# Lets talk ideal Nigerian heights



## keren (Oct 26, 2008)

So being in Australia I've never actually seen a Nigerian Dwarf goat in the flesh. However I love the look of them and what I've heard and I'm quite interested in breeding them now the semen is available in Australia. I would be crossing with my full sized dairy does and slowly increasing ND%

We are following the ADGA height standards ... but I'm curious to know what you as a ND breeder feel is the ideal height. I was fortunate to see some 33% pygmy goats on the weekend, and I have to admit I was a little bit stunned by just how tiny they were. Their mothers were Australian Miniature Goats around the 19 inch mark, and personally I felt they were smaller than I would like my goats to be.

I suspect I might be aiming to breed goats right on the maximum height level. 

I'm curious to hear what ND breeders like in terms of height


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## MoonShadow (Mar 1, 2015)

If I remember correctly, according to ADGA, Does should stand no more than 22.5″ and bucks no more than 23.5″.

Now, I personally like my ND on the shorter/middle size. Does between 17.5"-19" and bucks at about 19.5"-22". 

I'm not a huge fan of tall ND's, some people like tall ND's and that's fine, but the breed is suppose to be a miniature dairy breed. 
If we breed for height we will eventually end up with colorful standard size goats and not miniatures dairy goats. And that (in my opinion) would just throw everything ND breeders have worked so hard to achieve out the window.


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## Bree_6293 (Aug 4, 2014)

I think there is also a too small for the NDs. They still need to have the height for easy milking. 
Who owned the Aust minis goats that were 19inch? Would be very surprised with full sized Australian miniatures that are 19inches.. 21-23 inches is more the standard for the Australian miniature goats right now in the does and 22-25 inches for the bucks. 
I am breeding Australian miniature goats that are more dairy type than the typical Australian miniatures that are going more towards the Pygmy build though. My big focus on my Australian miniatures is udders, dairy characteristics and still staying under the height limits. Doing all this and moving towards higher generations.


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## MoonShadow (Mar 1, 2015)

For sure, Agreed, there is definitely a too small for NDs. Anything under 17.5 I probably wouldn't breed, just for the fact that it would be harder to milk her and I would think, like pygmy's, harder for the doe to carry and have kids, especially multiples.


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## IHEARTGOATS (Jun 14, 2016)

I like mine to be between 20 and 21 " close to 21


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## Cedar Point Kikos (Oct 16, 2013)

At what age do you measure them for height?


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## IHEARTGOATS (Jun 14, 2016)

Cedar Point Kikos said:


> At what age do you measure them for height?


You can measure them anytime.
Mine do not seem to get much taller after 18 months. Some may get a little taller up to 2 years.
I've seen people say they continue growing to 3 years, but I haven't seen it. At least height.

On our linear appraisal this year we had 3 does score 90 and 2 does score 91. All were between 20-21 inches. In that range they seem to score best on stature.


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

So how do you measure them exactly? I'm interested in measuring my does.


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

I breed my does for the correct height, but I do enjoy them on the slightly taller size. Easier to milk and hoof trim. I also am not quite as afraid for them at kidding time; I worry more about my small girls.

I think it really depends on what you're looking for!


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