We have recently had a resurgence of interest and participation by our membership to get their goats on Milk Test! This is great for the breed! It gives owners and breeders, as well as the Association a fantastic look at the hard, verifiable data at the quality and quantity of the milk our Kinders produce. While our hard working girls earn their Stars on their own merit, many people are unaware of how bucks can earn their Stars and Pluses based on Milk Test data. Here are the following rules regarding the awarding of Star and Plus designations, taken from the KGBA DHIR Program;
Milk Star Designations
*M - A doe qualified for her Star through DHIA test, or One Day Test, to be accompanied by;
(M) for a Star earned on milk production
(F) for a Star earned on butterfat production
(P) for a Star earned on protein production
or a combination of all 3 for DHIA testing.
(O) for a Star earned on One Day Test.
Each generation of consecutive Stars earned from dam to daughter, shall be designated with the Star. E.g. A doe earning her Star shall be designated 1*M, her daughter also earning her Star shall be designated 2*M, her daughter also earning her Star shall be designated 3*M, and so on.
+B - A buck earning his Star through his *M or +B progeny
++B - A buck earning his Star through his *M and +B progeny
*B - A buck inheriting his Star through his ancestry
A KGBA registered buck shall be entitled to a +B designation if:
He has three *M daughters from three different dams. All dams must be registered with the KGBA or;
He has two sons that earned their +B designation.
A KGBA registered buck shall be entitled to a ++B designation if:
He has three *M daughters from three different dams. All dams must be registered with the KGBA and;
He has two sons that earned their +B designation.
A KGBA registered buck shall be entitled to a *B designation if:
His dam is a *M doe that has qualified on both milk and butterfat requirements, or a doe that earned her star on a One Day Test AND his sire is a +B, or a *B, or;
His dam is a *M doe that has qualified on both milk and butterfat requirements, AND his sire's dam is a *M doe that has qualified on both milk and butterfat requirements. Either the dam or the sire’s dam may have earned her star on a One Day Test, but not both.
For those of you with early generation animals, Star Awards are carried down from their Nubian ancestors if applicable. Pygmies do not have a Star or Plus program to assist in their offspring or descendant's awarded designations.
In my observations, we have yet to have many Kinder bucks venture into Star or Plus awards, but with the renewed interest in Milk Test, I foresee that changing very soon! While it's easy to focus on getting our girls their Stars based on their own tenacity - lets not forget about the boys! If you believe your buck may qualify for a *B (based on ancestry) or +B/++B (based on progeny) either through current or past Milk Test data, please let us know! We would love to recognize your buck's hard working pedigrees and accomplishments!
-Ashley Kennedy
KGBA Milk Test Director
