Every year, many Kinder goats are bought and sold. Some by experienced breeders, others by people with a working knowledge of goats, and still others by beginners wanting a family milker or a pet for their children to show in 4H.
As breeders, we need to be very conscientious when deciding which goats to sell. After all - they are all cute as kids, but when a goat that doesn't conform to our breed standards ends up being shown at the local fair, they do so with your herd name, and the Kinder name on them. Every goat you sell helps or hurts your reputation as a breeder, and the reputation of all Kinder goats. Because of this, each one of us need to know the Kinder breed standard, and recognize when a goat does not conform to it. When we find a goat lacking, we must be willing to make the hard decision to cull that goat. It is the only way that the Kinder breed, and our individual herds, will improve.
As buyers, it pays to learn as much as we can about conformation and the Kinder standard, too. None of our goats are perfect, but if we are aware of the fault within our herds, we can purposely buy or breed to animals that can improve upon the weak areas within our herds, while maintaining the strengths.
In order to better understand the breed standard, and to more easily recognize strengths and faults within our herds, we will be discussing each aspect of the standard in great detail over the coming months. Hopefully, this will make it easier for everyone to buy, breed and sell good stock, and work toward improvement within their herds.
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