Goats on the test were weighed July 2, according to Dr. Mike Salisbury at Angelo State University. Average weight for all goats on the test was 69.9 pounds with an average daily gain of 0.55 pounds per day calculated. Dr. Salisbury writes:

Weights and gains are right on target with past years. As all of you are aware, the weather has been extrememly hot and dry, but the last week or se we have received some much needed rain and the temperatures have cooled. Therefore, during the extreme temperatures and dry conditions, intakes were below normal but have increased and the goats are back to normal.

The official website for the test is http://www.angelo.edu/faculty/msalisbu/goat_test.htm

Received an email press release from www.wolfcrossing.org about a poll of New Mexico and Arizona residents. Average people were asked questions about the wolf re-introduction program and how it relates to ranchers and grazing lands. What was notable was that respondents supported both wolf reintroduction efforts and ranchers and their right to make a living.

This conclusion from the press release speaks volumes, not only about the wolf controversy, but it can be applied to just about any agricultural issue in play today:

The vast majority of those polled admitted little to no knowledge of the issue, therefore the uneducated public opinion on Mexican wolves and wolf reintroduction is positive. Despite mass media campaigns by wolf advocates who have been educating the public on wolf management that may or may not be scientifically based for years the public still supports livestock grazing on federally administered lands. Possibly even over wolf recovery even though they also support the idea of wolves on the same landscape. What would happen with a little pro active education on the real wolf story from a ranching perspective?

Emphasis is mine.

Even the pro-wolf groups (Re-Wildling Institute, Arizona Zoological Society, New Mexico Audubon Council, the Southwest Environmental Center) that commissioned the poll could, if they would, admit to “little or no knowledge of the issue.” They know they want wolves and lots of them.

The core of the problems we face stem from (IMHO):

1. Insulation of 99 percent of the public from any type of practical hands-on interaction with nature, farming, livestock or the actual processes that result in food on their table (or handed to them out the drive-through window, depending on their home life). Ironically it’s the efficiency and effectiveness of our capitalistic system in agricultural production, processing and packaging–the easy, inexpensive and constant availability of food–that has led to this insulation.
2. Constant 24/7 shaping of public opinion and conventional wisdom (by news media, movies, TV, etc., with very few exceptions) to a politically correct reality where killing deer for sport and food is evil, where livestock producers are villains who are denying animals their “rights,” and where the only good farmer is one who raises organic veggies and sells them locally. Yes, animals have “rights.” (I guess animals don’t respect one anothers’ rights, because they have a tendency to eat each other on a regular basis.)
3. Extremely poor education in public schools. Oh, the teachers can teach all right, but the curriculum seemingly must include mainly P.C. highpoints in history, “green” emphasis in life sciences, and presentation of nature and animal issues from the conventional wisdom point of view (see 2.).

Now, maybe the east and west coast apartment, condo and liberal enclave dwellers who promote and/or fund programs like wolf reintroduction would change their minds a bit if we insisted that wolves, bears and cougars were reintroduced on, say, Manhattan Island, in central Connecticut or in the Los Angeles basin.

Nah, probably not.

Goat producers who don’t consider raising hair goats—Angora goats—are passing up a rewarding opportunity. Not only do Angoras produce a meat crop, they produce one of the best specialty fibers in the world–mohair.
Mohair is used to produce yarn and thread for sweaters, high fashion garments, and luxury carpets, rugs and upholstery. Mohair is known as the “diamond fiber” because of its value and quality.

Many of the best mohair producing Angora goats in the world are raised by just a few breeders in Texas and surrounding states. These breeders’ goats have been sought after by mohair producers in Australia and New Zealand, as well as the United States, for many years. The first Angora goats were brought to Texas from Turkey and South Africa in the early 1900s. The families of these early goat raisers are still around. They and their neighbors in Southwest Texas and other areas have been raising these mohair producing goats ever since and have constantly improved the genetics of their breeding stock.

But if you’re casual and not serious about raising hair goats, Angora breeders would rather you not buy their stock. They are interested in seeing their hard won genetics continue without dilution or crossbreeding to other breeds, which would ruin the fine mohair their efforts have yielded.

If you are serious, and would like to try producing one of the best specialty fibers in the world, you can find the best foundation Angora breeding stock in the world at just a handful of sales each summer.
If you are interested and would like to ask questions of the breeders and find out more, they would be glad to talk with you, I’m sure. Below are the three main annual sales featuring fullblood Angora goats with the finest mohair. Now is the time to bid and buy. After years of drouth and culling, only the best genetics remain.

Haby, Lockhart, Ross and Speck, July 12, 2 p.m.
Annual fine-haired Angora goat sale at Kerrville, Texas, features goats by some legendary names in the hair goat business, Hayden Haby, Jesse and Ben Lockhart, Joe David Ross and Dr. Fred Speck. Offered are some of the finest Angora breeding goats available anywhere in the world. South African goat breeders would be proud. Call Hayden Haby,(830)278-1965; Ben Lockhart, (830)234-3592; Joe David Ross, (325)387-3163; or Fred L. Speck, Jr.,(830)895-1234

Texas Angora Goat Association annual sale, July 26, 1 p.m.
This sale by TAGRA members is held at the Junction, Texas, fairgrounds operated by the Hill Country Fair Association. The picturesque Llano River valley scenery alone is worth the trip. For the first time, the event will include a fiber fair. For more information contact Dale Naumann, Sec./Treas., or Bonnie Naumann, 830-796-7429 or 830-688-1391. Send email to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Lem Jones Memorial Angora Goat Sale, August 9
Held a couple weeks after the TAGRA sale at the same Junction, Texas, fairgrounds, in conjunction with the Hill Country Fair Association rodeo. Buy fine goats and get a flavor of West Texas at this event. Form more information, call event organizer Teddy Holekamp, 325-446-2537.

American Boer Goat Association executive director Robert Swize has left ABGA after the remainder of his contract was settled by the ABGA board of directors. As with any organization there were complainers and those who felt that one group or another or one individual or another were favored under Swize and past boards of directors. There were some members who felt that the ABGA was too Texas-centered under Swize and previous leaders, including board members and past executive secretaries.

The association has made great strides under Swize’s leadership. Membership has grown, registration operations have been upgraded and streamlined to some extent. The national show has exploded in size and participation. Of course, some of the growth has been organic due to the expanding popularity of goats as livestock in all parts of the United States and the fact that Boer goats are a logical and good choice for many small acreage farmers and rural residents.

I don’t know exactly what happened that triggered Swize’s exit, whether it was his idea or the board’s. I do know that for some reason there is always a lot of drama, power struggle, conflict and intrigue surrounding goings on in goat circles and goat organizations. Don’t ask me why.

The ABGA National Show begins this week, June 11, and runs through Sunday, June 15, in Tulsa. The ABGA office crew have left for Nationals and I imagine the association’s business meeting there will be interesting.

Here is a portion of the ABGA notice of Swize’s May 20 departure:

The ABGA board of directors and ABGA Executive Director, Mr. Robert Swize, announce a mutual agreement to cease their employment relationship effective May 20, 2008. After several months of discussion and consideration, the ABGA board and Mr. Swize have agreed that it is in the best interest of the association, Mr. Swize, and his family to amend Mr. Swize’s employment contract, causing it to end effective May 20, 2008.

Mr. Swize began his employment as Executive Director with ABGA in 2003. Since that time ABGA has seen unprecedented growth in membership and registrations as well as significant improvement in its financial position. Mr. Swize has brought a sense of professionalism to the ABGA office and has served to help move ABGA and the Boer goat to their current place of prominence on the landscape of American agriculture.

The ABGA Board of Directors wishes to express our appreciation to Mr. Swize for his contributions and time of service given to improve our association and our industry. We also wish to express our appreciation to Mr. Swize’s family for their sacrifice and support of ABGA during the time of Mr. Swize’s employment.

The ABGA Board of Directors would also like to express our confidence in the association, its members, and its staff as we move forward in the work and mission of the ABGA. With this change in the Executive Director position, the board would like to express that ABGA business will continue efficiently, and we will provide you with the quality service you have come to expect. We realize that with a change such as this there will be questions from the membership. The board encourages you to contact the board of directors as we want to be available to answer thosequestions and provide you with the much needed service you deserve.

The ABGA Board of Directors wishes only the best for Mr. Swize and his family. The board further encourages you, ABGA members, to be supportive of Mr. Swize and his family, as they pursue their future endeavors. We trust that, along with the board of directors, the membership will now look to the future of the association and communicate your thoughts for the future directly to your board of directors. The board will be taking a positive approach to our future and trust the membership will do the same. Your positive input and constructive criticism are appreciated and will prove immeasurably beneficial as the ABGA moves into the future.

Sheep have taken over the job of lawnmowers and maintenance workers in parts of Turin, Italy, according to Ananova news service. But in some cases city police are having to do shepherd’s work moving the sheep along traffic lanes from city lawn to lawn.

The city is employing about 700 sheep keep grass verges and lawns in city parks neatly trimmed. Environment officials in Turin said they were spending about $48,000 a year to cut the grass for just one of the bigger city parks. Now their lawn mowers do not require gasoline and the “mowers” can be sold at the end of the grass cutting season to bring money in to the city coffers.

Some complaints have been lodged. Drivers don’t like the sheep roadblocks when the flock is being moved, and park visitors complain about the fertilizer left behind by the grazing lawnmowers.

Thanks to some behind-the-scenes work, Texas AgriLife Extension’s 2007 batch of soremouth vaccine produced at the Sonora (Texas) Experiment Station has been approved for distrubution.

I reported in an earlier post (scroll down) last month that the soremouth vaccine would not be released due to failing a dosage safety test in which a couple test animals–guinea pigs–died, but the vaccine has now received the go-ahead from officials, according to word relayed from Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers Association officers who heard it from AgriLife Extension.
For more information about the vaccine, call the Sonora Station at (325) 387-3168.

The good demand for finer grades of wool the industry has seen the last year and a half or so is likely to continue, along with sustained strong prices, according to Dr. Ron Pope of Producers Marketing Cooperative, Inc. Pope gave a wool and mohair market update at the semi-annual meeting of the Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers Association in Fort Stockton Feb. 16.

The Australian wool market from August 2007 has shown a steady trend upward in prices, “not huge increases but week on week just a substantial gain . . . all the way through January of this year,” Pope said. The climb came after a three month decline in 2007.

Texas had seen “very decent prices” for its spring selling season last year and “then it started tailing off into June.” But the price rebound observed in Australian wool sales should carry over to the spring sales in Texas and elsewhere in the United States, he said.

“It’s good to see these markets rebound and continue to see a good trend and steady growth over a long period,” Pope said.
Currently the Australian market indicator is at U.S.$4.06, per pound, clean.

“This trend that we’re looking at as far as the growth is reflected in the 24 micron and finer wool types, which certainly includes the majority of wool that’s produced here in Texas,” he said. “The 25 to 27 micron range has seen growth or improvement in prices, not quite as proportional as the finer types.”

Wool coarser than 28 microns has seen flat but stable prices for several years. “There’s just not much movement in those prices on those microns,” Pope added.

U.S. Wool producers benefit with the U.S. Dollar weak against the Australian dollar. “ This creates kind of a double or two-fold increase in your prices that you receive – as the market’s moving up and the dollar gets weaker you get the benefit of both of those movements in terms of what you receive from your wool clip.” Pope said.

Only a few early clips had come into the warehouse in mid-February, but Pope said the quality of the clips he’d seen indicated strong wool with good fiber diameter “maybe just a tick coarser” than usual and relatively little vegetable matter or other contamination. Some of the wool he’d seen had shorter than average staple length.

Mohair

After nearly a year and a half of very strong prices on mohair with good clearances, hair prices began sliding a bit in October 2007. Adult mohair was bringing $3 and maybe a little above that through summer and into early October. Then at a sale in Texas a small lot of hair sold for $2.85 and prices dipped, Pope said.

The South African market remains unchanged. “Their currency was stable and yet they were being offered around 15 cents less than what the market should have been. This has continued and now we see recent sales of shorn adult at $2.70,” he said.

Though its too early to get a read on the spring Texas mohair clip, the fall clip here was “surprisingly free of defect,” he said. “It was probably one of the cleanest fall clips most people can remember seeing,” Pope said.

Demand from first stage mohair processors has dropped due larger than usual inventories of adult greasy mohair or top, he said.
“That’s putting a little bit of pressure on this adult market. Whether these inventories will be cleared by the time the spring harvest is over remains to be seen. Again, currency is playing a factor in the mohair market,” he added.

The 2008 Western Maryland Pasture-Based Meat Goat Performance Test will be conducted from June 7 until Oct. 4 at the University of Maryland’s Western Maryland Research & Education Center in Keedysville. It is sponsored by Maryland Cooperative Extension.

This Kiko buck was the top performing goat in the 2007 Western Maryland Pasture-Based Meat Goat Performance Test in Keedysville, Md.

Nomination period for this year’s test is April 1-May 15 requiring a fee of $20 per goat nomination form. Checks should be made payable to the University of Maryland. An additional $55 will be due when goats are delivered to the test site.

Goat producers from any state may consign up to five male goats of any breed or cross, though preference will be given to previous consigners and Maryland residents. The pasture resource will accommodate approximately 50 goats. Guidelines stipulate that the goats be between 3 and 5 months of age at the start of the test. There is a minimum weight requirement of 35 pounds and it is suggested that goats weigh no more than 70 pounds They should be weaned prior to the test and have received two vaccinations for clostridium perfringins type C and D and tetanus (CD-T).

During the test, the goats will be managed as a single group on pasture. They will be rotationally grazed among five 2-acre paddocks. For 2008, the paddocks will consist primarily of orchardgrass, Max Q™ tall fescue, chicory, pearl millet, and forage kale. Goats on the test will always have access to a central laneway containing Port-A-Hut shelters, water, minerals, and a handling system. As this is a pasture test, supplemental feed (nutrition tubs and/or grass hay) will only be provided if environmental conditions necessitate their use.

While on test, the goats will be evaluated for growth performance, parasite resistance, and carcass merit. They will be handled every two weeks using low stress livestock handling techniques to determine body weight, FAMACHA© and body condition scores and assess overall health. Only goats scoring 4 or 5 on the FAMACHA© eye anemia scale will be dewormed, unless other clinical signs are observed.

Fecal samples will be collected every 14 days until the goats require deworming. Scrotal measurements will be taken at the beginning and end of the test. Ultrasound carcass measurements will be done towards the end of the testing period. Consigners may nominate up to two bucks for collection of slaughter data. There will be an additional fee of $25 per head for this option. The slaughter component is new for 2008.

There will be a Performance Tested Buck and Invitational Doe Sale on Saturday, Oct. 4, at the Washington County Agricultural Center in Boonsboro. The Center is an adjacent property. The top 20 bucks, based on performance data and minimum standards for structural correctness and reproductive soundness, will be eligible to be sold via live auction. In addition, consignors will be able to nominate up to five doe kids for each male goat they have on test. Sale does must have on-farm performance records. A Goat Field Day will be held at the research center prior to the sale. The field day and sale are new for 2008.

For more information about the 2008 goat test, sale, and field day, contact Susan Schoenian at (301) 432-2767 x343 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Jeff Semler at (301) 791-1304 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , or Jeanne Dietz-Band at (301) 432-7296 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Information and forms can be obtained here: http://mdgoattest.blogspot.com.

Benny Cox, sheep and goat sale manager at Producers Livestock Auction in San Angelo, on Saturday said that for the most part sheep prices at the auction are good and, while slaughter kid goats are selling on the strong side, other goat prices are mixed. Cox was giving a market report to Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers Association members at their semi-annual meeting in Fort Stockton Feb. 16.

Shorn ewes are pushed down the alley at Producers Livestock Auction toward the sale floor, September 2007. Photo by Gary Cutrer.

Both slaughter and feeder lamb prices are very strong. However, slaughter ewes and slaughter nannies are selling on the weak side. The Mexican border was shut down for the slaughter ewe trade from August 18 through October 31 and the logjam hurt the price of ewes at Producers, selling point for the majority of slaughter ewes going to Mexico from Del Rio. Fortunately for the market, speculators kept buying and holding the ewes in hopes the border would open up, Cox said.

Also, there doesn’t seem to be as much demand for replacement females — both ewes and nannies — as there has been the past few years. As to why the many replacement ewes and nanny goats that have been offered have not found buyers, he had no explanation. “With all the rain during the growing season, and the relatively good lamb market, as well as kid goat market you’d think there’d be a good demand for these replacement ewes and nannies. That hasn’t happened,” he said.

Texas Agri-Life Research’s most recent batch of soremouth vaccine produced at the Sonora Experiment Station will not be released because it did not pass a safety test performed on guinea pigs, according to research director Dr. John Walker of the San Angelo Agri-Life facility. Dr. Walker made the announcement at the Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers Association’s semi-annual meeting Feb. 16 in Fort Stockton, Texas.
Walker recommended that sheep and goat ranchers needing vaccine use one of the commercially sold vaccines such as the one offered by Colorado Serum.

Update: February 22 @ 11:30 a.m.

Dr. Charles “Butch” Taylor with Texas AgriLife Extension and Research, Sonora Experiment Station, informed me that the ONLY other place to buy soremouth vaccine would be Colorado Serum (link above). He said the batch of serum in question was put on hold by the USDA after subcutaneous injections in guinea pigs to test the vaccine resulted in two of the rodents dying. But the vaccine passed lamb tests with flying colors, he said. And in treating lambs or goats the vaccine is applied though a scratch in the skin, not by injection. Dr. Taylor is hopeful that USDA will allow an exception in this case and let the Experiment Station go ahead and sell to sheep and goat producers.

Dr. Taylor added that a new batch of soremouth vaccine would not likely be available until the fall of this year, though if the current batch were allowed by the USDA, it could be sold right away.