knee joint might be a little enlarged I would immediately send that animal for meat. We tested every year for CAE.

Years passed and never another animal positive for CAE. My life breeding Kinder did continue. My reputation had not been destroyed and I watched with such pride with many does being first in their class, winning championships and winning stars in one-day testing.

What is my point for writing about all this? I want to tell others how important it is to ask questions when buying animals. I want to impress on everyone that you cannot be too careful. It is important to have a gene pool but not at the expense of all your herd. It would have been so much better to have had fewer genetics than to expose all my goats to CAE. It didn't wipe out all my Kinder but it surely could have. God was good! It was only by the grace of God that I was able to continue my Kinder breeding. Breeding Kinder goats is something that I have just loved since the very first day and I am so thankful for the experience to have done that. I always keep in mind that it was almost cut short by my wanting more and better genetics. Be very careful!

Kinder Goat

2010-12-13T16:04:00.000-08:00

What is a Kinder Goat?

There was no Kinder Goat until Breeders in Washington State came together to form the Kinder Goat Breeders Association. This was done after the breeding of a Pygmy and Nubian was done by Pat and Art Showalter in Snohomish, Washington. They and others saw potential in the results of this breeding so they came together to form the association along with rules and regulations, a breed standard and a registry. Officers were elected to over see the workings of the association. The name Kinder was decided on by the people who set up the association.

Sure there may have been this same cross done before and perhaps even now it is being done but those breeding's are not done under the specific rules and regulations of the Kinder Goat Breeders Association. The Kinder name belongs to the Kinder Goat Breeders Association and to those breeders who are breeding their goats according to the Kinder rules and regulations.

The animals used in first generation Kinder breeding must be registered with ADGA, NPGA, AGS or the Canadian Goat Society. Any American Nubian used in this first breeding must show 100% on that registration paper. Nothing but 50/50% breeding is accepted,

There is a breed standard and score card that is used for Kinder goats. This is the guide that all breeders use and also what the judges use in the show ring.

A first generation Kinder is the result of the breeding's of a Pygmy and Nubian then after that the Kinder is bred Kinder to Kinder. First generation up to fourth generation Kinder receive a Certificate of Merit. Fifth generation and future generations receive a Cerificate of Registration.

Many years of breeding has gone into this wonderful little goat. Breeders of the Kinder goat breed under the rules and regulations of the Kinder Goat Breeders Association and register their animals with the Kinder Goat Breeders Association. There are no American nor Experimental Kinder accepted by the Kinder Goat Breeders Association.

Gene Pool

2010-12-02T07:28:00.000-08:00

Abnormalities and all sort of disease like Johne's, CAE and CL can quickly deplete the Kinder gene pool. Selling animals with any of the above will decrease the gene pool all across the country. Great care needs to be taken when selling animals and when buying stock from others.

This is true of all breeds but the Kinder is much more vulnerable because their gene pool is so small compared to the other breeds.

We need to be vigilant in our breeding practices so we sell only animals with good genetics, those that are healthy in every way and those that conform to the Kinder Breed Standard.

Abnormalities

2010-12-01T15:56:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of one that you must cull. Pay attention to all parts of your goats because this animal should never be bred nor should it be sold for breeding.

Johne's Disease

2010-11-21T06:45:00.000-08:00

Several studies suggest that 60% of all cattle dairies Nation-Wide have at least 10% of their herd infected with Johne's. Studies also say that most cow dairymen are not even aware of the disease. If you are thinking that by using cow milk you will avoid exposing your kids to CAE then you should read more on these studies.
While trying to avoid CAE you may be inadvertently exposing your kids to Johne's which is just as devasting.

For more articles about Johne's
http://www.johnes.org/handouts/index.shtml#general_articles

Food Safety

2010-11-20T10:25:00.000-08:00

The November 18th vote:
The Food Safety cloture was passed by a vote of 75 for to 25 against. This is just NAIS with another name. Big business is behind this so we must work very hard to get it stopped in the Senate.

On Monday, November the 29th there will be another vote. Please take time to call your senator. http://www.senate.gov/ tell them to oppose
S. 510.

Goats Used In Comparison Study

2010-10-08T17:27:00.001-07:00

Boer, Kinder, Dairy Cross

One-day Milk Test Scoring

2010-09-25T10:26:00.000-07:00

1. One point per pound of milk produced, calculated to within one decimal point.

2. One tenth (0.1) point for every complete 10-day period that the doe has been in milk since her last kidding, with a maximum of three and six tenths (3.6) points or 360 days

3. One point for every five one hundredths (0.05) pounds of butterfat yielded.

4. Total

To make a star in one-day testing the doe must have a score of 18 points or more total.

New Ruling

2010-09-19T09:35:00.000-07:00

KINDER BREEDERS: When registration applications, transfer and original registrations are sent in they will be returned to the sender which is usually the seller. It will be up to you the seller to see that the papers are correct then it is your responsibility to send them on to the new owner.

One-day Testing

2010-09-17T10:48:00.000-07:00

Milk weighs 8.6 # per gallon. The first column shows the quantity of milk given by each doe.

Results of One-day Milk Testing of Kinder

2010-09-17T08:53:00.001-07:00

Kinder at Goat Dairy

2010-09-17T08:35:00.001-07:00

2010-09-14T12:57:00.000-07:00

Election Time

Go to our Web Site Home Page.

Click on YOUR VOTE COUNTS

Read a brief statement from each person running for office that is on the ballot.

REMEMBER; You can always do a write in.

Milk Comparison

2010-09-08T13:37:00.000-07:00

Comparison of Different Meats

2010-09-08T10:09:00.001-07:00

Breeding Kinder Goats

2010-09-04T17:52:00.000-07:00

Breeding Kinder Goats

Breeding goes hand in hand with evaluating your herd. I think there is too much voodoo written about line breeding and inbreeding. Stop thinking of breeding in human terms! Line breeding and inbreeding is very important and is done in most herds that are successfully shown, those with excellent udders, very good milk production and just general good conformation.

True that this magnifies both the bad and the good in your herd but if you have a good foundation then it is my opinion that line breeding is the only way you will continue to produce those fine animals. This is done by many breeders of all other breeds. Since the Kinder is specifically from two major breeds it is of the up most importance to do everything possible to pass these good genes on down the generation lines of the Kinder goat.

I almost shudder any more when I hear a Kinder breeder say, “Oh, I have just got to get new blood in my herd, I need something entirely unrelated to my other goats”. I have seen Kinder herds go from a top notch herd, to much lesser than in a hurry, when just adding one new herd sire.

If you have a herd that has general good conformation, that are milking well anything from 4 pounds up per day and if those animals are truly dual purpose showing a good meat carcass, then why do you want to change that? If you have sold animals to other breeders then go buy something from their lines that also has your lines in it. In this way you will be adding back some of your own genetics. If you completely cross out of your line it is hard telling what you might get. Genetics is a wild and wonderful world and we as Kinder breeders by breeding 50/50 are trying to fool mother nature into producing a goat that will continue to produces animals that conforms to our breed standards.

Look at the little doe below. Does she have a capacious udder? Some on our face book page think so. This little doe is a product of line breeding and she is lovely. God willing in a year or so I will tell you how she milks. She comes from generations of milking lines and Grand Champions.

Breeding Kinder goats is so exciting.

Udder of Young Doe

2010-09-04T10:43:00.001-07:00

This doe was born 5/23/10. She is not bred. Have others had experience with udders on such a young doe?

Bucks Structure

2010-08-28T07:30:00.000-07:00

Here is a buck showing its scrotal attachment. This was scored as moderately tight. Anything looser than this I would not use. If it is very hot then the scrotal will loosen because this is part of the bucks cooling system. Be sure that both sides of the scrotal is even. You do not want daughters with lopsided udders.

Look for width in the escutcheon, a tight to moderately tight scrotal, level rump and a wide front end. A buck needs to have all over good conformation being level and smooth across the top and stand on good sound legs and feet.

Buck

2010-08-28T07:27:00.000-07:00

Evaluation of Ebony

2010-08-24T06:48:00.000-07:00

Here is the evaluation sheet of Ebony the doe who is pictured below. A 1 is excellent, a 2 is good and a 3 is poor. You can see the score given for each different part of the body then all these scores are added together to get her final score that you see at the bottom of the page with a notation of Ex.(excellent) and signed by Harvey.

Clicking on the evaluation sheet will make it easier to read.

Ebony

2010-08-23T14:19:00.000-07:00

She milked 12.1 pounds of milk in a one-day milk testing that is about 1 and 1/2 gallons per day.

Thoughts

2010-08-23T13:38:00.000-07:00

We are coming to the close of Evaluate Your Own Goat, there are a few things that I need to mention in regard to breeding the best possible Kinder goat.

You want to breed for that big robust animal with a huge front end and lots of extension of brisket. You want the fleshing over the shoulders. You want those big necks that blend into those shoulders.

You want that animal to have a smooth and level top line that begins at the neck and goes all the way to the tail.

You want a rump that is not sloping. You want an udder that is high and tight. You want capacity in that udder, not an udder the size of a grapefruit. You want an udder that fills that escutcheon area. This what they mean when they mention the capacity of udder. You must have that capacity of udder to get a good volume of milk per day.

Care needs to be taken not to breed an animal that is too tall. We do not want to breed just another dairy animal we are breeding a dual purpose animal. Maximun height at the withers is 26 inches for does and 28 for bucks. If you don't where the withers are on your goat then click on Older Post and find the illustration showing the parts of a Kinder goat. Take a yardstick and measure at the withers.

Don't just buy a buck, be very critical when buying or using a herd sire. Look at his dams udder, ask how much she milks. If possible ask to milk her to see the ease of milking. Look at the overall conformation of the dam. Once again watch that rump! That buck is more than 50% of your herd so pay very close attention to him.

Width, teat placement and top line in doelings

2010-08-22T07:58:00.001-07:00

Here are some important things to look for in your doelings. Width in the escutcheon (width between the rear legs). This shows the room for an udder.

Teat placement, size and shape. Look for teats that are hanging plum and of nice size.

Look for a smooth and level top line. Watch that rump that it is not sloping. Look for levelness in the chine (this is the area right behind the shoulder blades).

Look at the rear legs that they do not turn inward.

2010-08-21T12:01:00.000-07:00

Udders and Rumps

2010-08-21T07:04:00.000-07:00

I don't mean to just beat this subject to death but I just want to remind you that it takes a good rump to have a good udder. Don't use a buck with a sloping rump, he will probably pass this on to his daughters, you will then multiply those loose, floppy udders in your herd.

Have a doe with a loose udder then look for a buck to improve this. Udders can be improved in the future generations with the right buck!

Udder Height and Fore Udder

2010-08-20T12:47:00.000-07:00

You will notice in the illustration of the fore udder that there are pockets shown in the fore. Some times after a does second kidding some of this pocket fills in. Notice the photo that follows of a good rear and fore udder in a Kinder doe.

Rear and Fore Udder

2010-08-20T12:39:00.000-07:00

This is a nice rear udder attachment. Notice on the fore udder how it blends itself into the belly area. This was a 1 in fore udder.

Teat Size and Shape

2010-08-18T13:43:00.000-07:00

Teat size is very important in the ease of milking but orfice size is more important. A smaller teat with a nice size orfice can be milked with ease. A larger teat might look like a doe is easily milked when in fact this might not be true because of a smaller orfice size.

Width of Rump and Rear Legs

2010-08-15T14:07:00.001-07:00

2010-08-13T10:35:00.001-07:00

When you buy a young buck pay close attention to his rump. You can tell when they are very young if that rump is going to be nice. I have seen Kinder herds that were great but with using just one buck that did not have good conformation things changed in a hurry.

Angle of Rump

2010-08-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

I am going to type this in because I cannot get it to print large enough to read easily.

The angle of the rump or pelvis from hooks to pins has a direct bearing on the reproductive performance of a goat because it influences the ease of kidding and drainage of the reproductive tract. he Angle of the rump is also related to the length of udder from foe to rear, strength of for udder attachment, and udder depth. Observing the goat on the move from the side, this is a way to evaluate the angle of the rump from hooks to pins. Rump angle is measured from steepness, which is assigned 20 or less points, to levelness, which is assigned 30 or more points. Rumps intermediate in slope (30 to 20 degrees)are assigned 20 to 30 points. Each difference of 5 degrees in the rump angle, plus or minus, results in a difference in the score of 5 points. A rump angle of 50 or more is assigned 1 point.

Udders

2010-08-13T07:36:00.000-07:00

I feel sure there are those saying that they just want their goats for milk and really don’t care if the udder is well attached because they are not going to show. Those low floppy udders can cause great pain and suffering to that doe. A low hanging udder that floppies around causes a much greater chance of injury to the udder and also mastitis. We all want the best for our goats.

If you have a doe with a poorly attached udder this can be corrected in the next generation by using the right buck. But using a buck with a sloping rump and poorly attached scrotal will only result in more does with bad udders.

Angle of the Rump

2010-08-12T13:39:00.000-07:00

The angle of the rump has a great bearing on both udders of does and scrotal attachments on the buck. A buck who has a sloping rump will probably have a loose scrotal attachment, it will look similar to the udder of this doe in the photo. Bucks with loose attachments will produce daughters with the same trait. Loose udders!

Slope of Rump

2010-08-12T08:50:00.000-07:00

Please be very careful of the slope to the rump on your goats. The first of the three illustrations is very sloping this will never give you a highly attached udder. It is going to put that udder in harms ways because the medial suspensory ligament can never hold the udder up and tight with a rump like this.

2010-08-12T08:03:00.000-07:00

Front ends

2010-08-09T12:03:00.001-07:00

The front end of the first one on the left is much too pinched. The heart and lungs cannot function properly when pinched as shown in the first illustration.

Kinder front ends

2010-08-09T11:59:00.001-07:00

Evaluate Your Own Goat

2010-08-09T11:32:00.000-07:00

Chocolate Kinder Milk Pudding

2010-08-09T11:10:00.000-07:00

2/3 c sugar
3 T (heaping) cornstarch
3 T baking cocoa
3 c Kinder milk
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 T (heaping) butter
1 tsp vanilla
Combine sugar, cornstarch and cocoa in a sauce pan. Gradually add Kinder milk and beaten egg. Cook stirring often over medium heat until thick and bubbly. Remove from heat, add butter and vanilla. Beat until creamy. Cool. Enjoy!!

Goat Cheese

2010-08-08T07:58:00.000-07:00

Take some of that fresh goat cheese mix it with some basil, dried tomato's and garlic then enjoy it on some crusty bread or crackers.

Just a little reminder.

Zucchini Casserole

2010-07-31T15:40:00.000-07:00

1 1/2 lbs. zucchini
1 1/2 lbs. ground chevon
1 medium onion
1/2 lb. cheddar cheese, shredded
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup goat milk
salt and pepper

Trim and slice zucchini (do not peel); cook in small amount of boiling water until just crispy tender; drain. Cook chevon in skillet until lightly brown, add chopped onion, cover, and cook over low heat until onion is barely tender. Season to taste.

In a lightly buttered two-quart casserole, arrange layers of zucchini, meat ,and cheese; repeat, ending with cheese. Combine mushroom soup and milk; pour over all. Sprinkle top with cheese. Bake in moderate oven (350 degrees) about 35 minutes, or until bubbly.

Nice served with a side of slice tomatoes and crusty bread.

Butter Pecan Ice Cream

2010-07-17T08:44:00.000-07:00

1 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup of sugar
2 T. butter

Since Kinder milk is so rich I just used all milk in the recipe.(no half and half and whipping cream) A total of 6 cups of milk.

2 cups whole milk
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
4 egg yolks
Pinch of salt
2 T. butter (use goat butter if you have it)
2 cups half and half
2 cups whipping cream
2 t. vanilla

In a heavy skillet over medium heat, combine sugar, butter and pecans, stirring constantly for about 6 minutes or until sugar has melted and browned. Remove from heat;spread nuts on foil. Once nuts have cooled, break into bit-size pieces and reserve.

In a medium saucepan, whisk together milk, brown sugar, egg yolks, and salt. Place pan over medium-high heat until mixture reaches a simmer. Lower heat to medium and whisk mixture for 5 minutes or until it begins to thicken. Strain mixture into a large bowl and whisk in butter until combined; then incorporate half and half and cream and vanilla. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours.

Pour mixture into ice-cream maker; process as directed. When the ice cream is made stir in the reserved pecans.

Enjoy!

Orange Sherbet

2010-07-13T15:30:00.000-07:00

1 (3oz.) pkg. orange jell-o
1 pkg. orange Kool-Aid
1 1/2 cups of sugar
1 cup of water
1 qt. goat milk

Combine Jello, Kool-Aid, sugar and water in saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Stir in cold goat milk and freeze in ice cream maker. Taste just like store bought. You can substitute any flavors of Kool-Aid and Jello.

Meningeal worm

2010-07-04T08:28:00.000-07:00

Meningeal worm
Brain Worm - Deer Worm
Paralaphostrongylus tenius

What is it?
The meningeal worm is an internal parasite (Paralaphostrongylus tenius) of the white-tailed deer that usually completes its life cycle in the deer without causing significant problems. However, when unnatural hosts, such as sheep and goats, become infested with meningeal worm, the parasite moves into the brain and/or spinal cord and causes neurological problems that can be fatal. Llamas and alpacas are even more susceptible to meningeal worm infection than sheep or goats. Cattle are not known to be affected. Meningeal worm is not a health concern to humans.

The life cycle of the meningeal worm requires terrestrial snails or slugs as intermediate hosts. White-tailed deer become infested with P. tenius by eating snails or slugs that contain the infective stage of the larvae. The larvae migrate through the deer's gut and eventually move into the central nervous system where they mature into adults, produce eggs, and the life cycle begins again. However, when P. tenius-infected snails and slugs are ingested by aberrant hosts, the larvae migrate into the brain and/or spinal cord.

The larvae do not mature into adults, but rather wander through the central nervous system causing inflammation and swelling which damages sensitive nervous tissue producing a variety of neurologic symptoms. Experimental evidence suggests that it takes 10 to 14 days for the parasite to reach the brain and/or spinal cord after the animal eats the infected snail or slug.

Symptoms
The neurologic signs observed in infected sheep and goats depend upon the number of larvae present in the nervous tissue and the portion of the brain or spinal cord that has been affected.

A mild infection may produce a slight limp or weakness in one or more legs, while a more severe infection may cause an animal to be partially or completely paralyzed. When larvae migrate to the brain, they may cause blindness, a head tilt, circling, disinterest in or inability to eat, or other signs that mimic brain diseases.

Affected animals may get progressively worse, remain static, or in some cases improve without therapeutic involvement. In most cases, infected animals remain alert and continue to eat and drink normally.

Diagnosis
Meningeal worm infection cannot be diagnosed in the live animal. A fecal examination is not useful since sheep and goats are “dead end” hosts for the parasite and the larvae do not produce eggs or pass larvae into the feces. The parasites cannot be detected by blood testing. The only way to confirm diagnosis is to find the parasite in the nervous system, which requires a necropsy examination. Testing the cerebrospinal fluid, which requires the animal to be tranquilized or anesthetized for extraction, may help to support suspicions of brain worm infection.

Thus, diagnosis of meningeal worm in the live animal is based on symptoms and clinical history. Usually animals have been grazing for at least two months and there is a history of deer in the area. Diseases which look similar to meningeal worm infection include: listeriosis, CAE, scrapie, rabies, trauma, copper deficiency, vitamin E/selenium deficiency, spinal cord or brain abscesses, or polioencephalomalacia.

Treatment
Treatment regimes usually involve high, repetitive doses of anthelmintics, along with steroids, and other supportive therapies. Many different anthelmintics (levamisol, ivermectin, albendazole, fenbendazole, thiabendazole) have been used to treat meningeal worm infection. It is believed that some anthelmintics can kill the larvae before it enters the central nervous system, while others may be able to cross the blood-brain barrier and kill the larvae regardless of its location in the body.

However, it is important to note that no controlled studies have confirmed or refuted the efficacy of different treatment regimes. Nor does treatment repair damaged nervous tissue. Producers who suspect meningeal worm should contact their veterinarian for treament recommendations.

Prevention
As with other disease conditions, prevention is usually more satisfying than treatment. Unfortunately, the meningeal worm is a hard one to prevent. Reducing deer populations is usually impractical. A single deer can shed thousands of eggs per gram of feces, and the larvae are highly resistant to environmental forces. However if feasible, sheep and goats should not be pastured in areas which receive high deer utilization or removed from these pastures before the weather turns wet and cool. It may be helpful to limit sheep and goat pasturing to fields without contiguous woodlands and to pastures that are on high ground and well-drained.

Controlling the intermediate hosts may be a more effective means of prevention. Sheep and goats can be fenced away from likely snail and slug habitats: ponds, swamps, wetlands, low-lying, poorly-drained fields, and woodlands. Some veterinarians advocate strategic deworming as a means of preventing infection. However, it is important to realize that regular use of anthelmintics (e.g. monthly treatments) rapidly leads to anthelmintic resistance, so while regular treatments may help to control the meningeal worm, eventually those drugs will lose their efficacy against ordinary stomach worms, which may be an even greater problem on most sheep and goat farms.

References: P. tenuis - The White-tailed Deer Parasite, Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Goat Medicine (1994) by Smith and Sherman.

Copyright © 2004.

2010-06-25T19:52:00.000-07:00

Summer came to the Rogue Valley on June 21st. That was the first nice day that we have had all year. Last week we still had the risk of frost so my garden starts have been sitting in their pots waiting for the ground to dry up and warm up. I finally got them all in and hope they get to growing.

Our Kinder kids have really started growing too. The boys are all banded and I put two sets of twin bucklings into the weaning pen. Finally I get that great Kinder milk for myself. I have two large freezers that I put the one quart plastic bags of milk in for my soapmakaing. The rest is for cheese.

I love to make a soft spreadable cheese for toast. Heat one gallon of milk to 170 degrees and add 3/4 cup of lemon juice let sit for a few minutes until a fine curd forms. Pour the curds into a cheesecloth lined colander to drain. Tie the four corners of the cheesecloth into a knot and hang the bag to drain for a couple of hours. The cheese can then be salted a little or have herbs added. My favorite is to leave the salt out and use one of the Ms. Dash seasonings like the chipotle, herb and garlic, or spicy hot.

As you increase the temperature up from 170 toward 180 the curd will become a bit tougher and larger and you can actually press it into a log shape and slice it. If you heat it to 180 and use 1/4 cup of vinegar in place of the lemon juice you will get queso blanco . This cheese can be cut and used in salads, soups and stir-fries.

There are a lot of great cheese and meat recipes in the book "Goats Produce too! The Udder Real Thing Volume 2 by Mary Jane Toth. It is well worth the $13 price tag.

One of my favorite recipes is for Cajeta which is Mexican caramel candy.

3 qts goat milk

3 C sugar

2 tbsp cornstarch

1/4 tsp baking soda.

dissolve the corn starch and baking soda in 1 cup of the milk to get out all the lumps then add it to the milk and sugar in the pot. I use a very heavy large pot for this as it will foam up and boil over in a small pot. Cook the mixture until it is thick and creamy like caramel sauce. It can be poured into jars and refrigerated. It is great on ice cream. If cooked to a soft caramel stage it is delicious on graham crackers.

Jean Jajan

Gray J Ranch

2010-06-16T20:41:00.000-07:00

What to do with all that milk?

That was the question in my mind when the milk started building up. How can I make money from the milk without selling milk directly. I had heard about goat milk soap and searched for a recipe on the internet. I was a crafter and loved to cook so what better than cooking up a batch of soap. I found a fragrance oil supplier near me and bought a few small bottles of fragrance. I remember the first batch was oatmeal, milk and honey fragrance and it had oatmeal, goat milk and honey in it. It was a hit with family and friends. I added a few new scents and started making it up in decorative molds as gifts.

Over the winter I worked on my recipe until I had a really rich creamy bar of soap with great lather. I decided to try to get into the local farmers market as a vendor. I attended the state agriculture department seminar on small farm marketing where I met our local market manager and learned the most valuable information of all. I was not a crafter. I was a value added agricultural product because I raised the goats, milked them, and a high percentage of the soap was goat milk. While crafters were limited in the market, with a value added product I was move to space availability right after the growers and did not have to wait in line for a crafting space to become available. Wild River Soaps was born

The first year I made up small batches and sold them my self at the local growers market on Saturdays. That first year I actually made a profit. It was enough to pay for all the feed for the goats and all the ranch supplies. That winter my husband was laid off and my son moved out of our 600 sq ft guest house which had a full kitchen so we decided to make soap making our living. We got into two other growers markets that were held on different days and my husband became the salesman and I did the production.

Actually soap making is easy to learn and just plain old clean fun. Here is what you need to get started.

Equipment

1. Mixing containers such as enamel or stainless steel pots to melt the oils in and plastic bowl to weight the ingredients in NOTE: NEVER, NEVER USE ALUMINUM, it reacts with the lye

2. A heatproof container for your lye mixture such as a large plastic or glass bowl or pitcher.

3. Stainless steel slotted spoon or plastic heat proof spoon or heat proof rubber spatula. Do not use wood.

4. A stick blender, good for 3 lbs. or larger batches. The stick blender enables you to get a faster trace. Use only for a minute at a time and stir in between. This is optional if you don't mind stirring.

5. Use eye protections. Eyeglasses are not enough. You can get some that will fit over your glasses. A splash of raw soap in the eyes can be very painful and damage the eyes.

6. Latex or Chemical gloves. Use this to keep any possible splashes off arms and hands and when stirring the lye water, to keep the steam off the arms.

7. Scale to weight the oils and lye. A digital scale is the best

8. Soap molds. You can use rubbermade drawer liners or any plastic container you have around. Vinyl down spouts, PVC pipes, cut in about 12" lengths. Jello Molds or even cookie cutters for animal shapes and toy shapes, for the kiddies. Be sure it is not aluminum.

9. Thermometer. I prefer the quick read digital one. You can wipe it clean between testing the oil or lye mixtures and it gives you an instant readings.

Creamy Goat Milk Soap

8 oz olive oil

5 oz coconut oil

3 oz palm oil

2.3 oz lye

7 oz frozen goat milk

Melt the coconut and palm oil in an enameled pan on low heat. Place the frozen goat milk in a glass bowl and slowly add lye while stirring with a plastic spoon. Stir until lye is dissolved and all milk is thawed. When the oils are warm to the touch (105 degrees) pour in the olive oil. Pour the goat milk & lye mixture into the oil mixture while stirring. Keep stirring until you get trace. Trace is when it thickens to the point where you can drop some of the mix back into itself and it leaves a trail. At this point use any herb, scent, or coloring and stir and pour into molds. Place plastic wrap on top of soap. Let sit for 24 hours. Unmold, cut into bars, and place on a rack to cure for 3-4 weeks.

"Oh my gosh she is big"

2010-06-09T19:36:00.003-07:00

My friend and I sat down and planned out my breeding schedule to work around hers. I was to take her beautiful caramel buck to breed to my spotted brown Nubian. Then I would return him and take her dark grey agouti buck to breed my black doe. My young Nubian would wait a few months and then be bred to a second caramel buck she had. Perfect, three does and three different bucks.

The love nest was set up and everything put in order. A private corral and barn and just to really make it easy I set up my folding leg milking stand on a down slope. When I held the doe backed up to it the buck could just walk out on the stand and do his business. He did not even have to jump up on the stand. What could be easier. The handsome suitor was named Major Force. The doe came in heat and Major let us know with all his romancing. We backed the doe up to the stand and Major would walk out but not mount. We backed her up to the bank beside the stand so he could reach and he still would not do it with that big doe. This doe stays in heat for about thirty six hours so we tried every few hour all day into the cool night and early morning and nothing. It seems that Major Force was a Minor Farce.

Back he went and I picked up buck number two. Buckeye was an old buck who was getting a touch of arthritis but he was built like a little tank. He was after those two does like an old pro. I would back the does up to the stand and he was out there doing his job in an instant. Success. Two month later we were so excited to see the pygmy type ears in the ultrasound. Both the does had settled.

When it came time in late January to breed the third doe, my friend had sold her second caramel buck and had her fourth buck in breeding her does. Back came Buckeye to the rescue. While my breeding plans had not turned out as I had hoped, at least my does were bred.

Over the next three years I used my buck and three different bucks of my friend's to get more diversity in my herd. I have crossed the different lines but have never kept a second generation to breed. Last year I decided to keep one second generation doeling and buckling to breed to each other. I finally have a third generation doeling and buckling.

After having raised Boers for so many years, I get excited at the variety of color combinations and spots on the kids. I also love the vigor of the Kinder kids. They are up and about in a matter of minutes not hours like with the Boers.

Next: What to do with all that milk.

Greetings from the Gray J Ranch

2010-06-03T12:24:00.001-07:00

Many people have asked me how I got into Kinder Goats. The truth is, almost by accident and a long round about way. We had just moved from the city and wanted some goats as our property was covered with brush and poison oak. I saw an ad in the paper for Pygmies and bought a little buck and doe. Then I started reading all I could about goats. Whoops, ran the buck to the vet to get wethered and hoped he hadn't bred his little sister yet. They were darling and we named them Poco and Poca which means little in Spanish and also stands for for Poison Oak Control Officer and Poison Oak Control Assistant. No way could those two little Pygmies get much brush and poison oak under control.

We needed bigger goats to do the job and I read about all the dairy breeds and the Boer goat. The county ag extension office had their first Dairy goats and friends program which we attended and got a lot of great information on the different breeds and contacts for breeders. I got the address for the Pygmy goat club in our area and we joined. We showed in their first show and I was hooked as I had showed horses as a youngster. We went to the county fair and my husband stared into the eyes of a Nubian doe and instantly fell in love with the Nubians and I fell for the Boers. Some of my new Pygmy breeder friends also had Boers and Nubians so within 5 months of our getting into goats we had two Pygmies, two Nubian doelings, 1 Boer doeling and three bred percentage Boer does and only a small dog house connecting two 10 x 10 chain link kennels.

We decided that would never do come the rainy season and kidding time. There was a nice two stall barn down the hill from the house with a large horse corral near by but no other kind of fencing anywhere on the property and there were coyotes running around at night. We put up a six foot chain link paddock on the front of the barn that was 12 x 30 and field fenced the inside of the wooden corral. Then we fenced off the area between them to make a runway for the goats to go into the corral during the day and come into the barn area at night for safety.

We had our perfect goat barn and paddock area or so we thought. The Boer herd over the next few years grew at one time to over 40 counting the new kids . We fenced more land and built more barns and areas for the bucks and the new kids. I spent most of the summer traveling to shows and helping put them on and making goat milk soap which my husband sold for me at three growers markets a week to support the goats. This was work not retirement.

I was sitting there the night before a big Boer show I was putting on. I was exhausted and frustrated over trying to finish up the show program when it dawned on me that my goats were not going to be competitive for the championships any more. A lot of the breeders were bringing in high priced new Texas stock to the area and I would have to do the same and spend many, many thousands of dollars to remain competitive.

My mind snapped. I told my husband I was selling out while still ahead and we were going to be done with the Boers. Just then the phone rang and it was a late entering Boer breeder who wanted to get his entries into the program. I mentioned to him that I had decided to sell out my Boers and would have them for sale at the show. He told me he would be there at the show cash in hand first thing in the morning. I had one old buck and doe who I didn't show any more so they stayed home. Well, word got around over night and when I pulled in and started unloading I was getting offers left and right. By the start of the show, I only owned one older percentage doe that I refused to sell and two young bucklings. It was a sad, lonely ride home and a very empty barnyard the next morning.

What to do about freshening my three Nubians? I didn't want to breed them to my old Boer buck and have percentages I would have to sell for meat. I jokingly mentioned to my Pygmy breeder girl friend that I should breed them to one of her Pygmy bucks and get little Pygnubians. She said that the cross was actually a breed called the Kinder and we researched it. She called Pat and asked her about the breed and getting started. I traded my friend my Boer buckling for a Pygmy buckling and she lent me a mature buck for the first breeding. I was in the Kinder business.

Jean

Next: Getting the important breeding business done. "Oh my gosh she is big"

2010-05-31T15:29:00.000-07:00

Happy Memorial Day!

Well the soap is in the primary mold. We will see how it turns out.

The garden is growing like crazy and it is extreeeemely hot outside each day. So I am doing a lot of chores in the evening now.

The kids are growing great. Saphira has acquired her mother's loud mouth. She is quite vocal every morning about me milking her mother before she has the chance. Derrick is a sweetheart. He is so easy to handle. Desarae is still very shy, as are Saphira and Carlisle. I need to visit with them more often, I guess.

Well this is the end of my time here. Again, thanks for the invite. And thanks for visiting with me this month. Feel free to drop me a line anytime.

Happy Goat Adventures to you all.

God Bless,

DaLinda

2010-05-23T20:54:00.000-07:00

This is our goat complex. I have it configured with two large pens and two smaller pens at the moment. One for the kids at night. And one for Galileo - he was tearing up the other boys heads with his scurs, so he had to be separated. Now Derrick has scurs too, so I will have to figure out what to do with him if they tussle too much. Eventually I want to have separate pens for each of the bucks. The goat complex is on one side of Rustee's paddock. I had to put hot wire around it because Russtee was stealing hay and using the kennels has scratching posts.

This is my milk and feed "room", under an awning on the side of the landlord's shed. Ken, best hubby in the world, made me the cool milk stand.

This is the manor castle, laundry room, banquet hall, and aviary (chicken coop). Oh yes, and part of the garden too.

This is a shot of the main garden earlier this month. Wow, I didn't realize how much had grown in the last month. The last bed is packed with flowers now. The second on the right is full of tomato plants. Two more are started with corn. And one is started with sunflowers. Just finished spraying for pests with a mixture from a master gardener. It dropped two cabbage worms, one moth, and two grasshoppers while I was spraying!! Hopefully the battle with the cabbage worms has been won!! This was a mixture of tobacco juice, mouthwash, soap, and garlic juice. Sounded pretty weird, but if it works like I think it did tonight, this is great!

I think I got the last of the supplies that I needed for soap making this weekend. Hopefully I will get a chance to try a batch of soap before the end of the month so I can let you know how that goes.

I took Russtee and the girls out to the landlord's pasture for a stroll today. Russtee was off lead even though the fence was down, but the yard gate was closed so he couldn't get too far. The girls were ducks in a row on a piece of rope - goats on a rope - I have tied them out from time to time, but watch them closely because they always get themselves in a knot. Of course, today was no exception. Since we have so many dogs around, I didn't leave them out alone today, but walked them around instead - or better stated - they walked me around. They enjoyed themselves and were contentedly chewing their cud when I went in to fix dinner.

However, when I went out after dinner - I.C. Spots had disappeared from their pen. Closer inspection found her trapped behind the shed in their pen!! She has never attempted this before, very strange. We got her out and walked her around a bit. Apparently she had gotten back there pretty soon after I went in, because she was quite wobbly when we first got her out. But she is fine now. Still have no idea what inticed her to squeeze back there, the space between the shed and the fence couldn't be more than five inches!!! And it backs to another shed, so nothing to see back there?? Anyway, put some obstacles in the way. Hopefully no one else will attempt that again.

Well, it's nearly midnight and we gotta get up for school tomorrow. Two more days of school, then the girl is out for the summer, looking forward to VBS and summer camp.

Ya'll take care.

God Bless,

DaLinda

2010-05-19T12:26:00.000-07:00

I MADE CHEESE!!!

I finally got around to making some mozzerella cheese yesterday. It is already gone, so it must have been a success! I used Ricki's 30 minute mozzerella recipe on cheesemaking.com. It took a little longer for the curd to set than the five minutes in the recipe, but otherwise did okay. My curds never look like the cut cubes that I always see in the videos. Mine are always more stringy. Not sure why that happens. Just got to keep practicing, I guess.

I also started the custard for some goat milk ice cream. I used the vanilla ice cream III recipe from Storey Publishing's Raising Dairy Goats. I am going to add strawberries and freeze it later today.

But now I have four quarts of whey. I will probably try to make some ricotta cheese from it. I am not sure about trying any of the drinks recipes I have come across. If all else fails, I will feed it to the chickens. I know that they love any goat milk that I give them. It goes faster than their chicken feed!

Just finished planting my raised beds this week. Today I pulled up the sweet peas and planted some garlic bulbs that had gotten overlooked. Having a problem with cabbage worms though. They apparently liked my peas too. Hope they enjoy the garlic!! I know the chickens enjoyed all that I could handpick of the little buggers!

I need to do some research on apple cider vinegar as used for pest control and watering the goats. I have read that people use it, but I have never come across how much and what ratio it is used in. Also want to get the herbs for that vinegar recipe posted previously.

Well gotta run and try to catch up on things. Seems like I always have a four day long to do list!!

God Bless,

DaLinda

2010-05-11T19:31:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to all.

Last week my husband took a surprise week of vacation, so I am a week behind on everything. Having him around like that always disrupts my schedules. We went siteseeing, shopping, and visited a Christian summer camp that our daughter will be going to this summer. He went golfing and then he and Cassandra practiced a few swings in the pasture. Now Cassandra has been out every day in the pasture knocking golf balls around. She nearly hit me in the head with one!

The garden is growing like crazy. The roosters are starting to crow, which means we will be having fried chicken for sunday dinner very soon. And, of course, the kids are growing like weeds. Desarae and Derrick are eating well. Derrick is staying with the "big boys" now. Saphire is huge! Carlisle is just slightly smaller than her.

I caught Carlisle making bucky eyes and slobbing all over himself over my pygmy doe, Polgara. She was not impressed! I nearly died laughing, he looked so comical. He really thought he was hot stuff.

I made butter yesterday. 16 oz of cream gave me about 8 oz of butter. I just whipped the cream with my mixer until the butter separated. Then I poured off the buttermilk and washed the butter in cold water. I didn't salt this batch, but sometimes I do add salt. Then stored it in the refrigerator in small jam jars.

I also made some french vanilla coffee creamer for my husband. He said it tasted better than what he had been buying before. I took one cup of goat milk, added 1/3 cup of agave syrup, 2 Tbsps goat milk cream, and 1 Tbsp of vanilla extract. Combined it all in a pint jar and shook it up. You have to shake well before using, but he said it tasted great. I don't drink coffee, so I have to take his word for it. Cassandra likes to add creamer to her milk, so she tried it and said it tasted good too.

I am hoping to try a cheese recipe in the next few days. I want to try cottage cheese and/ or mozzerella. My last attempt was not that great, so I am kinda nervous. Hate to waste all that milk for another failure. But at least I have a steady supply.

I am collecting my soap making supplies. I want to make just a basic soap with olive oil and lard/ or vegetable shortening. I have been researching recipes and I still need a few more supplies, especially a mold or molds. Ken wants me to make liquid soap too. So I will have to find a recipe or two for that as well.

Well guess that's about it for now.

God Bless,

DaLinda

2010-05-06T17:00:00.000-07:00

Who would our stars be without a supporting cast:

The loving mothers:

I.C. Spots

Annabelle

Janelle

The proud fathers:

Galileo

Belgarath

And the extras:

Polgara

Randale

That's the rest of my goat herd. They keep me very busy.

I have them set up in linked dog kennels. We found these to be easier to move and rearrange to fit whatever landscape situation we find ourselves in. Plus we don't have all the tposts to remove and reposition everytime.

Well gotta run and finish some chores. Hope you enjoy the rest of the crew.

God bless,

DaLinda

2010-05-03T18:32:00.000-07:00

Hello, on with the introductions.

First, the stars of the show.

The twins - Derrick

and Desarae

Saphira

Carlisle

These are my 2010 1st generation Kinder kids and the start of my herd. I think they are just beautiful.

Yesterday after all the feeding and milking, I gave the "Irish Setter" a pedicure. He did very well considering that he is used to having a professional nail artist and he was stuck with me under his hooves. He's just lucky I didn't paint his toes pink. He is a four year old quarterhorse. I am just starting to train him to ride. The first time I put a saddle on him and got on, my husband nearly had a heart attack. But I knew he wasn't going to do anything. I'd raised him from a baby! He just lacks a steering wheel.

Well, today we spent running errands and going to lunch at school with my daughter Cassandra. So gotta run for now and catch up with all the chores around here. More intros tomorrow.

God Bless,

DaLinda

2010-05-02T17:57:00.000-07:00

Howdy all. Well apparently I can't read a calendar either. I have been telling myself that May 1st was Sunday for about two weeks now. So, of course, I am a day late as usual.

I was out yesterday letting the goats and the Irish Setter (he's really a quarterhorse, but don't tell him that - he will pout!) graze in the yard. Lost all track of time and a quarter of my peppermint plant, but we had fun.

Oh yeah, guess I ought to introduce myself. DaLinda Ackerman - Creative Critters - Kilgore Texas. I started Kinders from scratch with a herd of 3 Nubian does, 1 Pygmy doe (too cute to pass up), 2 Pygmy bucks, and 1 Nubian buck (also too cute). I will introduce everyone as soon as I get my pictures uploaded. (Note: not using the Pygmy doe for Kinders)

I just got my first Kinder kids this spring and they are so cute. I am really excited. And my first fresheners are drowning me in milk, so will have to start making cheese soon. We had some ice cream already and it was great.

Well, I'm looking forward to visiting with you this month. Thanks for the invite!

DaLinda Ackerman
Creative Critters

Almost done?

2010-04-28T08:57:00.000-07:00

Wow! This month seems to be flying by. I can't believe its already the 28 of April! I am now starting to take my horse to lessons, I am practicing for the Topeka symphony, we just got a new great pyreneese puppy, the goats are only on two bottles a day now and my big brother will soon be 17! I can't believe how fast everything is going this year.

Last year the goats seemed like they were never going to be weaned and now they are almost off the bottle all together! My violin last year sounded somewhat like a fire truck and now I am trying out for the symphony. My big brother Elisha is my best friend and he is growing so fast. Its funny how things change so quickly. It makes you want to live every moment to the fullest. I pray God will help me live my whole life for His glory. I think this is the only way I can live my life to the fullest. I look forward to the rest of the year and all of the wonderful things God has planned out for me. :-)

I hope God blesses your farms and lives as well. :-)

Until thew whole world hears,

Beth Joy

SOLD!

2010-04-27T12:53:00.001-07:00

Hello Everyone!

This last week has been very busy. We have been planting, selling, teaching, and of course learning! We sold our last two Kinder goaties. They went to a great new home

with a sweet daughter that will love and care for them. We always try to make sure the people that buy our goats are completely prepared so I made sure their daughter had everything she needed to care for the goaties. :-) I think they are going to enjoy their new home very much!

We are still trying to sell five of our Kinders (two bucks and three does). I haven't found a home yet but I am sure some one has got to want a cute loveable Kinder! ;-)

(A sweet friend with her new goaties!)

I hope you all have a blessed day!

Until the whole world hears,

Beth Joy Wood

Letting our goats graze

2010-04-21T11:12:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!
We like to let our goats, sheep and other animals graze freely every day.
Here are some important things to check for before, during and after your animals are grazing.

Check pasture for poisonous plants. http://goat-link.com/component/option,com_wrapper/Itemid,51/ We leave baking soda in their pens and pastures along with their minerals just in case they eat something bad for them. Normally the baking soda will fix the problem.
Make sure the waters don't have holes and are clean and full. They will not drink the water if it is dirty or has a dead mouse.

Check your goats. Make sure they are not limping, standing alone, or not eating. It is important to know your goats and know what they are normally acting like so when they start to get sick you can fix the problem quickly.

Knowing the basic first aid for your goats is also helpful. I worked with our vet and bought some books about goat first aid and it has helped us a lot! :-)
Here is a link to a website that talks a little bit about it. http://www.napga.org/downloads/firstaid.pdf

I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Until the whole world hears,
Beth Joy Wood

Gardening with the goats

2010-04-20T09:54:00.000-07:00

Hello everybody!

Lately we have been doing a lot of gardening. Our sweet Kinder kids of course had to "help"! :-) We have been planting flowers, veggies, and trees in our yard to make it look nicer. Our garden is starting to look just beautiful!

The kids rolled in the chicken wire as we laid it down, ate flowers, veggies, and the fruit trees we planted, and played on anyone who was near them. We had quite a bit of fun with them that day. We all absolutely love being with the kids even if we don't get to much work done. ;-)

Until the whole world hears,

Beth Joy Wood

Feed mix

2010-04-19T12:50:00.001-07:00

Hello Everyone!

As with our other feed for the animals, we have enjoyed the benefits of creating our own mix. The goats love to enjoy the fresh food the we cut up for them in the mornings. Such as: Parsley (high in iron), carrots, garlic and Kale. The animals enjoy going for walks and eat from our pastures. We also feed them alfalfa that a friend of ours grows nearby.

We have a mineral mix available at all times for the goats as well as a tray of Kelp.

Our does are getting the same "new momma" herbal mixture and red raspberry leaves that I mentioned last week. They also get their cereal mix which consists of the following:

100lbs oats
100lbs wheat bran
100lbs corn
100lbs shredded beet pulp
100lbs barley
100lbs of sunflowers
100lbs 40%protein
30lbs of molasses
Soy oil or linseed oil

Protein: 14.58
Fat: 2.15
Fiber: 5.10

This is just the recipe I could find right now. Momma is always learning and changing it ever so slightly as we get access to other products or learn more.

I hope you all are enjoying the recipes I have given you all! =)

Until the whole world hears,

Beth Joy

~Vinigar Of The Four Thieves~

2010-04-15T07:23:00.000-07:00

Hello everybody!

Our family has started using the Vinigar of the four thieves. It is quite simple to make and works great for keeping away mites, ticks and flees just to name a few. It does help with flys but I have found for my horses it doesn't help as much. The horses sweat quite a bit more than the goats so I think that is the only reason it doesn't work as well on them. :-)

Once we are done making it we dilute it half strength with water for using on our animals and ourselfs.

Note: Do NOT use internally!

First, take your herbal mixture of Lavender, Peppermint, Rosemary, Sage and Wormwood, There are quite a few different recipes out there but most say to use equal parts and some add a few other herbs like rue, hyssop, and lemon balm. We purchase our herbs from the Bulk Herb Store and in their recipe for the Vinigar of the four thieves they only use the five herbs I have listed. Once mixed well measure out 12 tablespoons and place in your 2 quart jar of Raw apple cider vinigar.

Shake then store in a cool dry place for 2 weeks.

After the 2 weeks is over, drain off all the herbs. Chop 2 Tbs. into the liqiud and put in a pot and steep for 3 days. Do NOT boil. If you cook it to fast it will make your house stink.

Once the 3 days are over strain off the garlic and store in your fridge until you need it.

I hope you all have a blessed day!

Until the whole world hears,

Bethany Joy Wood

Feed Your Goats Naturally- Momma Mixture

2010-04-14T08:47:00.000-07:00

Hello Everybody!

I thought I would share with you this week how we feed our goats. We like to feed them with natural foods.

We dry a lot of our own fruits, herbs and veggies. I just love to go out to the garden and pick fresh food and the prepare it for our animals or save it for a later date.

My momma made our own grain recipe and a "Momma mixture" that we give to the goats after they have kidded.

This is the Momma Mixture recipe that we came up with.
Momma Mixture
One part Chamomile flowers
One part Tyme
One part Peppermint
Two part Red Raspberry leaves

You just take each of these ingredients, dry, and mix them together in a coffee can, cocoa can or a glass jar. We normally mix it in a hot cocoa can because then we can put it out in the barn and we don't have to worry about a glass jar braking or anything like that. You can mix this with their grain or feed it to them plain. We give them 1Tbs morning and night (two Tbs daily) for about two weeks before they kid and two weeks after the kid.

If any of you try this out please let me know how it worked for you! :-)

Until the whole world hears,
Beth Joy Wood

Our Herb Cabinet

Last year we gathered nettles, dried them and then fed to our goats. Nettles help the doe produce more milk.

This is a photo of one of our bucks last year, Cookie.

Bottle feeding kids

2010-04-12T15:53:00.000-07:00

Hello again everybody!
I so enjoy bottle feeding our Kinder kids!
We once had one kid that was raised on her mother. She is now a sweetie but then she was a little wild.
She would get all the goats worked up and running around the pen just because she felt like it, she would never let us touch her and didn't even come when we had a bottle.
I remind myself of having to go through training her when I had to stay up most of the night to feed the kids. I enjoy feeding our kids much more now that they sleep through the night and drink less milk.

If you havn't bottle fed your kids before here are some basic tips.

Hold the baby the first few time you try to bottle feed. This way the baby can't move around when you and the baby are first trying this.
Hold the kid's neck up and as straight as possible.
Make sure the milk is not all dripping out of its mouth or it won't get good nutrition.

And have LOTS of fun!!! :-)

I hope you have a blessed evening.

Until the whole world hears,
Beth Joy Wood

Fun with the kids

2010-04-10T15:45:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

Now that the kids are older they are much more playful!
The other day I walked outside and was greeted by a bunch of playful kids. They enjoy jumping on my back while I am out in the garden or when I bend down to pick something up.

One of our ewes had her lambs so Patience (our kinder kid) is trying to become friends with them, much to the ewe's dislike. She just loves to play!

I hope you all enjoy the pictures. =)

Mocha and her sweet lambs. Patience just loves to help with the lambs!

Havin' fun in the sun! :D

Don't mess with little miss Joy ;-)

I hope you all have a blessed weekend!

Until the whole world hears,

Beth Joy Wood

Building pens

2010-04-07T08:28:00.000-07:00

(Elisha working on the birthing pens)

Hello everyone!

My papa and brothers Elisha, Josiah, and Zeke all have been working on remodeling our barn.

Elisha is in charge of making sure everything gets done right while my papa is at work. Elisha is the ranch foreman and I am the ranch manager. Elisha and I really enjoy working together and thinking of better ways to manage the ranch. Josiah takes Elisha's place of overseeing all the jobs when Elisha is gone working with papa on something else.

The first thing the boys built this year were the birthing pens for the does. They made a special place above the birthing pens for all the alfalfa to be stored. They really did a awesome job!

This is a picture of the boys hard work!

Meet the kids!

2010-04-06T10:41:00.001-07:00

These are our Kids for the Spring 2010 year. They are lots of fun and work of course. We bottle feed all of them.
Reeses had her three lovely kids first. Kit Kat was next to kid. She had two sweet doelings. After Kit kat, Taffy kidded. Taffy had two beautiful bucklings. Last but not least is Della. Della had one darling doeling!

I hope you all enjoy the pictures!

For the love of goats,
Miss Beth Joy Wood

First to kid!

2010-04-02T14:20:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone! =)

Every year I wait somewhat impatiently for our Kinders to kid. =)

This year our first goat to kid was Reeses. She had two sweet little bucklings and one lovely doeling.
The first born from Reeses was a beautiful tan buckling with black, white, brown and even a little bit of red in his coat! He was born backwards but Reeses had him before I could help her. He is quite a lively little fellow. He just loves to jump off the walls in his pen! :-) His name is Patches. He has already found his new home and will be going there in a few months.

The second was a lovely black little girl with white frosted ears and muzzle. This little girl was just a sweetie pie! She loved getting all the attention and is now getting lots of it in her new home. =)

The third was a surprise to us all! We all went in the house about 40 minutes after Reeses had her second kid thinking she was done. Elisha went outside 2 hours later and found a beautiful black buckling with a white crown drinking off his mother. Elisha quickly brought the little buckling into the house to get warm. Once he was warm and fed he was just a little ball of fun! =) He enjoys playing with his brother and other furry little friends around the barn yard.
We are calling him Surprise until he finds a new forever home. :-)

Reeses also found a new home with her little baby girl and two other little kids from this year's kidding season. :-)

I hope you all enjoyed reading about our goat Reeses and her kids.

For the love of goats,
Beth Joy Wood

April Greetings!

2010-04-01T06:09:00.001-07:00

Hi!

My name is Bethany however, everyone calls me Beth or Beth-Joy! I thought for my frst post I would just tell you all a little bit about me, my family and our farm, Covenant Ranch.

I am one out of eleven children. I have seven brothers and three sisters. The oldest in my family is 21 and the youngest is yet to be born. :-) I am fifteen in June. My little sister, Sarah-Grace, and I both share our birthday. I have a horse named Miracle. I enjoy helping my brothers and sisters with their animals. Besides our lovely little herd of Kinder goats, we have two milks cows, two meat cows, one busy beehive, one Arabian horse, one Quarter horse, our sweet little herd of hair sheep, an assortment of chickens, chicks, ducks, and one goose that thinks she is the queen of the barn. We also have a very fluffy little puppy and two cats!

Sarah-Grace, Elisha (one of my older brothers), Timothy (one of my younger brothers) and I all take care of the goats together. Elisha and Sarah do most of the milking, Timothy does a lot of the feeding, with Elisha's help, and Sarah and I take care of the kids. I am also in charge of selling the milk to our customers who come to our farm, giving farm tours and keeping track of all the paperwork and farm activity.

These are some pictures of our farm.

Our property flooded so the boys all went fishing with pitch forks. They caught three fish. =)

This is our bee hive. Timothy takes care of all the bee hives for our family. He is only 10 but he loves bees!

This is my youngest brother Matthew. He is very athletic. Matthew, Elisha, Bekah (my oldest sister), and I all go running together. Matthew and I ran in the Dover race last year. =)

This is our Jersey milk cow. She really loves my little brother Josiah. Josiah takes care of all the cows.

These are our chickens. They love to sit on our front pourch!

This is Liberty, one of our Kinder Kids that was born in the Spring of 2009. Matthew nick-named her Libby. She is one of our sweetest does's. She was bred just last month. I can't wait to see the kids that she gives us.

I'm excited to share with you all the activity at my house this month. I hope you all enjoyed the pictures!

For the love of goats,

Miss Beth Joy Wood

The End

2010-03-29T18:02:00.000-07:00

Well, the last weekend of March was beautiful. A little rain, but balanced with some sun and warmer temperatures. Saturday, thanks to family, we got our hay barn finished.

Next thing I need to do is order some gravel to place inside of the barn, just a few minor checks and adjustments and it is ready to put hay in, however, our tractor is currently residing inside the barn.

Sunday, I took my Working goat project group for a short hike. It's the first hike for this year, so we all have lots of conditioning to do with our goats. Three of the kids have kinder wethers for their pack animal and the fourth (my son Tyler) has a 1/2 Kinder and 1/2 cashmere wether which was our first bottle baby. The three black ones are from a set of quads I raised last year on a bottle, the fourth I sold for a breeding buck. This is the start of our hiking and packing season, for the rest of the summer, we have adopted a trail from the Missouri Conservation Dept. which we will check and maintain monthly. May and possibly September the pack group will have an over night campout there.

Last year was my first campout with goats, roughing it", in a tent, with no bathrooms or running water. It was an experience for all, I read a lot on North American Packgoat Assoc. website, then I had to convince the other goat people goats could be tethered safely on a picket line or on individual stakes. One person offered to bring their trailer to put the goats in over night, but I did point out that most would have their mode of transporting their own goat there and could use that if needed. All goats were staked out overnight with no problems or anything close to a problem. I had mine staked as close to my tent door as I could without them stepping on the tent or chewing on the tent, or soiling tent in some manner. They talked to me until quiet late that night but eventually we all got some rest. As much as you can in a sleeping bag on hard packed dirt, in a tent with two young boys and a tent full of young girls next door.

Since the doeling who arrived a week ago Sunday, there have been four more babies this week, two sets of twins both sets of boy/girl and both out of my young buck THF Snickerdoodle. I decided on the name, Tiramisu, for my first doeling, the next buckling looked just like his daddy so I have named him Caboodle, he is with his mom but mom misplaced his sister and being a first time mom didn't realize she had two babies to care for, so Ginger Snap is in the living room when my husband isn't cuddling with her on the couch or feeding her a bottle.

Here's a picture of the proud new daddy, THF Snickerdoodle.

This Saturday, April 3, will be opening day at the Boone County Farmer's Market. I have to be there to set up by 7:00 a.m. No sleeping in this weekend either. I will get to celebrate Easter with my husband and my in-laws and then Monday, April 5 my hubby leaves for the armory in Lebanon, MO to get ready to mobilize to Iran for approximately 12 months sometime in the next few weeks. Looks like it will be a very busy summer. Happy kidding all, and look me up at the Kinder Shows this year. Montgomery County Fair in June and MO State Fair in August.

2010-03-21T21:54:00.000-07:00

This has been a wild weekend. Friday with beautiful weather we started our hay barn. We are putting up a hoop shelter to store hay in this year. We had been using tarps as we've needed more hay storage but this year we lost half of our hay to mold and mildew. So we are setting up a hoop barn for next year. We got our frames up Friday and our family came Saturday to give us a hand, unfortunately, one who was there was Mother Nature and she brought snow! Not really helpful. But we made good progress, hopefully next weekend we'll be able to get the barn finished.

Friday night, while my husband, father-in-law and brother-in-law continued work on the barn; I headed to Columbia for a meeting with the Boone County Farmer's Market. I took a sample of my soap and lotion hoping to get their approval to become a vendor, which I did. Our Boone County Farmers Market opens on Saturday, April 3 in Columbia and continues through October. I am really excited about the market but will need to get even busier getting soap and lotion made, which I worked on again this weekend. I am still letting my does nurse their babies, so I am using milk I have frozen from last year. When I first started making soap I bought my oils (lard, olive oil, and coconut oil) from Wal Mart and the lye from Lowe's. I bought essential oil for fragrence from a health food store and a soap mold from a craft store, with that I experimented with different recipes, different techniques, and continue today trying new ideas. My last mold I bought on Ebay, but I also now have found online stores that are cheaper for buying in bulk and I am now purchasing my coconut oil in 50 pound buckets. Bramble Berry is a favorite site for supplies and ideas as is Whole Sale Supplies Plus and Soapers Choice for supplies. It's getting close to time to place another order, if you notice the square, plastic container with the spigot in the back of the picture is getting pretty low, that's my 50 pound conainer for olive oil.

I also held a project meeting this afternoon for my 4-H group to work on our demonstration for pack goats which they will present at our April 1 club meeting.

Tonight, when we went out to feed, I found a new baby. My second group is beginning to kid. Paddy-Wack was bred to Snickerdoodle and she had a beautiful daughter this afternoon, I'm thinking maybe Creme Brulle' for her name.

So goes another weekend, certainly never dull.

Making Goat Milk Soap

2010-03-14T17:34:00.000-07:00

Well it was perfect weather for staying in and working on my soap this weekend. I made several batches in January and February preparing for this summer when I hope to have a booth at a local farmers market. I let my soap cure a minimum of six weeks before using it. This allows the lye to reach a safe Ph. level and the bar to harden. Now I have approximate 12 batches that have cured and it is time to trim and wrap to get ready to sell. I am experimenting with different molds to find something that will give me a nice 4 ounce bar everytime. Here are my latest ones, they are made from a food grade plastic which the soap doesn't harm while in saponification (this step gets really hot) and I don't have to put a liner in the mold to remove the soap from the mold. With the wooden molds I use either plastic trash bags or freezer paper to line but both have drawbacks. The plastic trash bags leave wrinkles in the corners and the freezer paper is more expensive and more time consuming.

I have been making soap for about four years. I gotbought my first kinders in 2005 and started making soap in 2006. I was very hesitant to make it because the first thing I read on every book or article telling "How to" make soap, was the warnings and cautions of the dangers of working with lye. Finally after reading, Anne Watson's book "Smart Soapmaking" I jumped in and gave it a try. Once I began using my home made soap, with the milk from my own goats I have not used anything else. It is fun trying different oils and fragrences for different benefits. Olive oil makes your soap harder, coconut oil provides a nice lather, and of course different essential oils offer their own benefits. There are many websites with recipes and directions on how to make soap so if you haven't tried it, I highly recommend it. It doesn't require a lot of goat milk and the finished product feels wonderful and your friends and family will enjoy receiving it as gifts.

Cart Training Your Goat

2010-03-08T18:17:00.000-08:00

Training your goat to pull a cart is fun and useful. Pulling a cart is not hard, driving a cart requires two people who both love working with goats, the same amount...Training to pull a cart, first introduce the harness to your goat, put it on him and walk him around. Practice stopping and starting with voice commands, give lots of praise and treats when he responds with the correct behaviour and keep lots of patience when he doesn't understand or feel like doing it right now. Introduce the cart by letting him sniff of it, pull the cart on one side of you and lead the goat on your other side, this will get him accustom to the sound the cart makes moving and he'll get used to it being close. When the cart rolling beside him doesn't bother him, you can hook the cart to your goat. Just for cautions sake, have a second person there to help unhook in case the goat gets frightened. One person to hold and calm the goat and the other to unhook the cart. If your goat has accepted the training so far, you probably won't have any trouble but always a good idea to be safe. When the goat is pulling the empty cart comfortably, you can begin adding weight in the cart. Use common sense about what you put in, things that rattle go slowly and praise lavishly with treats. When your goat is full grown and in condition they can pull about 1 and a half times their weight. If you have a young goat, keep the load light, up to 3/4 of their body weight. The main things to remember, take the training slowly, repeat each step several times before moving on to the next step, keep it fun and give lots of praise and rewards. You will be rewarded with a goat who is useful and enjoys working. Zack helps me move haybales, bags of feed, fire wood and give kids rides all for peanuts.

Now what I mean by driving being different from pulling. Driving is done when one person is riding in the cart or is behind the goat, giving commands and the goat is responding correctly. Normally the goat is being led when he is just pulling and if he is not pulling my weight he can pull more of whatever chore we are doing. But, it is lots of fun riding in the cart being pulled by your goat. So to train, it really takes two people to get started. After your goat is wearing the harness without problems you will need someone up by his head cueing his response to your verbal command for "giddy up" and "whoa" turning. First tell your goat what you want him to do and if he doesn't do it have the other person cue him with a lead rope and reward the response. Then do it again, tell him what you want wait a second if no response the other person cues and rewards. Keep the lessons short and frequent, daily would be best. When your goat is comfortable with the commands, gradually have your helper get futher and further away until they are not needed. Practice starting stopping and turning, then add the cart. You will need the helper back when you introduce the cart for safety, for the first couple of times.

Now my personal experience with Zack and driving. He will follow along with me without a lead, so kids can hold the reins but I have to be there to guide him. Zack doesn't respond to my family as well as he does for me and I can't lead and give the drive commands at the same time. Also, my family does not have as much fun leading Zack as I do in the cart. I think you see where I am going with this...However, I have a lot of fun working with Zack so I enjoy just leading him while he pulls for me.

Kinder® Communique'

Pasture Management of Parasites

Liver Fluke

Breed History

Breeding Memo

Trade Mark

Evaluation Sheet and Photo of Ebony

Evaluation Sheet and Photo of Kaffee

Use your registration papers as a breeding tool.

Sire and Daughter

Son and Sire

Newsletter

Scrotal Attachments

Parts of a Kinder Goat

Evaluation of a Kinder Buck

Breeder Standard

Kinder Goats and Color

Kinder Goats

DAM RAISED ARE BOTTLE RASIED

Election 2012

Nice Kinder doe

Udder of Young Doe

The evaluation is of this buck

A Genetic Defect and its Management

NAIS

Posted by: "Suzanne Gasparotto" onioncrk@centex.net onioncreek1

Fri Feb 18, 2011 9:57 am (PST)

NIAA Weekly News Bulletin for Feb. 17, 2011

The Beginnings of the Kinder Breed

Hypocalcemia in Late-Gestation

CUSTARD PIE

Goat Trailer Made from the Back of a Van

My Story About CAE

Kinder Goat

Gene Pool

Abnormalities

Johne's Disease

Food Safety

Goats Used In Comparison Study

One-day Milk Test Scoring

New Ruling

One-day Testing

Results of One-day Milk Testing of Kinder

Kinder at Goat Dairy

Milk Comparison

Comparison of Different Meats

Breeding Kinder Goats

Udder of Young Doe

Bucks Structure

Buck

Evaluation of Ebony

Ebony

Thoughts

Width, teat placement and top line in doelings

Udders and Rumps

Udder Height and Fore Udder

Rear and Fore Udder

Teat Size and Shape

Width of Rump and Rear Legs

Angle of Rump

Udders

Angle of the Rump

Slope of Rump

Front ends

Kinder front ends

Evaluate Your Own Goat

Chocolate Kinder Milk Pudding

Goat Cheese

Zucchini Casserole

Butter Pecan Ice Cream

Orange Sherbet

Meningeal worm

"Oh my gosh she is big"

Greetings from the Gray J Ranch

Almost done?

SOLD!

Letting our goats graze

Gardening with the goats

Feed mix

~Vinigar Of The Four Thieves~