# Preparing for Our First Show....and Lost!!!



## SMB_GoatHerd (Jan 22, 2014)

Well, after a very busy kid schedule, we've finally gotten things all settled down and are back to our original 10 goats, plus 3 more girls adding to the herd. And the 4 market goats, but obviously, they aren't permanent. So now that we got things calmed down, we're getting all ralled up again. And planning on attending the WV Boer Goat Blitz in Kearneysville, West Virginia on May 16-17. So, if you're going too, tell me! Maybe I can meet you!

But, I'm taking 2 of my new girls, because my buck hasn't been worked enough to go this early in the season. SMB Boer Goats Long Summer Nights, and SMB Boer Goats Dutchess At Tea will be attending and showing in all 3 ABGA shows. And I'll most likely be showing in the JABGA showmanship show also. But I am so lost otherwise!

So, I'm lost and I'm gonna make a list. Maybe you can help me even in the slightest... 

-How do I clip young does? They were born the first week of February, and will be in the 3-6 mo. old percentage classes. Do I just do a regular doe show clip on them?

-Pigmentation. How likely is it for me to be disqualified because of the lack of it at their age. Some of the other babies' is coming in piece by piece, but there's not much on the girls I'm taking so far. Is this something I should be afraid of..? 

-If I would happened to get disqualified in one show, could I still try in the second or third one? 

-Any extra breeding boer showmanship tips? I've shown in market for 9 years, so I know the basics. But what is specific to this kind of show? 

-Supplies. What should I bring to this show? What should I not forget, or just possibly consider bringing? 

-Extra fitting tips? I've never done show clips before. 

-Lead breaking. I'll be using prong collars, and we have a little trouble walking on them. Any tips on that?

-Absolutely anything else you can think of for a rookie ABGA show family. Anything you say will be helpful. 

Thanks for all your help in advance! And, for that, I attached pictures of Summer from about a month and a half ago. I'm very proud of her. She's my favorite out of all of the kids this year.


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## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

As for pigmentation, some judges are pretty strict about it in the 0-3 mo & some not. 
If they get DQd for lack of it they will either let you & the 1st string picks out for a variety of reasons if it is a real large class. 
And yes you can go back the next show, AGBA lets everyone in who pays regardless of placement in previous classes.
If the show packet states hay will be available you wont need to bring your own. If it says nothing about it, bring your own.
Since Im not good at clipping someone else will help you with that.
For years I've gotten away with just tail clips & hoof hairs clipped.
Matter of fact most of the time Ive never even worked with them because of our set up. And they do just fine as far as being led.
Just keep those collars up high; slight tug release, slight tug release.
Hope Summer does well for you!


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## SMB_GoatHerd (Jan 22, 2014)

Thanks, Nancy! I've been working with the girls a lot this week!

Another question to anyone who knows! 
For wahl clippers, what are the actual lengths for #10 #15 #30 and #40 blades? I think i found an okay set of clippers. But I want to make sure they'll be okay to clip with... This is the pair I'm looking at getting... Thoughts? http://www.enasco.com/product/C32613N


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Are you planning to show regularly? If so, I would look into a good set of clippers, and buy the individual blades. My kids show breeding goats in the county fairs, and did their first ABGA show at our state fair last year, it was a blast!!! Well okay, except for my clippers dying and having to use the old adjustable pair lol.
You could get a couple of size #10 blades, and get a small comb set, that's what we use. 

I am no pro at clipping, I do the best I can to help my kids out, although this year I think my son can learn to do his own breeding goats 
If your goats are really fuzzy/have uneven wild hair, it's a little harder, but if their hair lays down well then it's easier. Again I am no pro, and I generally end up taking off too much hair lol.

Neck, chest & belly should all be shorter - it makes their chest look wider, and shorter hair on the belly helps with making them look longer.
If their hair isn't long and bushy/wild on their body you may not have to do much, just clean up long/wild hairs. Basically, you leave as much hair as possible on the rear end, and slowly work your way to a shorter/cleaner cut on the front end 
IMO, I would look at pictures of show goats to give you an idea of what they look like.

As far as showing them, if you've been showing wethers, you will find breeding goats to be a breeze! No bracing, just set them up nice and pretty! Definitely keep the head up. 
We always have problem goats lead training at home, but usually once they get into the ring/away from everything familiar they get over themselves and co operate. 

Bucks...can be a whole new ball game, haha. My oldest 2 just got 3mo buck kids on Sunday and they both think they are hot stuff lol!! They aren't used to being handled a whole lot, not lead trained, but they will get there.


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## Tenacross (May 26, 2011)

SMB_GoatHerd said:


> Thanks, Nancy! I've been working with the girls a lot this week!
> 
> Another question to anyone who knows!
> For wahl clippers, what are the actual lengths for #10 #15 #30 and #40 blades? I think i found an okay set of clippers. But I want to make sure they'll be okay to clip with... This is the pair I'm looking at getting... Thoughts? http://www.enasco.com/product/C32613N


Oh gosh. Do *not* just unleash a #10 blade on them with out a comb/guard over it. 15, 30, 40 blades are even shorter! You can do some useful stuff with a #5 and #7 blade by itself without a comb/guard, but that is for areas you want pretty short on purpose.

http://www.boergoats4richardsandy.com/Trimming_chart_RNSH.jpg

http://members.psyber.com/macgoats//trimming_chart.htm


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Thanks for posting the charts Tenacross! I forgot about that first one, I'm going to try and use it when I clip one of my kids does in the next day or two. Will have to try the buck chart for the kids bucks as well. I like to do the first initial trim a month before the show so if I screw up it has some time to grow out again lol


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## Tenacross (May 26, 2011)

HoosierShadow said:


> Thanks for posting the charts Tenacross! I forgot about that first one, I'm going to try and use it when I clip one of my kids does in the next day or two. Will have to try the buck chart for the kids bucks as well. I like to do the first initial trim a month before the show so if I screw up it has some time to grow out again lol


No problem. I also know of another pretty good cheat sheet done by Sandy Duncan of Able Acres, but it's a PDF and won't download. If anybody wants it, post or PM me your email and I will send.

Tim


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## SMB_GoatHerd (Jan 22, 2014)

Well, I ended up ordering the Clippers that I posted, and I really like them. It came with 5 guards. 
I'm planning on using my youngest brood doe to practice on, because I wish I could show her, but she's got a vertically folded ear. But, she's amazing looking, and I'm actually breeding her right now. (She's actually the one in my avatar) So, she's gonna be the guinea pig before I use it on the girls I'm planning on showing. 
And, do the bucks need to be clipped differently? 
Thank you for posting those charts, Tim! Extremely helpful!! And what you said, Hoosier, we don't actually brace at my county fair, we use plain choke chain, but I'm using prong collars for my girls, and buck and I noticed that they work much much better on those! Who would've thought? But I still have Summer not very friendly. I've been taking them out on halters to get used to walking with me. The May show actually fell through with us, so we're headed to one more close by in Centre Hall, PA in the beginning of June. The weekend after school lets out. No better way to spend a summer though, I guess. I'm super excited, but really nervous also. Oh, and we can't really afford to invest in a blower at the moment, so would it be so bad to just use a hair dryer? Thanks for all your help!!


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## SMB_GoatHerd (Jan 22, 2014)

Oh, and here's a more recent picture of little miss Summer. Sorry for the bad quality!


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Pretty girl!!  You need to post pics of the others too!

I hope the clippers work out for you, the only downside that I've heard about the cordless is the need for recharging. Hopefully that won't be an issue. I was considering getting cordless but opted to just get the corded instead.

My kids use prong collars on their breeding goats, especially the ones who refuse to walk on a regular chain collar.

I forgot to mention - make sure your girls get plenty of sunshine, that Vitamin D will help their pigment. 
We bought a buck for breeding a couple of years ago, he had no pigment, must have spent most of his time in a barn, because as soon as he got here and spent most of his days outside, his pigment came in really fast, and was dark.

I'm sorry the show fell through, but it does give you more time to prepare.
My kids have their first wether show on May 30th, but don't show everyone else until probably mid June.
We just brought home 2 bucks and a doe over the weekend, and they need built up, sure hope we can get them in decent show shape before their first show! Really going to be pushing it.

For wethers in our state, it's a 'brace if you want to place' kind of thing  If you don't brace, chances are you won't finish well. My son doesn't like bracing at all, and his wether is going to give him a hard time about it. My son has a soft hand for his animals.

I understand about a blower. The first few years my kids had to towel & sun dry their goats. A friend of ours loaned us a shop vaccum type of blower/vaccum last summer, and it worked great! 
It's similar to this 
http://www.amazon.com/Metropolitan-...&qid=1431088203&sr=8-40&keywords=metro+vacuum

I don't think a regular hair dryer will do it, generally they will get too hot <been there/done that>.

You might be able to find a dog dryer, also check craigslist, and if there are any livestock facebook pages near you, then you can post on there that you are looking for an inexpensive, but decent dryer.

We just bought a dryer last week from a friend of a friend, it's a livestock dryer/blower, and OMGoodness, it's awesome! This is my kids 4th year showing goats, so it's taken us this long to get one! I just can't afford $300-400 which is what this costs brand new. Ask around


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

Saanen dairy goat trick but, should work on Boers. If you give 100 mg of vitamin D daily for a week and then twice a week after that, they will build their pigment faster and darker. It helps prevent them from getting sunburned too.


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## SMB_GoatHerd (Jan 22, 2014)

Well, I tried out that diagram on my doe, Whiskey. Sadly enough, she's not eligible to show, but I love her to death. I know it's hard to tell with pictures, but what do you think about my clip job? Critique me please.


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## Crossroads Boers (Feb 19, 2011)

Looks great! :thumb: In the first picture it looks like above her forearm could be blended more, but the clip looks good otherwise.  You might try blending that with some blending scissors and a comb.


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## SMB_GoatHerd (Jan 22, 2014)

Alright! Thank you Crossroads. ☺ 

I'll be clipping my little girls within the next two weeks. I'll post pictures of them too.


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