# Critiquing My New Buck



## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

I've had this boy since last year, but this year will be my first time using him. He decided rubbing his head in pine sap was a good idea, so I took that as my excuse to clip him and get some pictures. He is polled, has blue eyes, and has wattles so I'm pretty excited! This is a link to his pedigree: http://web.adga.org/Crystal/DisplayReport.aspx?r=3&c=173156&i=1411646|PD1619742|M

I'd love to hear your opinions about him!


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

I'll go with what I see in him: 

Pros:
long neck 
strong withers 
fairly level topline
good rear leg angulation 
good blending
nice depth of body 
decent length of body

Cons: 
legs a bit short? 
needs more brisket 
a more level rump would be nice 
longer body would be good, too 
he toes out in the front 

I read somewhere that all the flabby skin he's got around his neck is a good sign for dairy animals - is that true?


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Pros - 
Good depth
Okay wedge
Very upright
Strong canons
Canons in line with pins
Smooth shoulder 
Long neck
Deep muzzle
Smooth withers
Masculine appearance
Broad forehead
Well define nostrils
Okay length to body

Cons - 
Withers high in the extreme
Weak brisket
Weak pasterns
Short face
Steep rump
Extremely upright
Uneven topline
Short rump
Back legs could be bigger
Short canons
Weak chine
Roach back
Uneven from topline to rump

Sadly, he isn't looking very lovely to me right now  He'd probably look a lot better out of rut.


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Oh, and on the rolls/wrinkles. I read the same. My buck has them like crazy (pictures in my thread Buck Question) and his dam was producing two gallons a day, so I guess it's true.


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

Thanks for your honest opinion. 

How serious would you say his flaws are? Like, are they just show disadvantages or longevity, quality-of-life kind of issues? 

'Extremely upright' is a new one for me - what exactly does that mean?  

Hope you don't mind all these questions.  This boy is quite different than my other buck, which I figure variety is a good thing to have. I suppose I'll see how his babies look in the spring and go from there.


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

I would say mostly just show disadvantages, but there is a reason for everything on the scorecard. It's harder for them to birth kids with a steep rump. Long bodies provide more room for food and kids. Toplines hold up the udder, kids, stomachs, etc. And so on and so forth.

Upright is a very desirable characteristic, but you don't want them extremely upright because the balance would be thrown. If his rear legs were larger, he would be fine, but to be this upright something has to give and in this case it's the rear legs. 

On second thought, it might just be how high his withers are that's making him look super upright :scratch:


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

I pulled up the pictures of your two doelings I critiqued a while back, he should pair pretty well with them. Good luck!


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## CrazyDogLady (Aug 9, 2014)

I have read more than one comment from a very well known and respected breeder of ND that he doesn't care at all how his bucks look. He only cares about the dam, sisters, daughters if there are any.


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