BOER GOAT BREEDERS ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA NEWSLETTER DECEMBER 2013 A Message from the Chairperson! Inside this Issue Chairperson’s Message P1 Newsletter Contacts

Hello Members, P2

The Yule Goat

P3

Do You Really know Your Goats? P4-8 Around the Show Circuit P9-11 Pulpy Kidney

P12-13

Digestive System of a Goat P14-15 Ask a Judge

P16

The 12 Days of Christmas Correspondence P16-19 Odd Couples

P20-21

Photo Competition 2014 P22 Website and Newsletter Advertising P23 Additional Snippets P24

Well it’s hard to believe that another year has gone by and we are about to see in 2014! Despite the vagaries of Mother Nature across the country in 2013, generally this year has been exceptional with good rainfall and good feed on the ground. However we are aware parts of Queensland and Western NSW have been declared drought affected again and a lot of fodder is being trucked into Queensland. What comes around goes around so if you missed

out this year, next year will hopefully be better! The main thing is that your animals are thriving and you are enjoying them! A suggestion to new members is to attend shows in your state wherever possible and introduce yourself to exhibitors. A list of shows for 2014 will be updated to the website in January. Goats are a great “conversation starter” and once started most Boer goat owners cannot stop talking about them! Sydney Royal Easter show 2014 info is now online – check out the website for entry and schedule information. - www.sydneyroyal.com.au We hope you enjoy this final Newsletter for 2013. Once again we have endeavoured to combine news, education and humour to entertain and inform. All State Branch Committees have now been finalised so please contact your State Branch representatives if you have any concerns or wish to provide input into the Association. We always welcome input into the Newsletter so please forward any suggestions for articles, photos which could be the basis of a “photo caption contest“ or anything you consider newsworthy to your State Branch representative or email directly to [email protected] Also a reminder that Barb O’Shea (ABRI) will be away over the Christmas break from Friday 20th 2013 to January 6th 2014 and John Thomas will be away from Tuesday 24th 2013 to January 6th 2014. The Board wishes you all a Merry Christmas and a safe and Festive New year! Vicki Mitchell, Chairperson.

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Please contact any of the following Portfolio representatives with photos, articles, events to be published in the Newsletters. Your input is appreciated! NEWSLETTER CONTACTS DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS AND EDUCATION

JUDITH D’ALOISIO PH: (03) 5797 3232 Mob: 0437 800 308 Email: [email protected]

VIC/TAS PORTFOLIO REPRESENTATIVE

NERIDA TULL PH: (03) 5794 1507 Mob: 0427 941 507 Email: [email protected]

NSW REPRESENTATIVE

TRACEY WOODS PH: (02) 6859 2956 Email: [email protected]

QLD REPRESENTATIVE

REBECCA BROOKS PH: (07) 5427 0623 Email: [email protected]

SA REPRESENTATIVE

MELISSA JOHNSON Email: [email protected]

Editors Note: Any text to web sites which is blue and underlined is a hyperlink. When clicked within this PDF file it will automatically go to that website.

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THE YULE GOAT!!! For those of you who thought Christmas was about Santa and reindeer, here is a new insight into the importance and significance of The Goat in other countries! From Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule_goat In Scandinavia and Northern European countries the Yule goat (originally slaughtered) is now symbolically depicted as a sculpture of straw. Its origins may go back in history to preChristian days when the Norse God Thor rode the sky in a chariot pulled by two goats. After Thor kills and cooks the goats for his guests, they are resurrected by his hammer and brought back to life the next day. The Yule goat has had different functions throughout the ages in Northern Europe; originally it was an ugly creature that

frightened children demanding gifts at Christmas, in the 19thC it became the giver of gifts with a member of the family dressing up as the Yule Goat. The goat was replaced by Santa Claus/Father Christmas at the end of the century although in Finland he is still called the Yule Goat. The image below right is a folk tale depiction of Father Christmas riding on a goat! Nowadays the Yule goat in Northern Europe, is best known as a Christmas ornament made from straw or roughly hewn wood. Large versions of this ornament are frequently erected in towns and cities around Christmas time — these goats tend to be illegally set on fire before Christmas! So……….. calling the fellow who puts the presents under the tree “an old goat” is perfectly legitimate as it has its foundations in history!!!!

SOME HUMOUR…… A group of Australian Boer Goat Breeders were travelling by tour bus through Holland. As they stopped at a cheese farm, a young guide led them through the process of cheese making, explaining that goat's milk was used. She showed the group a lovely hillside where many goats were grazing. "These" she explained "are the older goats put out to pasture when they no longer produce." She then asked, "What do you do in Australia with your old goats?" A spry old gentleman answered, "They send us on bus tours!"

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DO YOU REALLY KNOW YOUR GOATS?????? The old saying “It costs as much to feed a good horse as a bad one” applies to all animals including goats. The basis of any stud/commercial undertaking being financially viable is improved performance of its livestock and this includes understanding the influence of genetics, husbandry, nutrition and environment. We should all be trying to breed better animals, aiming for faster growth rates and more meat carrying capacity. How many animals are you carrying that are nonperformers???? It is easy for the years to slip past without making any effort to critically review progress, or perhaps it is easier to simply look out the window with rose coloured glasses? Whether running 10 goats or 10,000, have a commercial or stud focus or both, run animals on dry land pasture or intensive farming, the importance of record keeping is critical as a tool to evaluate performance. At its simplest level, we should all be keeping records to weed out the non- performing does. Essential to this is weighing animals at birth and weaning. WEIGHING METHODS: Weighing at birth can be simple: a set of scales used for weighing fish and a supermarket bag are all that is needed.

For weighing animals at weaning, and to determine their live weights to meet market criteria, you will need a crate or handler and a set of electronic scales. Although the initial investment may seem a lot, these items are always saleable.

RECORDING WEIGHTS: Weighing kids on a regular basis will determine the milking ability of the does through daily weight gains of the kids. The information can be documented in a spreadsheet which can perform the calculations for you after entering simple formula. Or you can enter the data into a Word document or on paper and perform the calculations manually. One example of entering data and calculating weight gain is given below. Note these tables are reproduced from the Victorian Branch Newsletter December 2011 so the data relates to weighings in 2011 but is applicable to any year of birth. http://www.bgbaavictoria.com.au/index.php/newsletters

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KID WEIGHTS

KID NO

SEX

DOE

BUCK

DOB

WT Bweight 3/8/11

gain

Status COMMENT

1000 1001 1002 1003

Buck Doe Doe Doe

7216 7216 9216 9216

504 504 7061 7061

20/04/2011 20/04/2011 1/05/2011 1/05/2011

6.00 5.00 5.50 4.50

31.50 30.50 18.00 19.00

0.245 0.245 0.133 0.154

2 2 2 2

1004 1005 1006

Buck Buck Doe

507 8062 8062

504 504 504

5/05/2011 7/05/2011 7/05/2011

4.00 4.50 4.70

29.60 19.00 20.00

0.288 0.167 0.176

2 2 2

1007

Doe

633

8071

10/05/2011 4.00

14.00

0.119

3

milked well milked well maiden maiden one dead at birth, raised 1

one dead at birth raised 2

The average daily gain (gpd) is simply the weight at first weighing (or weaned weight) less birth weight divided by the number of days from birth to weighing (or weaning). GPD= (weaned weightbirthweight)/weaning age In a spreadsheet you can enter this formula into the cell highlighted above, in this case it is =SUM( G5-F5)/104 (see below)

Dragging down the corner of this cell will automatically “fill” the other cells with this calculation. However since the animals were not all born on the same day, the formula must be changed to reflect the different number of days from birth to weighing date. See below. There are 94 days between DOB and weighing for animals 1002 and 1003.

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The formula must therefore be changed each time when dates are different. The advantage of a spreadsheet is that you can “sort” the animals based on the gain to get a ranked order. You can also sort the data based on sex or alternatively, if you have a lot of animals, weigh the males and enter them in a separate sheet to determine progress to reaching slaughter weights and enter the doe weights only at weaning, say four months. It is essential to compare “apples” with “apples”, that is only compare gains of animals in mobs that have had the same environment, feed and husbandry routines. INTERPRETING WEIGHT GAINS In the above instance the weight gains are grams per day (gpd). This can be multiplied over seven days to get a weight gain per week, providing essential information as to when animals will be ready for markets. A gain of 200+ is what we should be aiming at. A mature doe (plus 3 years) recording under 130 grams over a two year period (in a mob where all animals are recorded equally, and provided she is in good health), would suggest her milking performance is not adequate by comparison to the others. It will be expected that maiden does may not perform as well in the first year, their kids are usually smaller. It is therefore important not to join does too early, from fourteen months is suitable provided they are well grown. Allow up to three years for a maiden doe to reach milking maturity. MORE ADVANCED INTERPRETATION A number of more advanced options are explained in an article by Richard Browning “On-Farm Performance Testing For Meat Goat Doe Herds” (Tennessee State University) http://www.tnstate.edu/faculty/rbrowning/documents/TSU%20Performance%20Fact%20Sheet%20 col.pdf In the first instance, since all animals were not born on the same day, you may want to standardise the weights by calculating weights at 90 days for all animals (assuming they deviate by no more than 28 days). “A 79-day-old kid cannot be expected to weigh as much as a 112- day-old kid” Once the average daily gain is calculated the following formula is used: 90 Day Weight = (GPD x 90) + birth wt

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The above table then looks like this:

“Adjustments are made to 90-day weights because litter size and age of dam can affect weaning weight. On average, weaning weights decrease as litter size increases and young does wean lighter kids than mature does” Further adjustments can be made to take into account the number of kids (“litter size” in this article) and the age of the doe. These adjustments are shown in the following table:

“An additional step is generating weaning weight ratios. Within each sex group, individual kid weights are compared to the group average to produce ratios for relative evaluations. Ratios show the deviations of kid weaning weights from the contemporary group average. A ratio is calculated with the following equation: WWT Ratio = (90 day kid wt / 90 day herd wt average) x 100 A ratio of 100 is equal to the group average. A kid with a weight ratio of 122 is 22% heavier than the group average. Conversely, a kid with a ratio of 91 is 9% lighter than the group average.”

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RECORDING OTHER TRAITS As well as weight gains of kids, recording traits such as mothering, recurrent lameness, abortions, failure to get into kid or health issues such as mastitis all help to determine which of your animals are performing and those not performing. CONCLUSION Record keeping can be as simple or sophisticated as you like but is should be done for economic viability. The goat industry is years behind the sheep and cattle industry as they have been using performance recording and EBV’s as a marketing tool and for commercial productivity. The first step to better farm management should be recording weight gains of kids, both to determine which of your does are not performing and as a tool to meet market specifications. By constantly striving to improve growth rates and not becoming complacent the Boer goat industry as a whole will prosper.

Herd Reduction Sale.

Quality stock currently available.

MN2 Herd status. All Full Bloods Classified (except for the very young) Packages individually selected for your personal needs. Friendly service, advice & ongoing support. Catalogue available on request. Visits & inspections welcome.

Contact: Ms. Lynn Wickenden & Ms. Marlene (“Marz”) Andrew Ph: 0248410769

Mobiles: Lynn - 0427421064, Marz - 0416267552 Email: [email protected] Web Site: www.carringtonviewboergoats.com Face book: Carrington View Boer Goats

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AROUND THE SHOW CIRCUIT…………….. Full results for all shows are available on the National web site

www.australianboergoat.com.au

Berrigan Show, Victoria, 6 October 2013 Judge: Geoff Mitchell JUNIOR CHAMPION DOE: K & J Vesty: VBFH 1233

JUNIOR CHAMPION BUCK: F Harvey FMHFH 2031

RESERVE JUNIOR CHAMPION DOE: K & J Vesty PK VBFJ 1311

RESERVE JUNIOR CHAMPION BUCK: K & J Vesty: VBFJ 1344

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION DOE: K & J Vesty VBFH 1274

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION BUCK: F Harvey FMHFH 0213

RESERVE INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION DOE: S Styles, Styles 459

RESERVE INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION BUCK: No entry

SENIOR CHAMPION DOE: Parra Boer Goats PBGFE 1173

SENIOR CHAMPION BUCK: F Harvey MACFF 0029

RESERVE SENIOR CHAMPION DOE: K & J Vesty CTBFB 6596

RESERVE SENIOR CHAMPION BUCK: F Harvey ABMFF 0035

GRAND CHAMPION DOE: K & J Vesty VBFH 1274

GRAND CHAMPION BUCK: F Harvey MACFF 0029

SUPREME: F Harvey MACFF 0029

Cobram Show, Victoria, 26 October 2013 Judge: Marie Barnes JUNIOR CHAMPION DOE: Nerida Tull 1443

JUNIOR CHAMPION BUCK: Sue Styles Glenelg J25

RESERVE JUNIOR CHAMPION DOE: K & J Vesty Fleur

RESERVE JUNIOR CHAMPION BUCK: K & J Vesty: Axle Fred

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION DOE: K & J Vesty Layla SENIOR CHAMPION BUCK: F Harvey Hyperion RESERVE INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION DOE: S Styles, Styles Glenelg Daffodil

GRAND CHAMPION BUCK: F Harvey Hyperion

SENIOR CHAMPION DOE: F Harvey Isis RESERVE SENIOR CHAMPION DOE: Sue Styles Glenelg Pride 257 GRAND CHAMPION DOE: F Harvey Isis SUPREME: F Harvey Isis MOST SUCCESSFUL EXHIBITOR: S Styles Glenelg Boer Goats

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Queanbeyan Show, NSW State Show, 9-10 November, Judge: Johann Strauss (South African Boer Goat Association) JUNIOR CHAMPION DOE: Cedar Ridge Serenity

JUNIOR CHAMPION BUCK: Cedar Ridge Warlock

RESERVE JUNIOR CHAMPION DOE: Valley Boers Violet Femme

RESERVE JUNIOR CHAMPION BUCK: Cedar Ridge Sandman

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION DOE: Micathel Ohie

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION BUCK: Mitchell SA Genetic Rudwyck

RESERVE INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION DOE: Pacifica Storm

RESERVE INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION BUCK: Micathel Middleman

SENIOR CHAMPION DOE: Micathel Oheo SENIOR CHAMPION BUCK: Mugambi Merlin RESERVE SENIOR CHAMPION DOE: Clearday Park Gemima GRAND CHAMPION DOE: Micathel Oheo RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION DOE: Cedar Ridge Serenity SUPREME BOER GOAT: Mugambi Merlin

RESERVE SENIOR CHAMPION BUCK: Mugambi Smash GRAND CHAMPION BUCK: Mugambi Merlin

Junior and Reserve Champion Does above Intermediate Champion and Reserve Does top right Senior Champion Does right

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Junior Champion and Reserve Bucks left Grand Champion Doe right

Intermediate Champion Buck and Reserve above

Senior Champion Buck and Reserve above

Supreme Exhibit above Page 11

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SOMETIMES, GOOD FEED COMES WITH PROBLEMS………………PULPY KIDNEY Pulpy kidney in sheep and goats: Pulpy kidney (also called enterotoxaemia) is a common disease affecting young sheep and goats and causes sudden deaths. It occurs more frequently in young animals in good seasons. An effective vaccine is available and is strongly recommended in areas where the disease is known to occur. Pulpy kidney is caused by a bacteria, the bacterium multiplies in the intestines, and produces a toxin that is absorbed into the blood. These bacteria are normally present in low numbers. However, they multiply rapidly when highly nutritious food is in the intestines and/or when food movement along the intestines slows down or stops temporarily. This results in the production of high levels of toxins that are frequently fatal. These conditions can occur when lambs are grazing very lush pastures. Those lambs with higher intakes are most susceptible. It also occurs when there has been a sudden introduction or an increase in grain in the diet. The toxins damage blood vessels throughout the body, and death results from damage to vessels in the brain. Signs: There are three main types of this disease. With the very fast and severe type animals are generally found dead. Signs of staggering, twitching, convulsions and shock may occasionally be seen prior to death. Affected stock usually do not scour and frequently die within two hours. With the more common fast and severe most animals have a thin, green and pasty scour. Occasionally flecks of blood or pieces of gut wall may be found in the scour. Adults can survive for up to 24 hours before dying. They appear dull, stagger and may convulse frequently with a paddling motion of the legs. Affected goats often cry out with pain. The longer-term form of pulpy kidney is rare. It occurs in adult sheep and goats and is associated with bouts of scouring, depression and wasting. Treatment and prevention: Due to the short course of the disease, treatment is generally not possible or practical. Valuable animals can be treated with intravenous fluids and intravenous antibiotics. An effective vaccine is available to control the disease and is usually in a combination, such as 3-in-1 (tetanus, pulpy kidney, cheesy gland), 5-in-1 (tetanus, pulpy kidney, blackleg, black disease, malignant oedema) or 6-in-1 (as for 5-in-1 plus cheesy gland.) As lambs and kids can be affected early in life it is advisable to vaccinate adults prior to lambing or kidding. The young animals will obtain immunity from the mother's colostrum and milk. This protection lasts for about eight weeks. Page 12

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Animals that have not previously been vaccinated should be given two doses of vaccine one month apart. An annual booster is recommended. It is often advisable to vaccinate goats at six-monthly intervals. Young stock should receive their initial vaccination at marking. Management practices aimed at reducing digestive upsets will also help control the disease. Restricting access to grain, concentrates, lush feed, molasses and food scraps will all reduce the disease level. Sudden changes to diet should be avoided. Diets high in grain should be supplemented with adequate roughage. Reproduced from: http://www.vetcross.com.au/pulpy-kidney-in-sheep-and-goats.html Also see BGBAA Victorian Branch Newsletter February 2011 on Pulpy Kidney… http://www.bgbaavictoria.com.au/index.php/newsletters/77-newsletters-2011 “Giving a booster injection to animals especially older bucks on an annual/six monthly basis is also a good preventative measure. Also, with respect to treatment and prevention, immediately you see an animal that is unwell and has some of the above symptoms especially watery scours, isolate from other animals and treat the symptoms including shock. Unless you are an experienced breeder and have the drugs available, immediately ring your Vet. It is inappropriate to just see how the animal is in the morning as it will be too late. Keep the animal warm including rugging if necessary, rehydrate, give scourban or similar, give antibiotic injection, and vitamin B1, B12, and perhaps Vitamin C. Generally Boer goats respond well to nursing and comfort and seem to lose hope when left on their own to just get over it. No guarantees that you will save your goat but you will have given it the very best chance you can, and without treatment it is very likely to “go to goat heaven”. Just a note… Any goat that lags behind the group (unless it is being attacked by the other goats or is lame) is seriously unwell. The goat is a predated species and a goat knows it will be targeted if it is seen as weak or cannot keep up (excuse the anthropomorphism). Keep an eye out for the goat/s that cannot keep up and assess what the problem is.” Carole Axton.

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DID YOU KNOW... The Digestive System of a Goat The goat is a member of a class of animals called ruminants. These animals ruminate (chew their cud). Unlike us, they have special four-compartment stomachs especially designed to digest roughage (food high in fibre) such as grass, hay and silage. The goat’s stomach has four chambers: 1) the rumen, 2) the honey-combed reticulum, 3) the omasum, and 4) the abomasum or true stomach. The size relationship of the four chambers changes as the animal grows up. The abomasum gets proportionally smaller. To understand why this happens, let’s consider the function of each compartment and then review the goat’s diet. 1) The rumen acts as a big fermentation vat. Bacteria and protozoa in the rumen supply enzymes to break down the fibre in the goat’s feed. This is similar to how bacteria can ferment the sugars in grape juice to make wine in big wine barrels. The tiny organisms in the rumen also help to build proteins from the feed and manufacture all of the B vitamins needed by the goat. Many nutrients that help provide the goat with energy are also absorbed here. The fermentation process produces heat that helps to keep the goat warm. When roughage is eaten by the adult goat, it is chewed on, soaked with saliva, and then swallowed. This bolus of food is called “the cud”. It goes down into the rumen to be attacked and broken down or digested by the micro-organisms. At regular intervals the cud is brought back up to the goat’s mouth to be chewed on some more and then swallowed again. This entire process is called rumination. If you watch the goat’s neck carefully, you can see him swallow and later regurgitate his cud. The goat will often burp to get rid of the gas produced by all the fermentation going on in his rumen. You can really smell the fermentation process on his breath. If something causes the goat to stop being able to burp up the gases, the gas will build up and bloat or swell up his rumen and he may become very sick with “bloat”. 2) Once the food particles of cud become small enough, they pass to the second compartment or reticulum. Here any foreign objects that may have been accidentally swallowed with the feed settle out in the honeycomb structure of the reticulum’s walls. Another name for the reticulum is the “hardware stomach”. 3) The fermenting particles then pass on to the omasum. The omasum removes the water from them and also absorbs more nutrients called volatile fatty acids that help supply the goat with energy. 4) The particles are then forced into the abomasum or true stomach. Here, the particles are digested by the stomach acid, hydrochloric acid (HCl). This form of digestion is the same as what occurs in our stomachs. The remaining particles are then passed on to the small intestine where most of the nutrients are absorbed by the body and made available to the goat. When a goat kid is born, its rumen, reticulum and omasum are very tiny and not useful. The goat kid depends on a liquid, milk, not roughage for its feed source. When the kid swallows milk, the milk goes directly to the abomasum through the esophageal groove. Every time the kid swallows, a flap of skin at the entrance to the rumen folds over to form a grove that bypasses the rumen and sends the milk straight to the abomasum to be digested by stomach acid. As the kid gets older, he starts trying to consume roughage. The rumen becomes active and starts to enlarge. Its population of micro-organisms increases. The reticulum and omasum also respond to the changes in diet by getting bigger. By the time the kid is an adult goat, roughage is his main source of food and his rumen is far larger than his abomasum. Page 14 December 2013

KID

ADULT

1- rumen, 2 - reticulum, 3 - omasum, 4 - abomasum http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/4H/meatgoats/meatgoatfs14.htm The importance of fibre in a goats diet cannot be emphasises enough. Ruminants require the proper proportion of roughage (Hay) to grain in order to maintain good rumen action. Adult goats that lack adequate fiber in their diets, lose rumen capacity, and their digestive systems begin to function more like those of a single-stomached animal. Too much grain in relation to roughage works against rumen muscle tone. When too much fibre is fed without necessary amounts of energy to aid digestion, rumen impaction may result. Balance is best, even when you are feeding additional grain during milk production, make sure to feed a good quality hay for roughage, to keep the rumen in proper working order. The following site provides interactive animations which show the different parts of the stomach and the process of food being digested. http://www.goatbiology.com/animations/digestion3.html

Sometimes technology can be a dangerous thing!

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ASK A JUDGE…….. Dear Judge, I have a doe who had only one kid. The kid only drank from one side of the udder and the other side became engorged with milk and did not return to its original size even after the kid was weaned. If this is evident when I show the doe would I be penalised in the ring? From New to Showing Dear New to Showing Most judges would see that the doe was feeding from one side and take that into account. In selection of a final line up, the most correct animals in that particular class on that day would be the winners and place getters. Make sure you check the doe’s udder to ensure she does not have mastitis or hard udder in that side. I have found that an injection of Ilium Syntocin more commonly known as “let down” in the dairy cattle world after the doe has finished kidding helps to relax and releases a tight, full udder and then kids can feed much easier. Alamycin 10 injection given over about 3 days also helps with the prevention of mastitis. Always check with your vet for required dosage rate. I also encourage a single kid to feed from both sides of the udder. Vicki Mitchell, Level 3 Judge.

12 Days of Christmas Correspondence Dearest John: I went to the door today and the postman delivered a partridge in a pear tree. What a delightful gift. I couldn't have been more surprised. With dearest love and affection, Agnes ***

December 15th Dearest John: Today the postman brought your very sweet gift. Just imagine, two turtle doves.... I'm just delighted at your very thoughtful gift. They are just adorable. All my love, Agnes ***

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December 16th Dear John: Oh, aren't you the extravagant one! Now I must protest. I don't deserve such generosity. Three french hens. They are just darling but I must insist.... you're just too kind. Love Agnes *** December 17th Today the postman delivered four calling birds. Now really! They are beautiful, but don't you think enough is enough? You're being too romantic. Affectionately, Agnes *** December 18th Dearest John: What a surprise! Today the postman delivered five golden rings. One for each finger. You're just impossible, but I love it. Frankly, John, all those squawking birds were beginning to get on my nerves. All my love, Agnes *** December 19th Dear John: When I opened the door there were actually six geese-a-laying on my front steps. So you're back to the birds again, huh? Those geese are huge. Where will I ever keep them? The neighbours are complaining and I can't sleep through the racket. PLEASE STOP! Cordially, Agnes *** December 20th John: What's with you and those birds???? Seven swans-a-swimming. What kind of joke is this? There's bird do-do all over the house and they never stop the racket. I'm a nervous wreck and I can't sleep all night. IT'S NOT FUNNY.......So stop with those birds. Sincerely, Agnes Page 17

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December 21st OK Buster: I think I prefer the birds. What am I going to do with eight maids-a-milking? It's not enough with all those birds and eight maids-a-milking, but they had to bring their own cows. There is poop all over the lawn and I can't move into my own house. Just lay off me. . Ag *** December 22nd Hey: What are you? Some kind of sadist? Now there's nine pipers playing. And do they play! They never stopped chasing those maids since they got here yesterday morning. The cows are upset and are stepping all over those screeching birds. No wonder they screech. What am I going to do? The neighbours have started a petition to evict me. You'll get yours. From Ag *** December 23rd You Creep! Now there's ten ladies dancing - I don't know why I call them ladies. Now the cows can't sleep and they've got diarrhea. My living room is a river of poop. The commissioner of buildings has subpoenaed me to give cause why the building shouldn't be condemned. I'm sicking the police on you. One who means it, Ag *** December 24th Listen Idiot: What's with the eleven lords a-leaping? All 234 of the birds are dead. I hope you're satisfied, you rotten swine. Your sworn enemy, Miss Agnes McCallister ***

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December 25th (From the law offices Taeker, Spedar, and Baegar) Dear Sir: This is to acknowledge your latest gift of twelve fiddlers fiddling, which you have seen fit to inflict on our client, Miss Agnes McCallister. The destruction, of course, was total. All correspondence should come to our attention. If you should attempt to reach Miss McCallister at Happy Dale Sanatorium, the attendants have instructions to shoot you on sight. With this letter, please find attached a warrant for your arrest. -Merry Christmas

NOTE FROM EDITOR… MORALE OF THE ABOVE…….While Christmas is about giving not receiving be careful what you give!!!!

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ODD COUPLES……………….. We all know goats are friendly lovable creatures and these qualities are not restricted to their own species as the following photos and videos show At Carrington View, goats learn to horse ride early!

MOE & LICKETY SPLIT Owner Tracey Walker says the kid, Moe, has taken up with a bullock called Lickity Split since his birth last month. The goat frolics and runs on the bullock's back while it sits, and even sleeping on it. "He has his little play - he gets up and has a play on his back when the bullock is sitting down," she said. "Then he bounces over him and rears up after he has really gone hell for leather for five minutes bucking and frolicking on his back. "Then he'll just sit down and snooze on his back - Lickity will just sit there and take it all in." http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-22/baby-goat-andbullock-form-unlikely-friendship/5109938

Enjoy the following short videos on You Tube…. Click on the link to go to the site or copy and paste the URL A Love Story with a Difference! http://www.globalanimal.org/2012/05/11/goat-and-dog-are-inseperable/

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The following video is very “cute” ..how staged is it??? http://animal.discovery.com/tv-shows/too-cute/videos/goat-herds-adventurous-puppy-backhome.htm

This is the finale and bound to bring a tear to your eye if you really love animals!!! JACK & CHARLIE… Jack, a 16-year-old goat, formed a touching relationship with Charlie, a blind 40-year-old horse. Jack essentially became Charlie’s eyes, and would lead him around the ranch property where they both lived. https://wemustknow.wordpress.com/2013/10/29/goat-decides-on-its-own-to-guide-blind-horsefor-16-years/

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PHOTO COMPETITION 2014…….We have seen photos of goats on cliffs and goats in trees, some of which appear below! This photo competition is called “Goats in Unusual Places”……………..Prize will be two months free advertising on the BGBAA website in a rollover ad, value $110.00!!! Your ad can be created for you at no cost, text and a picture or business card required… Send photos to [email protected] Closing date will be FEBRUARY 10, 2014 with results published in the February Newsletter. Please make sure no humans or animals are injured in taking your photograph!!!!!

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Sources: http://www.trueactivist.com/13-pictures-of-crazy-goats-on-cliffs/ https://www.google.com.au/search?sourceid=navclient&hl=en-GB&ie=UTF8&rlz=1T4ADSA_enAU362AU362&q=goats+in+trees+photo https://www.facebook.com/#!/media/set/?set=a.254106674741249.1073741827.254066888078561&type=1

WEBSITE AND NEWSLETTER ADVERTISING The following chart lists the options for advertising in the Newsletter or the website. Prices include GST. A form is available on the website at the following link: http://www.australianboergoat.com.au/forms.php Any advertising can be forwarded to [email protected] (03)57973232. Members can login to the website and upload Classifieds in the Members Area. There is no charge for State Branches to advertise. A mail out to members can be done through ABRI, contact Barb O’Shea [email protected] Cost is $75 for members, $110 for non-members.

ADVERTISING TYPES & COSTS

MEMBER OF BGBAA Please complete details below

NON MEMBER OF BGBAA Please complete details below

Website – Classifieds For Sale

FREE OF CHARGE

$22.00

Website – Classifieds Wanted

FREE OF CHARGE

FREE OF CHARGE

Website – Homepage Rollover Ad

$55.00/month Number of months** $55.00/month Number of months** FREE OF CHARGE Number of editions $55.00/edition Number of editions $75.00/edition Number of editions $110.00/edition Number of editions ** Invoicing cycle (please circle): Monthly 3-monthly

$110.00/month Number of months** $110.00/month Number of months** $55.00/edition Number of editions $75.00/edition Number of editions $110.00/edition Number of editions $165.00/edition Number of editions ** Invoicing cycle (please circle): Monthly 3-monthly

Website – Static Ad (other pages) Newsletter – Under ¼ page Newsletter – ¼ page Newsletter – ½ page Newsletter – Full page

TOTAL DUE $

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ADDITIONAL SNIPPETS…………….. Don’t forget to revisit the kids and the Jingle Bells video….If you haven’t seen it before you will find it is very funny, if you have seen it before you will find it is always worthwhile watching again at this time of year as a reminder of the “joy” of Christmas! http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=b4_EdJ-XkUA

Anyone involved with organising a show or event will find the following link very useful: http://www.farmbiosecurity.com.au/are-you-planning-an-agricultural-show-or-exhibition-next-year/ It covers the requirements for compliance with bio security issues.

Disclaimer: The articles contained herein are individual views and ideas, not necessarily those of the BGBAA Board or members. Where any suggestions are made with respect to health issues, it is advised that you consult your veterinarian.

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