# Critiquing my 2016 Doelings



## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

I'm keeping two of the doelings born this year - I was only planning on keeping one, but that proved to be impossible.  I'm going to my first show next week, and I just clipped my first goat today. What do you think of her? She's 8 weeks old.

Her full name is Shire Ridge Jade. http://www.adgagenetics.org/GoatDetail.aspx?RegNumber=D001793047


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Cute!


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Is is absolutely GORGEOUS!!!  
Especially places NDs usually are't good in, she looks really nice. Good back legs, nice canons. Great dairy character, neck and topline. She toes out, I don't like her front legs, and she lacks brisket. I'll give her a full critique soon  
Good luck at your show!


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

Suzanne_Tyler said:


> Is is absolutely GORGEOUS!!!
> Especially places NDs usually are't good in, she looks really nice. Good back legs, nice canons. Great dairy character, neck and topline. She toes out, I don't like her front legs, and she lacks brisket. I'll give her a full critique soon
> Good luck at your show!


Thanks!

I'm still learning the lingo for judging goats.  I definitely agree about the brisket - of what significance is that, and do you think it will change with age? Her dam also has poor brisket, but her sire's is pretty good I think. In the second picture she is toeing out - I'm pretty sure that's just how she was standing there, but I'll have to look at that for sure. How serious of a fault is that? I'm not sure about the front legs - are her knees too knobby? That might be my fault, in how I shaved her.  I'll have to check that, too. 

Thank you for your critique! I really want to learn how to judge my goats properly.


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

The toes out isn't too big a problem, but it can turn the hocks in and mess up the rest of the rear leg of it's too bad. Her rear legs are gorgeous though  So your probably right about it just being the way she's standing in the one pic.

She doesn't have the worst brisket ever, and it should deepen with age. She's maybe right between worst and best, and they usually get better as they mature. It's only one body part in one category on the scorecard, so it doesn't throw your score too badly. But same as with toes going out. If the goat lacks enough brisket, that throws off the neck and dairy character, which throws off the balance of the goat. Then they get judged for all the faults flowing out of the one problem. 

Yes, her knees are knobby, I think the length from elbow to knee is too long, and it's curved there. She's uneven through the whole front leg giving her a weak appearance, and the curved bit is probably from weakness.


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

Thanks! 

Hmm, I see what you mean about the front legs. I've never really looked that closely at a goat's front legs like that before.  Definitely something I'm going to start paying attention to!


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Alright, here we go. Full critique.

Pros - 
Good dairy character
Flashy coloring
Long topline
Level topline
Strong topline
Ok length to rump
Well angled rear legs
Nice curve to thigh
Strong canons
Canons line with pins
Short pasterns
Upright pasterns
Strong pasterns
Tight toes
Smooth shoulder
Okay depth
Fairly long body
Good poll
High withers
Smooth withers
Withers blended well into topline
Dairy neck
Long neck
Okay blending from neck into brisket
Decent wedge
Smooth cheek

Cons - 
Short canons
Steep rump
Wedge could be better (the line on bottom could lean a little more towards perpendicular to the ground and continue farther into the brisket, the line on top could be angled a little lower at the rump and have more length. Which is pretty much the following three flaws)
Short topline/body
Lacks depth, though not too badly. She should get deeper as she matures
Lacks brisket
Uneven front legs
Long front legs
Thick neck.
Head maybe just slight too big for body


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

Awesome, thank you very much! She's probably always going to have a rather steep rump and a shorter body, but I can't wait to see how she matures! 

It seems the more I learn about goats, the more I realize what I don't know.  But this is a lot of fun! I'm going to shave my second doeling tomorrow and add her pictures, too.


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

I got my second doeling shaved this morning! Her full name is Shire Ridge Belleflower, and she is close to 11 weeks old. Both doelings have the same sire, but different dams.


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## Cinthya1674 (Jul 17, 2016)

They are both amazing and wonderful! They both have wonderful Body shape, they are going to be great at the show and i wish you good luck.


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## Lstein (Oct 2, 2014)

I don't know much about critiquing, just wanted to say that I like how you have a feathered audience while setting them up. :-D


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

Lstein said:


> I don't know much about critiquing, just wanted to say that I like how you have a feathered audience while setting them up. :-D


Yep!  
They kept jumping up in front of the goat, too. And the same golden polish chicken managed to get in the background of all the pictures! :lol:


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Oooh, she's lovely! She's got higher withers, a more slender neck and a deeper brisket than Jade. She does have two flaws that Jade doesn't at a quick glance though: much less depth and a weak chine. She's got the same front leg problem, but not as bad. I LOVE her coloring!  They're both very flashy!


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

Suzanne_Tyler said:


> Oooh, she's lovely! She's got higher withers, a more slender neck and a deeper brisket than Jade. She does have two flaws that Jade doesn't at a quick glance though: much less depth and a weak chine. She's got the same front leg problem, but not as bad. I LOVE her coloring!  They're both very flashy!


 Thanks! She as blue eyes, too. 

I think all my goats have knobby knees... I need to be on the look out for a buck with smooth knees! 

What do you mean by less depth?


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Not as wide in the stomach region  She should gain some as she matures, but at that age I'd expect more depth on her already.


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

Suzanne_Tyler said:


> Not as wide in the stomach region  She should gain some as she matures, but at that age I'd expect more depth on her already.


Ah, Ok, thanks. I think that might just be an illusion from my pictures - Belle definitely has more of a stomach than Jade. I should have taken some pictures from the front or back!


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Pros - 
Good dairy character
Good general appearance
Good curve to thigh
Okay length to body
High withers
Smooth withers
Sharp withers
Well blended from neck to withers
Okay length to neck
Slender neck
Dairy neck
Feminine neck
Level topline
Strong loin
Strong canons 
Straight canons
Short pasterns
Strong pasterns
Upright pasterns
Fairly good brisket
Smooth shoulder
Tight toes
Good wedge
Upright stance
Good length to rump

Cons - 
Short canons
Front legs
Steep rump
Weak chine
Roughly blended from neck to brisket
Lacks depth (maybe it's just that the line across her stomach is flat?)
Withers could use better blending 
Loose elbows

You have really nice pictures, btw!


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

Thank you! Your critiques are very thorough.  I've got a lot to study now! 

I can't wait to see how these girls grow up.


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## IHEARTGOATS (Jun 14, 2016)

They are both nice


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

The dairy goat show was today! My girls were unfortunately put in the pygmy goat class instead of the junior dairy doe class, but Belleflower placed first and Jade placed 3rd out of 4. The judge said she thought Belle would have been very competitive against the other junior does (there were several Alpines and a Nubian, all pretty nice goats) and she said Jade was just a little too young to really compete against the more mature goats at this point but that she has a promising conformation.


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