Frank Craddock, left, and Dan Waldron prepare to weigh rams during the Texas A&M ram test at the Sonora Experiment Station. Photo by Fred Campbell.

The answer is no, at least not in the foreseeable future, Walker said at a meeting of Texas A&M personnel and Rambouillet and Angora producers Nov. 13 at the San Angelo A&M Research and Extension facility. But producers need to become proactive to ensure the tests’ continuation, he added.

“A year ago I talked to the Mohair Council at their winter meeting,” Walker, resident director of research at San Angelo, said. “And one of the things I talked to them about was, the central performance test was not the best way to get genetic information and make genetic progress, and that we needed to move toward using on-farm performance recording and the pedigree information.” He said he was suggesting that it was time to think about making better genetic progress in producer breeding programs by collecting more and better data. “That was interpreted as ‘We’ve got to shut down the performance test,’” he added.

After rumors about the fate of the two tests had circulated awhile, Dee Hadorn, a well known Angora breeder from Harrah, Okla., organized the Nov. 13 meeting. More than a dozen regular participants in the annual finewool ram and Angora buck tests showed up to offer support for continuing the test programs and to give their input.

“Money is tight and we had gotten the impression it might affect the test,” Hadorn said. “It seemed like a good time for people with similar interests to get together and visit.” She sent written invitations out and phoned to invite many sheep and goat producers. Several who were not able to attend  sent email messages to express support for keeping the tests going.

“In Texas, I’ve been told that people don’t speak until they’re spoken to and it’s time that people voice their opinions. They were speaking up at this meeting and need to continue,” Hadorn said.

At the meeting Walker confirmed that money for production agriculture programs and research is indeed tight. “This year we took a 2 percent budget cut,” he said. Funding for cutting edge research such as genomics or alternative fuels has continued to be healthy, but production agriculture has taken a hit. Currently the American Sheep and Goat Center, which is the successor to the National National Sheep Industry Improvement Center, does not have a research grant program, and this was a funding source that the Experiment Station had been successful obtaining funds from. Because of the loss of federal earmarks last year, funding for wool and mohair research was reduced by about 30 percent this fiscal year, and these funds directly help support the fiber testing that is done as part of the central performance tests, Walker said. “We had to use normal operating money to supplement what we didn’t get.”

Angora raiser Jimmy Holman of Sonora asked Walker to keep producers in the loop and issue a “heads up” if he did hear that the tests were to be shut down.

If producers were to wait to hear from him in the case that happened, “that would be too late,” Walker said. Sheep and goat producers and other production agriculture people need to be proactive and take steps now to ensure the programs they want to continue do indeed continue.

“How do we do that?” was the question that seemed to be on everyone’s mind and that was voiced by Dee Hadorn and again by Fred Campbell of Paint Rock.

“The way it has to happen is politics,” Walker said. “The Legislature doesn’t typically give budget increases. They typically support ‘initiatives.’” Initiatives in this context means state agency support of “hot topic” issues, such as biofuels, food safety, wind energy or the like.

The sheep and goat industry needs to find “champions” in state politics who will defend the Texas A&M University system and influence the legislature to continue or increase funding to production agriculture research, Walker explained.

It was brought up that with the huge increases in population in Texas’ larger cities, the state legislature leans heavily toward an urban way of thinking, regardless of party. Texas A&M professor emeritus and Rambouillet breeder Carl Menzies commented, “Rural legislators need to stick together or funding for agricultural projects will dry up.”
“We cannot afford to lose the test station,” Bonnie Naumann, Angora raiser from Medina, Texas, said at the meeting. “We’re all here to keep the test station. We’re all here today for the future of the the research.” There is no comparison of the high quality, kemp-free mohair being produced in Texas today with that of years past, she added, attributing a lot of that progress to work at the experiment stations.

Naumann noted how A&M’s Dr. Chris Lupton’s expertise in fiber measurement and his knowledge of the latest technologies have helped the industry and supplied producers and test animal buyers with accurate fleece data. Dr. Lupton’s as well as other researchers’ work has played a big role in improving Texas’ wool and mohair clips.

The article by Amy Trinidad in the November 2007 Sheep Industry News cited a master’s thesis by Angelo State University graduate student Raelye Self about the importance of central performance tests to genetic improvement. According to Self’s paper, from 1949 to 2006, Texas A&M test rams showed significant improvement in every aspect–average daily gain, clean fleece weight, uniformity, staple length, reduced belly wool, folds and face cover. Trinidad quoted Self’s writings:

“From the 10,000 plus rams tested since 1949, 2,000 of them may have been used as breeding animals. Each of those 2,000 rams could have sired 300 lambs in their lifetime. Therefore, the impact of improved genetic merit on the test would be spread to 600,000 first-generation offspring and substantially more second-generation offspring.”

Prominent Sonora Angora breeder Dr. Joe David Ross noted that the performance tests need to contine because of their importance to the wool and mohair industry.

C.E. Renfroe from Christoval, Texas, said, “We’ve already been kicked in the butt every way possible,” and do not need to lose the Angora buck test or ram test.

The one producer at the meeting who was not a seedstock breeder but a commercial sheepman was Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers Association first vice president Lee Bloodworth of Sonora. “As a commercial producer I have benefited tremendously from work at the experiment station and have had the good fortune to know many of the people there.” He said the ram test was important to him as a buyer of the quality rams sold.

As discussion progressed during the meeting, Dr. Dan Waldron, professor of breeding and genetics of sheep and goats at San Angelo, elaborated on Walker’s mention of expanding the scope of genetic improvement in finewool sheep and Angora goats by having the producer collect data on breeding animals.

“Central performance testing is a good tool for genetic improvement, but with developments in the technology of genetic improvement, and how we now have computer power and statistical methods to sort out differences when we measure animals on different locations, and putting all that information together with the pedigree information and performance information combined, there is a better tool than a central performance test for the sake of genetic improvement,” Waldron said. “It’s not as simple of a tool to use because it requires more labor and record keeping by each producer rather than taking some animals to the Sonora station and the university takes care of it for you.”

There are limits to genetic improvement on a central performance test, he said, and other data, not measured by the tests as they are designed, are available that could contribute to improving seedstock animals. “The most important and easiest to explain is female reproduction, whether that’s fertility, as in conception every year, or whether it’s separating the animals that raise two lambs a year versus one,” Waldron added.

“The advantage of a program that takes into account female reproduction and other things on your own property is that you can get around some of these limitations that are inherent in a central performance testing program,” he said. “ . . . from my standpoint as a geneticist I would like to see people using the best tools available rather than just a good tool.”

Several producers at the meeting noted that on-farm data collection would be difficult and expensive for large flocks.

Ram and Angora buck test cooperators plan to have another meeting with Texas A&M test personnel Jan. 2 at the Sonora Experiment Station in conjunction with the scheduled ram test weigh day.

“We need a lot more voices and ideas,” Hadorn said. She encouraged everyone in the wool and mohair industry to attend, especially test cooperators past and present as well as commercial producers who are buyers of the rams and bucks offered at the annual test sales.

“The test station gives us genetics feedback we can’t get anyplace else,” Hadorn said. She noted after the meeting that comments were all positive and that it was a good beginning.

Hadorn said producers with ideas or comments could call her at (405) 356-2612 or send her email at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . She also suggested calling congressmen and representatives. “It will take all of us,” she said.

Walker and other Research personnel reiterated their desire that the performance tests continue. “We are committed to serving the production agriculture in West Texas,” Walker said, a few days after the meeting. “That is why we’re out here.”

Website for the the annual Angora and ram performace tests may be found here: Ram test , Angora test .