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Terry Hankins of Mississippi with his pen
of bucks, including the Grand Champion Buck #42
2007 Meat Goat Forage
Buck Test Results
For 101 days last summer and fall, forty-eight
goat bucks competed to see which could gain weight fastest,
with the least trouble from parasites,
on 20 acres of pasture at the Kerr Ranch outside Poteau. The
bucks came from 17 farms in 8 different states.
Overall, the bucks gained an average of 0.12
pounds per day of the test; champions gained weight twice
as fast. The
scoring system used to rank the bucks also included measures
of parasite resistance, including fecal egg counts and Famacha
scores.
Grand Champion
Breed: Kiko
Average Daily Gain: 0.26 lb.
Owner: Terry Hankins, Mississippi
Reserve Grand Champion
Breed: Boer
Average Daily Gain: 0.24 lb.
Owner: DeWayne Maloy, Oklahoma
Third Place
Breed: Texas Genemaster
Average Daily Gain: 0.24 lb.
Owner: Sam & Carol Stafford, Texas
Fourth Place & Top Herdsman
Breed: Kiko
Average Daily Gain: 0.23 lb.
(4th place buck); 0.23 lb. (herd)
Owner: Sky & Deborah Shivers, Oklahoma
For more detailed information about the 2007
buck test results, and updates on the 2008 test, visit osukerrbucktest.typepad.com. |
2008 Meat Goat Forage Performance Test
With the popularity of last year’s meat goat forage buck
test (see sidebar), the Kerr Center and the OSU Cooperative Extension
Service are again teaming up to conduct the 2008 Meat Goat Forage
Performance Test.
“Last year was a great success, and we are looking forward
to another summer with the bucks,” said test manager Mary
Penick, livestock specialist at the Kerr Center.
Meat goats are booming in Oklahoma agriculture, and it’s
important to know which lines perform best on pasture. The
forage performance test helps answer that question.
“The rationale behind the Oklahoma Meat Goat Forage Performance
Test is to begin to identify individual bucks, as well as their
sires and dams, that carry genetics expressing strong traits important
in commercial meat goat production,” said Penick
“Additionally, this test will allow breeders to compare
genetics within their herd to make better management decisions
as to herd lines that will produce profitable progeny for future
herds. This test will also provide valuable information for all
goat producers and the public.”
This year’s test encompasses a larger pasture area (35 acres),
and the scoring system has been changed to place more emphasis
on parasite resistance.
Goat producers wishing to test their bucks' performance on forage
are invited to enter bucks in the test, which will run from mid-July
until the end of October.
Fee is $120 per buck, and nominations are due by May 30, 2008.
For
details, nomination forms, and questions, visit the Kerr Center
website at www.kerrcenter.com, or contact:
Mary Penick
918.647.9123
Fax: 918.647.8712
E-mail: mpenick@kerrcenter.com |
