Meat Goat Blog

Buck Forage Application

The Oklahoma Buck Forage test application can be printed from the web page. http://www.kerrcenter.com/event_links/goat_buck_test.htm It can be competed in just a few minutes. Questions about the test can be sent to Test Manager, Mary Penick,[email protected] or you can call her at (918)647-9123.

Mary is helpful, friendly, and resourceful. The Oklahoma test really runs smoothly under her care and attention.  

Buck Forage Test Prove Your Promises

We support the Oklahoma Buck Forage test because it measures the performance of the animals. Every goat breeder has " good goats ". No one breeds substandard livestock.  It is easy to say the goats are top quality, but harder to prove. There have been a lot of " good goats " we have bought with hard earned money through the years that just didn't make it.

Some of the prettiest, fattest, well-built does were dead 60 days later - parasites took them. We thought these does would give us years of kids with little or no trouble. Well, it is easy to tell folks you have tough, durable goats. We like to support it with more than just our assurances. We like to know some of our goats were compared to bucklings from all over the country.

There are several tests around the country. We appreciate all the sponsors and people working to facilitate the tests.

Entry Requirements For Oklahoma Buck Forage Test

The entry requirements for the 2010 Oklahoma Buck Forage test have been announced by the Kerr Center as follows:

1. A producer group will consist of 1 or more bucks (maximum of 6) that were born between January 1, 2010 and March 31, 2010. All breeds and crossbreeds are accepted.
2. To be considered for the Herdsman Award you must have a group of 3 or more bucks.
3. Producers must provide Birth Date and Weaning Date to verify.
4. Bucks must weigh a minimum of 35 lbs at check-in.
5. Bucks must be weaned 30 days prior to entry, had a minimum of 1 de-worming and 1 CDT vaccination 4 weeks prior to entry, and have their feet trimmed. No exceptions.
6. Bucks must be tagged with a scrapie tag from their state of origin. No exceptions.
7. All out of state bucks must be accompanied by an official inter-state health certificate and in compliance with all Oklahoma shipment requirements.  For information: Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food & Forestry, and (405) 522-6142.
8. Entry fee of $120 per buck will be required to secure a position within the test. The entry fee will cover feed supplementation, medication, wormer, routine veterinarian services and other test costs.
9. Producers will be responsible for all vet fees incurred in the case of treatment for serious injury, disease or necropsy (in the case of death).

We encourage all goat ranchers to enter bucklings. It provides a fun way to compare your goats to other farms and gives you an objective assessment of your livestock by an impartial measurement of the goat's performance. It is money and time well spent.

2010 Oklahoma Buck Forage Test

The 2010 Oklahoma Buck Forage test is scheduled for buck check-in June 28th. Like last year there will be a warm up period until July 11th. For those unfamiliar with a buck forage test, it is an official and objective assessment of bucklings entered for goat producers to demonstrate their stock's parasite resistance, growth, and attributes. According to the Kerr Center, test host and sponsor, the objective is:

"to identify individual bucks as well as their sires and dams that carry genetics expressing economically important traits in commercial meat goat production. Additionally, this test will allow breeders to compare genetics within their herd to make better management decisions as to herd lines that will produce profitable progeny for future herds."

The warm up period gives breeders from other places the opportunity for their goats to recover from the stress of travel before the actual examination starts. All goats begin the same day and without the disadvantage of having spent the previous 24 hours in a trailer.

The warm up period is not an option.  All goats must participate in the warm up. Deadline for is June 11th and the fee is $120.00 per buck.

Fecal Counts - Zero is Perfect - Or Is It ?

Some goats have extremely low fecal egg counts - zero. These goats are parasite resistant and rarely need to be wormed. Anything below 250 is considered exceptional. Obviously goat breeders like to  see these low numbers and many of us tailor our breeding program to raise offspring with these characteristics. But, is it what we the industry really needs. Is it what we really want?

Recently, I had a conversation with a fellow breeder that I respect. He has top quality goats and also places considerable emphasis on low numbers in the fecal counts. During the discussion, he disapprovingly  mentioned some breeders seem satisfied with goats that have higher egg counts although unaffected  by the parasite load they carry. He was surprised to learn I agree with these other breeders to some extent.

Whether it is better to have resistance as opposed to resilience is an interesting question. As said, we breed for resistance, but we also breed for resilience. We believe both are important. Someone will undoubtedly point out that no eggs means no worms. This is the position my friend takes. In fact, he says owning goats that carry worms means you are infecting the rest of your herd as the droppings are spread through the pasture. It is a sound position.  After all, increased parasite levels will definitely infect the others.

So why do we care about resilience? Wouldn't it just make sense to stay focused on goats who don't have parasites? We don't think so. It reminds me of the 20 year old, never sick a day in his life,  who  suddenly dies of a simple virus. Over the weekend, I listened to one of those medical radio shows. The physician talked about increasing numbers of adults contracting whooping cough. He explained the vaccines given as  a child wear off and the immune system weakens when it is not periodically challenged.

Sooner or later the goat with a zero parasite level is going to come into contact with a new strain of parasites it never encountered before. When it happens, the animal whose immunity has never been fully developed  will not have the time to build  a working immune system. 

While we are big advocates of objective tests to measure attributes such as the buck forage tests. One of our criticisms  of these tests has been the lack of resilience testing. We have suggested tests in which parasites are introduced to the participants to determine the ability to ward off the attack. So far, we are not aware of any testing facility that has a resilience test.

One of the objections posed by test facilities is breeders of expensive, registered stock will not be willing to participate for fear of the animal dying.  Our response is the tests are designed to objectively prove  that what is being sold is truly there. Sort of like, "put your money where your mouth is." If you hear of a facility conducting resilience tests, send us an e-mail and let us know.  

Oklahoma Buck Forage Tests Ends

The 2009 Oklahoma Buck Forage test ended today with a field day for the contestants and to give awards to the top buck and herdsman. The event was well attended by the goat owners who entered bucklings. Linda and Dr. Dave Sparks had the number one buck with an ADG of 0.19 lbs. At the end of the day, every farm that entered was a winner because they learned more about the genetics of their herds.

We will continue to emphasis the need for objective tests in the industry to measure performance. Blood lines are only a marker to good genetics and the best of bloodlines eventually becomes deluded over time. As such, periodic testing verifies the product and assures buyers the genetics are really there.

We want to thank Mary and Andy at the Kerr Center for their hard work in conducting the test. It takes a lot of effort and many hours of their time to do it.

Kids Need To Be Tested

Goats breeders need to test their kids, the goat kids. The public schools will test the other ones. So why should a breeder test kids? Because breeders should want:

  -  to improve their herds by finding out areas needing improvement

-  want to sell with integrity and not false promises

 -  meet other breeders who have livestock that complement their own herds

-  better the goat industry by supporting those conducting the tests

We have bought goats from several sources over the years with all kinds of results; some good, some not. The animals that didn't turn out  to be what we expected were not necessarily sold to us by people who were dishonest or mean spirited. Some breeders raised goats designed for the show ring and a nice barn between shows. The breeders just didn't understand our ranch and the rugged environment where our goats live. Some of the goats we bought came with assurances that were genuinely believed by the seller, although never fulfilled.

A dead goat is just as much a financial loss bought from a disingenuous breeder as it is from an honest breeder that doesn't know the limitations of his goats. If you want to make money in the goat business, you MUST have quality goats or spend a lot of time taking care of them.  Pedigrees are not the same as genetics. Pedigrees are an indicator of genetics, nothing more.  We have the papers of the dead goats to prove it.

People wanting to get into the meat goat business need to locate quality breeding stock: parasite resistant, sound feet, good foragers, and capable of raising more of the same. Forage tests help verify what breeders tell you and likely really believe to be true.

What is a Buck Forage Test Anyway?

A buck forage test is an objective way to test goats for certain attributes. It is monitored  by a third party who objectively measures the characteristics. The purpose is to scientifically determine whether the animals produced truly reflect the intended result and provide information to the breeders, potential purchasers, and others.

The tests are not all alike, although most of them:

1. test only bucklings more than 90 days old and less than 6 months,
2. monitor weight gain, usually adjusted to an average daily gain,
3. require Famancha scoring and egg fecal counts approximately every two weeks,
4. periodically examine feet for soundness, and
5. watch for other signs of poor health or disease.

The test managers generally like to avoid possible bias or favoritism since there can be social or employment connections to the participants. The test managers often assign  a new identification number to the bucklings and remove all identifying tags immediately when the bucklings arrive. In this way, the test manager doesn't unintentionally give better marks to one animal because of unintended bias. Some of the attributes are clear and simple such as weight. Other things such as Famancha scores are more subjective and the good test managers want to make sure everyone is treated fairly.

The examination usually lasts 90 -150 days and the entry fee is around $100.00. Many tests have a warm up period in which the bucklings are given a chance to adjust to the new surrounding and recover from the travel. It is not uncommon for the Oklahoma test to have bucklings from across the country. The bucklings traveling 1,000 miles would be at a disadvantage to those only traveling 90 miles if required to  start the very next day after arrival .

It is not uncommon to see an award ceremony following the test with an auction of the participants. The overall procedure can be different depending upon the sponsor. Since these tests are regularly underwritten in part by the use of some third party's facility, the tests are routinely connected with college and university agriculture departments or some other foundations.

 

New Buck Forage Report From The Oklahoma Test

The Oklahoma Buck Forage Test released some new weight and fecal scores today. None of the bucklings have gained much weight since the test started. Mary Penick, test manager, believes the lack of weight gain is partially due to the drop in protein in the pasture as the Fall starts. There were 12 bucklings  disqualified for parasites. These bucklings were pulled from the test and wormed after receiving Famancha scores of 4 or 5.  One of the things you learn when you participate in these tests is that you can't predict how a goats performance by looking at the animal. Some of the goats pulled from the test were animals from other farms we thought would do really well. It is sort of like judging whether a human child will be able to play professional football when he is starting to walk at two years old. You can guess and speculate - it's a lot of fun - just not real scientific. If you want to really know about your goats, give some thought to entering a test once in a while. Aside from the information you will learn, it is just good, clean entertainment. But, then I enjoy sitting on the back porch watching the wind blow through the trees!

Oklahoma 2009 Buck Test Halfway Mark

The 2009 Oklahoma Buck Forage Test finished the first half with the ADG results posted. The bucks have all gained less than expected. Interestingly, the results of the buck test track the doelings on our farm. The summer has been a little unusual for Oklahoma. We hit 100 degree plus days in June and saw some 85 degree highs in July. Normally, we expect July and August to be the two hottest months of the year. The sea-saw effect seemed to stagnate our doelings for about 45 days which coincides with the bucks in the test.

Fecal and Famancha scores also seemed to hold some inconsistent results without much explanation. Test manager, Mary Penick reported new scores will be posted in a day or so. The information will hopefully give the contestants a better idea if the earlier scores were an aberration or not.