# Should I take a chance and save this buck?



## NWIndianaBoers (Mar 18, 2013)

So I came across this buck that is FB ABGA registered and has the bloodlines I want though with the condition he is in I will admit it is hard to see why. Obviously he needs help himself but I think it can be done and the genetics are there. He is about 16 months in the pic. His sire is enobled and I will list him at some point later. I will say it isn't the original breeder that let him get in this condition. I have been to the farm where this buck was born and all their animals are well taken care of and I have seen the sire in person and he is extremly impressive. I figure genetics don't change with condition and that he will still prodiuce show quality animals just like his enobled sire. I've gotten a lot of "are you sure you really want him" looks when I ask my family. So what do you think?


----------



## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Sometimes it is worth it. If the price is right, you could always try.


----------



## BlissMeadows (Jan 9, 2013)

do it i think he would be worth it


----------



## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

Looks like his scrotal split is on the excessive side. He could be brought back into condition but the split wont change. My guess is that's why he was sold.


----------



## KW Farms (Jun 21, 2008)

I noticed that split too Nancy. 

His condition doesn't look all that bad...I mean...he's rough looking, but I don't think it would be too hard to get him back to full health...i'd just make sure he's CAE and CL negative. If he's exactly what you want otherwise..and the price is fair for his currect condition then i'd probably give him a chance...but don't get too excited until he's back to full health...anything can happen once he's purchased and moved to his new home and in recovery...you just never know.


----------



## NWIndianaBoers (Mar 18, 2013)

The split looks worse than it is. It is only maybe 1/2 inch or so. I know no split is best but it isn't a deal breaker by any means. The asking price was $600 but i got him down to $400. The price had more to do with what's in his blood then how he looks at this point obviously.

There is a little more to the story on this guy. I saw him go through a sale and attempted to purchase him then but he went for more than I could spend at that point. I searched for him a while later and found who bought him and that they had him for sale. I couldn't believe the condition he was in compared to how he looked at 5 months old as pictured below


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

W-O-W! They really did let him go didn't they? what a shame. IMO, if he is what you want in a buck, pedigree, etc. then I'd go for him. He doesn't look awful, IMO. He could be a fun project for you this spring/summer


----------



## happybleats (Sep 12, 2010)

wow..his before pic would sell me...he is in a sad state now but not a loss cause..might be fun to see him get back his old glimmer : ) keep us posted and updated as he improves if you go for it : ) possible a diamond in the rough..


----------



## sweetgoats (Oct 18, 2007)

They still sold him for $400.00 looking like that? No I don't think he is horrible but he does need help.

Little love and attentions with some good food and a fecal float to see if he needs to be dewormed, he just might surprise us all. 

I can't wait to see him back to looking like that again. What a shame someone would let him get that thin. Did he have more goat? How did they look? I would call the Humane Society on them.


----------



## Tenacross (May 26, 2011)

What's his name?


----------



## NWIndianaBoers (Mar 18, 2013)

I must say i am a little surprised that no one said he was a lost cause. Though considering i have been lurking here for a good 6 months now, saying an animal is a lost cause isn't something that is said very often if at all. Now maybe some would have said he could never get back into show shape especially in the extremely competitive state of Indiana. I of course wasn't sure how far back i could bring him and did go into it thinking at least he had the genetics and knowing how he looked as a 5 month old. 

Now, with that being said there's once again a little more to the story. I actually purchased this buck in his near death state in the fall of 2011. He had stubborn worms and a rumen that wasn't functioning properly. For the first several weeks I could barely get him to eat a pound of grain a day and only nibbled at hay. He had a heavy worm load when i brought him home though the owner claimed to have wormed him twice in the previous month. Apparently they were resistant to his wormer or he was under dosed. It took months of patience and even trying different feeders at different heights etc and giving him fresh feed twice a day to start turning him around. From the time i got him he is a very picky eater and will go off feed for any reason. 

He weighed about 130 pounds when i got him at about 18 months old. The pics below he is around 250 and at maybe 90% total recovery and they were taken late spring and summer of 2012. 

Here we in March of 2013 and he is looking his best yet though i don't have a current picture yet as our weather just refuses to switch to spring. For the first time since owning him i can actually look at him and say he is a tad bit heavy. I am still trying to get another 20 pounds on him for showing but still it is amazing considering where he came from and makes me wish i had him from the time he was 5 months old and that he would have never had to suffer for that year in his life.


----------



## chelsboers (Mar 25, 2010)

You have done a great job!


----------



## clearwtrbeach (May 10, 2012)

Wow night and day. Luckily you knew what he looked like before; I don't know (not knowing how he was before) that I would have paid $400. He's come along very nice, congrats.


----------



## Tenacross (May 26, 2011)

Shame on us for believing the first story you told us. Try to be a little
more honest from now on please. Are you surprised some of us could tell
he was a decent buck from the first picture?


----------



## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

He sure looks fantastic now!


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

I have to agree, I would have been a little more honest about the first pics. Use a different story line perhaps 

I will say that I think you made a great choice, and brought him back to look so awesome! He's gorgeous. I liked his pic being in such poor shape, kept thinking if he could be brought back to health.... I didn't realize of course you wanted a show buck, I don't know anything about bringing them back to a state like that, but I can imagine it's taken a long time.

Worms can be so brutal


----------



## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

I agree with the others, have him tested.

He does look rough, with proper care and treatment he may or may not come around. But worth a shot.

Does he have any kids on the ground?


----------



## AlvinLeanne (Feb 16, 2012)

You did a wonderful job with him! He looks great!


----------



## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

It is always amazing what love and a good nutritional program will do for any animal. That is why most people won't say something is a lost cause. Because there are plenty of times when the time and effort are worth it. So glad that he did end up working out for you and he does look one heck of a lot better.


----------



## NWIndianaBoers (Mar 18, 2013)

I wasn't trying to be dishonest. I was trying to come up with a way to word it but if i would have said i got him 18 months ago do you think he was worth it?, I'm sure everyone would say yes then because if he wasn't why would i post it to begin with. If i had found the site 18 months ago i would have started the topic then and kept the thread going with updates but i didn't find it till recently. I also could have just titled it what a transformation but then once again anyone could have said oh yeah i could tell from the sickly pic that he was a future champion. This was the only way to get honest open answers without leading you either way. As i said before my family thought i was crazy but all of you said go for it . I'm sorry if i offended anyone as that was not the intention at all.

I bred him to just three does in the fall of 11 because at the time i had only gotten maybe 30 pounds on him but did want to see a couple kids. Of his 6 kids we kept 2 does, had a grand champion wether, another high placing wether. Kept a buck back from him that was out of a fb black doe. And sold the 6th kid. This year we have him bred to our best does and his kids thus far have been all i could hope for and more. He is a really good combo buck for the wethers and for breeding stock which is exactly what i needed and was hoping for.


----------



## happybleats (Sep 12, 2010)

so you were testing us...?? I see...Glad it all worked out for him..he truly is a diamond after all


----------



## kikoguy (Dec 9, 2012)

He looks great now. If it would have been me I would have passed on him I don't have the time or money to bring a goat back like that. But you did an outstanding job congrats.


----------



## Ember (May 23, 2011)

Do it!!! My husband did it with our first buck Jacob. He was wild and heck, the people he got him off of here mean to him, their horses kicked him, they kept him locked in a tiny stall with no interaction. My husband rescued him kept him in the barn, fed him really well, put him on a lead and took him outside once a day and once the buck figured out what was going on he came around and loved my husband. He got excited when they went outside, quit trying to butt everyone etc. He was an awesome guy!!

It will take some work but the reward will be amazing and worth it!

*I didnt read the whole thing! LOL Good job he looks great! Where in Indiana are you located?


----------

