SPANISH GOATS — SPECIAL EDITION
Syfan Spanish goats at Three Mill Ranch in Texas Spanish Goats — Where are we today? By Donna Askew
The Spanish Goat Breed has reached a milestone with a ded- icated Goat Rancher issue and cover photo.
It took vision, hard work and a bit of faith from several pro- ducers to bring the Spanish goat the recognition it deserves as a pure breed with great mothering ability, adaption and genetic dis- tance from other breeds that con- tribute to its value in sustainable agriculture and the Meat Goat In- dustry.
The Spanish Goat Associa- tion (SGA) has been moving uphill for 14 years — from the humble beginnings of 30 breeders in 2007 to the organizational struc- ture, DNA Registry and success of 330 breeders in 2021. The Spanish Goat Breed has arrived. However, this is just the beginning of the work of Spanish Goat Breeders — safeguarding the genetic diversity of the breed, keeping them pure and free from outcrossing with other breeds, planning and tracking breeding through verification, data and selection, and — most importantly — elimination of mediocre genetics through slaughter versus breeder sales to ensure the best possible Spanish
Goat genetics in the marketplace. Unfortunately, when the de- mand for Spanish Goats is at an all-time high, many breeders are tempted to sell their culls for breeding instead of for meat, and to “push” the genetics with feed supplements to compete in the “bigger is better” misconception of the meat goat industry. These are a few of the chal- lenges producers and conserva- tionists are facing when Safeguarding the Genetic Diver- sity of the Spanish Goat Breed. Practicing best management for the enhancement of the breed characteristics is essential for their future success. These challenges can only be met by committed Spanish Goat Breeders.
A Baylis Spanish doe with her kids at West Ridge Farm in Virginia.
Safeguarding the genetics of the breed is a challenge that every breeder of any breed species faces.
We can look to the history of other breeds and recognize the role that a quick profit motive plays in breeding, management and marketing decisions of producers.
The goals of the producer drive the decisions they make. If short-term profit is the goal, then the producer will make decisions based only on those profits. Purity of genetics and short-term profit
September 2021 | Goat Rancher 21
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