This year we are participating in Milk Test with our goats. That means we will have days throughout the year where we record the weight of milk produced by each doe and send samples of their milk out for testing. The test includes % butterfat, % protein, somatic cell count, and other parameters. If the production is high enough over the documented time, the goats will earn milk stars. Prior to this, we have only participated in 1-day milk tests as part of the 4-H Big E goat program. Anna and Rob both got certified as testers and we are doing “Owner-Sampler” testing which means we do our own weighing and milk sampling. We will have a verification test at some point where another tester comes to our farm.
Milking FerrariWeighing the milk
So, here are the results from today. The “DIM” column is days in milk.
Tesla is a first freshener but has been combating mastitis. We hope her numbers will continue to improve. Ferrari is really impressing us as a first freshener. Camellia had an aborted lactation last year, so we were pleased to see her full potential this year. Overall, we are quite happy with our first results.
Thursday 9/26 through Sunday 9/29 was our annual pilgrimage to Springfield, MA with a herd of goats. On Thursday afternoon, Quinn and Amanda checked in at the Big E with 9 goats for the 4-H portion of the event which includes milk test, showmanship, fitting, breed competitions and more. Rob was a chaperone for CT young men and stayed in the dorms at the Big E with all the kids. This was Quinn’s final event in 4-H based on aging out.
Friday morning was the showmanship competition which focuses on things such as goat knowledge, correct handling of the goat, and understanding of the scorecards. After lunch, the kids went in the ring again for a fitting competition that focused exclusively on the preparation of the animal. There were a total of 53 youth present this year from the 5 of 6 New England States (none from VT) which is an increase from recent years. Quinn placed 3rd of 12 in showmanship and was in the bottom half for fitting. Amanda was 2nd of 14 in showmanship and also in the bottom half for fitting. Clearly our kids prefer the knowledge portion over the time required to do well in fitting.
Quinn and Carolina in showmanshipAmanda and Porsche in showmanshipAmanda 2nd in showmanshipQuinn and Carolina in Sr ShowmanshipQuinn and Carolina in Sr ShowmanshipAmanda and Porsche in Showmanship
On Saturday, the goats were shown in breed classes. Unfortunately, there was only 1 other junior Lamancha present (Carolina’s kid from last year) so there wasn’t much competition. That said, the goats looked great. Bitterblue’s LSD Phaylene took Champion Senior doe, CH (pending) Majenli LK Carolina took Best of Breed, and Sawfish AS Tesla took Champion Junior Doe. This trip to the Big E was Phaylene’s final show as she is being retired at the age of 9. The real win of the day was when CH (pending) Majenli LK Carolina was chosen as Best Senior Doe in Show out of the ~75 seniors.
Bitterblue’s LSD PhayleneSawfish QS BaliSawfish AS TeslaSawfish QS Ferrari (left) and Sawfish AS Tesla (right)Sawfish AS Tesla – Champion Jr LamanchaCH (pending) Majenli LK Carolina – Best Sr Doe in Show
At the awards ceremony, Quinn was presented with the Ruby Morris 4-H Scholarship for $2000 towards college.
Quinn receiving the Ruby Morris scholarshipQuinn receiving the Ruby Morris scholarshipQuinn receiving the Ruby Morris scholarshipAmanda and QuinnCT 4-H delegation
Once awards wrapped up, some of the youth left while new herds came in for the Open Show on Sunday. We received Lucky 4-Leaf E Red Hot Chili’s awards for winning Recorded Grade Best of Breed twice at the Nutmeg show from May. Chili approved of the mugs.
The Open show was quick and fun. Luck 4-Leaf Red Hot Chili took second in her class of 2yo Recorded Grades. We are hoping she continues to mature as we expect and think she will be a competitive 3yo. Fox’s Pride had some very nice 2yo does in milk that took Champion and Reserve, and Carolina was second to CH Argonne’s Khaos in Best of breed.
In in the Junior Show, Sawfish QS Mina swept the competition as the youngest junior doe to earn herself a restricted leg towards her championship as Junior Lamancha Champion.
Quinn showing Lucky 4-Leaf E Red Hot ChiliQuinn showing Lucky 4-Leaf E Red Hot ChiliAmanda showing Sawfish AS PorscheSawfish QS Mina in the Junior Best Doe in Show lineup3 Sawfish Lamanchas in the Jr Champion LineupSawfish QS Mina in the Junior Best Doe in Show lineupSawfish QS Mina – Champion Jr Lamancha
At the final awards ceremony, Amanda received the Lamancha Premier Breeder plate based on the number of points her does acquired throughout the day!
We took the Sawfish goat herd to the Brooklyn Fair today and had a great day. Our friend Terrell Lavoie is the superintendent and we love supporting our friends. Things started off with Showmanship: Amanda took 1st in Intermediate with Sawfish AS Porsche, Quinn took 1st in Senior with Bitterblue’s LSD Phaylene, and Rob took 1st in Open with CH (pending) Majenli LK Carolina. Quinn took Best Overall Showman (limited to youth) and won a nice blanket, with Amanda Reserve champion.
Quinn’s prizeShowmanship ribbonsQuinn with PhayleneAmanda with Sawfish AS PorscheAmanda with Porsche
Lamanchas were a popular breed at Brooklyn. Sawfish AS Porsche was 1st under 2yo milker, CH (pending) Majenli LK Carolina was was first 3-5yo , and Bitterblue’s LSD Phaylene was 1st aged milker (we didn’t have a 2-3yo entry). Carolina took Best of Breed and Senior Doe in Show (winning us a second blanket). Lucky 4-Leaf E Red Hot Chili took 1st in 2-3yo milker Recorded Grade and Best of Breed for Recorded Grade.
In Juniors, Sawfish Chrysi took 1st in 4-8mo Jr Lamancha, Sawfish AS Tesla took 1st in dry yearlings, and Tesla was Champion Junior Lamancha. Sawfish Kipu was 1st 4-8mo Jr Recorded Grade and Champion Junior Recorded Grade. We had 4 daughter/dam combos with us and 3 placed in the top 6 of 16. We were 1st in Best 3 and 2nd for Git of Sire and Produce of Dam.
Overall, we were very pleased with the our placings and look forward to the next show on our schedule at Blandford.
Lucky 4-Leaf E Red Hot Chili4-8mo lamancha classSawfish AS TeslaSawfish AS PorscheSawfish QS Ferrari (left) and Sawfish AS Tesla (right)Sawfish KipuGit of SireEnd of show ribbons
