# First year woes and learning as we go



## candcfarms (Feb 6, 2017)

Nigerian Dwarfs: We have one bred doe (bought her registered and already bred), one yearling doe, and one yearling buck as a herd. I of course did a lot of research on feed, good breeding, and housing. As we were getting ready for show it was time to clean and clip. Holy MOSES my goats were a lot thinner than I thought under that hair. We had a Boer judge that did not know a lot about Nigerians and immediately plucked the littles ones first from showmanship and only Boers made it into the showmanship drive. When it came down to breeding class he always picked the largest (oldest) and fattest Nigerian. Or so I thought. 

Anyway state livestock is next week and I would like to try and put on a bit of weight to my goats. Is this possible without giving the scours? I did pick up a bag of beet root. I soaked it in water this morning for 10 minutes and mixed 1/4 (dry) cup into their morning feed. Is this ok?


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

No, it is not possible to put any significant weight on a goat safely in 1 week. But adding beet pulp long term won't hurt to get them to a healthy weight. 1/4 cup per day is fine. 

What else are you feeding?

If you Google "Goat Body Condition Scoring" and watch a few YouTube videos you can see it is very difficult to tell if a goat is a healthy weight just by eyesight (because that winter fur is deceiving! but also because their abdomen and rumens fluctuate so much). You have to put hands on the spine, hips, ribs, and/or brisket to get a good feel for their body condition. 

Have you had fecal analysis done recently? How are the FAMACHA scores? What are they eating on a daily basis besides the beet pulp?


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Can you post some photos of them?


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## candcfarms (Feb 6, 2017)

They are eating a 1 cup goat pellet recommended by the breeder,a 1/4 cup sweet feed, and hay on demand. They are wormed on schedule but I have not done a fecal. They have been thru two health checks by the vet, not sure if they do a fecal with that exam or not. I'll post pics in just a bit. I don't have pics of all of them.


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## candcfarms (Feb 6, 2017)

Also wth is a FAMACHA score? :type:


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## candcfarms (Feb 6, 2017)




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## candcfarms (Feb 6, 2017)

Also they didn't touch the feed from this morning with the beet root in it


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## candcfarms (Feb 6, 2017)

Pictures are up. Not sure why it messed up the thread. So what are your thoughts?


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

They look in great condition to me. 

Is the buck currently in with the does?


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Ok so I'm not a nigi person but they look fit to me. They don't look overly fat and I'm not seeing bones sticking out, to me I would say perfect. Now I like a little more fat on them, just a tad over fit in case one ever gets sick but my two cents are they look ok.
I do want to say don't get discouraged on your placing. Have fun! I know it's not all that fun if you are always loosing but from just what I have seen at our fairs the judges change so much on what they want. Last year it was the same thing as you said, the fat big goats won. I mean once I figured out what he was looking for I could just point to the one that had more flesh and I was right that was the winner. This year I'm not totally sure what the judge was after lol I'm sure he knew but I couldn't pin point what it was. And my son did ok on his goat so I can't say it was because he did bad or anything like that


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## candcfarms (Feb 6, 2017)

The Buck is and has been separated from the does since possession. And yes Jessica I Ickes the oldest and thickest then so on and so forth and was right every single class.


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## PippasCubby (May 13, 2015)

I agree with everyone else. They look in good condition to me. Dairy goats are supposed to have a dainty/refined look to them which goes away if they are over conditioned.

Judges all seem to have their preferences. You can be at the bottom with one and the top with another. Keep your head up and keep going!

As an additional comment, if you can, shave the legs of them for show. It is kind of a pain, but it gives them a cleaner look.

Good luck! They look like a nice little herd to me!


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

I don't know anything about showing dairy goats, but they sure look healthy and nice to me! I am sorry the judge didn't place them well. I think it's hard to try and judge Boer and Dairy unless you know a lot about both. 
Don't give up, and try again, talk to other Dairy people and see if they can give you any advice. I know we've made some really great friends at the shows, and we help each other out the best we can.


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

See they must look good since you've now had two boer people say they look good  lol


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## Goatzrule (Feb 7, 2013)

I have been showing NDs since forever in 4H. I dont agree with the judge and I dont think it was right for him to not judge them fairly. NDs are dairy goats and should be judged as dairy goats. They look great in condition but I would trim their legs too


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## goatblessings (Jan 6, 2015)

Just remember a show is just someone's opinion. You may place terribly one day and at the top the next, depending on the judge. He MAY have placed you low for not shaving the legs, as dairy goats are supposed to be shaved. Little things like that can cost you.


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