Filling out the ADGA Application for milk testing...

Okay, fresh off the phone with Penny at ADGA, I figured I would share this info with anyone who stumbles across it :P  When you go to fill out your application for Official DHIR Testing, you may have some questions...I did....so here are the answers I have so far...walk through the app with me....

Name of Herd Owner - pretty basic, that's you (remember to put it on there just like it is with ADGA....)
Mailing Address and Date...duh right? Pretty easy....
Date of First Expected Test - here's where you can kind of guess a little.  Depending on when your does freshen, or in my case if they already have freshened, you can just put in the month you hope to begin.  It is now June, I REALLY want to get our first test in before July, but just in case I put "July"...if I test close to that the first time we will still be okay, no worries :) Just remember it doesn't have to be an exact date!
There is a box below that where you pick the type of test and which test you are going on....for me, it is Standard and DHIR 20- Standard  that I have checked off.  Pick the one that fits your herd and situation best...but keep in mind from here on out I will be referring to the test plan I am on, as that will be the one I am familiar with over time :)

Tester - When you get here, if you are on test for the first time, it can be confusing.  What if you don't have your testers' ID# yet? NO WORRIES! Just put "Pending" - as long as you have their name and phone number in there, it will be okay!  Remember, this is your second, nonrelated, not you test supervisor they want info on! Now...for the type of test I am goiug on, I will require a verification test by ANOTHER tester...I called, I asked, should I put the second tester on there? The answer to that is NO...just the one who will be coming regularly to do your testing! That's all you need there!
Name of DHIA - Depending on where you are in the nation, I suppose other states will use other labs...there is a list from ADGA on their website, which will also be printed out and come in your DHIR packet (when you ask them to send you one) that has all of them on there.  This is there FAQ Page for DHIR testing.....this is the list of Regional Affiliates where you will be sending your milk samples and barn sheets each month.  For me, I have gone with Langston University...can't tell you about any of the others as I lack experience with them...but I can and will say again Eva at Langston is AWESOME! Point Being...I just wrote Langston University in that box :)
DRPC:  that is the Dairy Records Processing Center (remember that?) For me, once again, I can check off Langston....and also once again I am not sure what other regions/areas use...but here in Texas, that's what I am doing :)
Members of Testing Group - this is only if you are on group test, if you are on standard test, just leave it blank....

Next, the $$$....check off the right box for how many does will be on test (doe kids still on bottles, bucks, wethers, they don't count....just the does in milk or coming into milk for the year and going on test). So, stop, count your does, and fork it over lol :)  NOW....I had read on one of the sheets in the packet there was an additional fee for new herds...I called, and I was told NO there is not! So...perhaps the literature in the packet is a bit outdated, perhaps not and I got the wrong answer...BUT...feel free to double check with ADGA before you write the check :) I did, took about 30 seconds, and I felt better having the correct amount for sure! Don't forget your payment info if using a card!

Okay....DHI Herd Code # - for new herds, like me, just write in "Pending"...that will come shortly for you - pending is perfect for now :)

Don't forget to sign and put your ADGA member # on there at the bottom!

Okay...now...if you print it off online, it's another sheet...but if you get the packet, on the back, it wants a list of your does....Being an ADGA member, and doing things online has it's advantages here! Instead of dragging out my binder of registration papers...all I had to do was log on to my ADGA account, pull my "Currently Owned List", print it off and staple it on! SUPER EASY PEASY! If you want to go "old school" and write everything in by hand, that's okay too :)

Now....while you are waiting on your scale to come back from being calibrated, and waiting on your supervisor tests to be verified...go stick that sucker in an envelope with a stamp and ship it out to ADGA! Don't forget to always make and keep a copy of everything, along with notes on when it was mailed so you can track stuff and refer back to it...JUST IN CASE! I actually keep everything important in sheet protectors, in a 3 ring binder - each goats registration papers, my CAE test results, all that is in one nice binder for reference. I have a tab for "Tests/Vet", Bucks, Does, and now DHIR :) I keep sold goat papers in a separate binder too....no really...I have a thing about this paper work :P But, like I mentioned, start keeping up with it so if you ever need it, you have it at hand! Shame to do all this work and loose a sheet or 2 and not get credit if you can't reproduce them right?

Okay....go fill out and send off your ADGA application and start waiting with me :) I have a few things I need to get back and THEN we go "on test"!!!!

Taking the Test to go "On Test"

Langston University shall be overseeing all of my milk test info - weights, samples, records - all that will be sent to them and they will report to ADGA.  In order to do that, you are gonna need a supervisor - 2 is always better than one! First of all, you need them to come do your tests monthly. Second, there will have to be (on my plan it seems at least) one "verification test" and THAT must be done by a SECOND supervisor! So - if one gets sick or can't make it - you have a second in "your pocket" and then you have your verification test covered.

IN TEXAS - I don't know about anywhere else - but here, in my little region of the world - it can be ANYONE...almost....They can't be related to you OR your herd! Meaning they can't have bought goats from you, or be a family member! Thankfully, I have non-goat owning friends who have stepped up to the plate!

Now...that test you take...it sounds a little scary right?  No, not so AT ALL! SUPER easy! Like watch about 40 minutes of youtube video and take a simple 15 question test EASY!

Part one of the video can be seen here - there are 4 parts to be watched! Be warned - it's not that interesting! I had to pause and go back a few times and call with questions to get everything cemented in my mind correctly before I did the test! But really - super easy I said!

Eva Vasquez
Langston DHI Lab for Goats
100 Success Ave.
Res. & Ext. Complex
Langston University
Langston, OK 73050
Phone 405-466-6207
Fax 405-466-6180

THAT is all of the contact info for Langston University - if you choose or can use them as your DRPC (DRPC means Dairy Records Processing Center) - anyways, if you go through them that is how to reach Eva who will always take a minute to walk you through everything - SHE IS AWESOME! Another awesome person is Penny at ADGA who has answered everything for me with great care!

Point being - if you want to get started, email her for the test, watch the short videos, print off and fill out the test then mail in it to her - it really is that easy to be a certified supervisor!


So...if you want to go on milk test (here in Texas at least - some states have different requirements) - double check with Eva at Langston and get your supervisors in line. It only takes about an hour or 2 of your day this once and you are done for the year and good to go :)

P.S. - Take note here - when you finish your test, you will need to mail it in to Langston University...the address for that is: P.O. Box 730, Langston, OK, 73050....good to know info for those of you doing the test :)

Choosing a test plan....

ADGA has SO MANY test plans it accepts for milk test! AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! It's hard to pick one! Actually, if you call or email them, they will send you a "DHIR Packet" with a lot of this info in there - they have it online as well, and in your handbook you get each year (if you are a member).  I like to have everything they deem necessary in one place, and thus I had the packet sent to me...I can review it all at one glance, highlight stuff, take it in one sheet at a time. VERY nice to have it in one place!

At first, I was going to go "owner sampler" as that sounded pretty basic and simple...THEN I started looking into what I could achieve with my herd...and I THINK I am going to go with their "DHIR 20 Standard" test plan....

On that plan you can (if you are so blessed and have the right does) earn top ten status.  On the owner sampler plans you cannot...now while at this time I have no top ten does (I can tell by weights alone I think) I do have some does who can earn their stars. BUT you never know! In the future I may have a top ten producer...and I want her to be recognized for it if we get that far! I want to stick with one thing, learn it, and learn it well....so I might as well go with the one I will be on as long as possible right? Since the owner sampler plan does not offer top ten status...well...I am going to go with the one that does. I can always change it in the future, but for now it is what finally makes the most sense and seems easiest - DHIR 20 Standard. That's me :)

Also...you need a scale that weighs in TENTHS of pounds! I choose the Pelouze 7800 from webstaurantstore.com - they had a decent price (the best I found) and the scale itself was recommended by Eva at Langston University. It was about $45 after shipping - not bad to have a nice scale for my milking :) you THEN have to get your scale "calibrated" - sounds hard right? Where in the heck do you go for all that?  Well, easy peasy, you can send it off to Langston University (if you are using them as your DRPC) and they will do it for $15 (which pays to get it sent back to you).  NOT BAD! Saves me time, money, and gas from driving around all over the world to get it calibrated PLUS they keep the certificate on file that it was done and it is all in one spot - VERY nice!

THEN...you need the right dipper....Hoegger Supply has the right DHIA sample ladle.  For about $15 after shipping (all I got was the dipper - if I had spent $200 shipping was free...but I didn't need that much stuff lol, just the ladle)....anyways pretty cheaply you can get an approved sample ladle to get your milk samples into their little vials...NOT BAD!

I suggest if you are thinking about going on milk test to research the options, CALL WITH YOUR QUESTIONS! EVERYONE is SUPER nice and walks you through it and answers even the most odd, random questions very well! Then, pick a plan to be on, and get your equipment in line....after this we will be tackling the paperwork!

Hooray For Fencing!

Actually....building fencing kinda sucks.  No matter what, the weather will be NOT in my favor, there's all sorts of biting, stinging, angry bugs looking to accost me the minute I walk out the door with a project in mind, and many a time a hammer will miss a nail and find, instead, my tender fingers.....Yes, the act of fencing is NOT one of my favorite jobs!

I will admit, cheerfully no less, that I DO enjoy seeing it completed! I haven't built anything outside in a LONG time plus I really wanted to be able to be gone on the weekends and not feel bad about not walking the goats those days! I enjoy seeing my less than perfect little fence job - remember, city girl here :P I'm not a master fence builder by any means - I'm just capable of building things strong enough (once the goats show me where they are weak) to keep the goats in!

Fifty feet long by 25 feet wide - no, it's not the most amazing biggest longest fence built ever - BUT IT FEELS LIKE IT haha! Eventually I will expand - slowly - to include more of the "yard" for them....maybe one day I will be brave enough to run them an adjoining pasture through those woods in the background. The girls would REALLY love that! Goats are browsers - not grazers - and they prefer to eat weeds, brushy things, and trees nor grass.  But they get plenty of hay and feed - so the grassy area is really more for them to be able to run and move around in.

Yes, we will still go on grazing walks - or "property grooming excursions" so they can eat all the poison oak, ivy and sumac they want around here (and we have a TON of it out here!) but at least now I can leave them on lock down and not feel bad about it.  When I have to leave, when company comes and we need to keep their cars safe, any time they should be on lockdown I don't feel bad any more :)

I don't know what I want my next project to be....I have several in mind....do I want to relocate the pig housing and build her a nice little spot right up here by the house? Do I want to renovate the chicken coop? I keep saying we are going to fence in the front of the property and get that done so the horses can be loose more...do I want to tackle that? I dunno....I think I want to get all of the little stuff out of the way first and that last one is a BIG job that will involve more than just myself! Oh yes....I got the neighbors son to help me unroll the fence along the posts, and I conned my husband into putting the clips on at the t-posts as I always spend way too long fighting with those stupid things - but everything else there was all me :) Took the better part of the last 5 days too LOL - but remember I start and end my days with a few hours of work so my days are not ALL fence related!

I dunno....I have a few things to think on and a day off (or two) to take AND I need to clean this house - I let it go 2 weeks ago when we had a flood (story to follow)....so while I rest and recover from my outside duties I will think on it and plot and plan....But I am happy to finally see the goats able to run and play and use their cable spool thing I brought home a year ago!

DHIR....DHIA....Owner Sampler what? MILK TEST!!!!!!!!!!

Why yes...I do believe before the month is out our little herd here at NadaLottaRanch will be on milk test officially :)  Kind of exciting really - I have wanted to go official for YEARS in this fashion...but I have been scared away by the paperwork and how much it seemed like you needed to do. I had this vision in my head of needing to fill out a million forms each and every day at each and every milking...um NO! NOT THAT HARD!

First of all, why test you ask?  What's in it for the herd?  Well, very simply, your does can earn their "stars". I know...stars on yars...sounds like that book by Dr. Seuss about the Sneeches right? But stars are GOOD!  With dairy goats you want to see things like "star milkers" in their back ground. You want to know that a goat comes from genetics that produce MILK and LOTS of it LOL :)  Otherwise, WHY have a DAIRY goat?  I mean yeah, sure, showing can be fun and rewarding if you enjoy it.  But really...ultimately...to me at least, a dairy goat needs to make enough milk for my time and effort in caring for them and milking them to be WORTH it! A cup or 2 a day, even back when we had dwarf goats, does NOT cut it!  We need to see POUNDS of milk a flowing!

The other thing you find out by sending in samples of your does' milk is how much protein and butterfat they are putting out there. I would prefer to see a goat make a bit less milk with higher fat and protein than a doe who makes tons and tones but it's almost all water. When making things like cheese and yogurt, and even when just drinking it, you want a nice, sweet, rich milk. Not a watery milk.

I have a few more questions to call ADGA with....a few more to call Langston with (who my tests/samples will go to each month) and then after a few forms to fill out and I will be good to go :) I'm pretty excited - at this point I am drying up 3 of the 5 does in milk and I will only have 2 on test. To me, I want it to be simple the first year. I want to only have the potential of a few mistakes and not a whole herd worth if we screw up on papers haha, PLUS the other does have been in milk for 6 months now and I am ready for a break! After this, there will be no more breaks....starting with the next round of kidding we will be on test until I give up LOL...and I think as simple as this is I can stick with ti for a long time to come!

So...stay tuned....there will be more info on this to come so everyone can join in. It really is a valuable tool in making well informed decisions on what goats to buy and bring into your herd and such - remember, it costs the same to feed a crummy, low producing wompy looking goat as it does to feed a high producing well built goat! Might as well get the most bang for you buck when you buy right? 

Happy dance, happy dance - we are gonna be "official" lol :)

PG600....AKA "Pimp Juice"...Has Arrived :)

So...a little over 3 weeks ago CIDRs went into 5 of the girls here....last week my "Pimp Juice" came!

I know - the bottle speaks of pigs - but in the dairy goat world we use it in conjunction with CIDRs to get the girls to come into heat.  Sooo....everyone got their 1.5cc shot (IM) on Wednesday. Hooves were trimmed through the whole herd, a few not being bred were wormed, and then that evening CIDRs were pulled. Next day BAM! Willow was in first...then Champagne, then Fajita and Penelope and lastly Charyzma. HOPEFULLY everyone takes....well....actually I'd be happy with 3...but all 5 would be great too :)

I have my doubts on a few...Charyzma being one as she was the last to come in and not that amused with the entire process....we will see in 45 days or so when I pull blood to send off for pregnancy tests through Biotracking....

It's been a busy few weeks - what with the arrival of the Pimp Juice, a water heater melt down I have yet to blog about, breeding, working on a new yard for the ladies, blood draws for my herd and 2 others for their annual CAE testing...oh yes...been a little hectic! But it's nice to have several girls exposed and the hopes of winter milk on the way.

Please note this also....I am seeing a herd I PERSONALLY not only drove almost 2 hours one way out to last July But also I PERSONALLY gave their does shots of the PG600 (since the husband was working and the wife doesn't do shots) anyways...point being I am seeing them telling people they bred last season USING CIDRs ALONE AND THAT IS A FALSE STATEMENT! Be cautious when you take advice from people...I admit I myself do not know everything, with goats you learn something new once a week, it's how they work! BUT....to be blatantly lying...well....it REALLY eats at me. Perhaps they don't know, perhaps they forgot....BUT THEY DID use the PG600 last year! I have already hit on one herd who took their statement for fact only to be let down when does did NOT come into heat with the removal of CIDRS and NO PG600 was given.  It was kinda sad to see someone have to start over on that long wait to breeding! Now, IN SEASON (as most goats tend to be "seasonal breeders") MAYBE it works without the Pimp Juice....I don't know....never tried it without....BUT OUT OF SEASON I am pretty sure after hearing that YOU NEED THE PIMP JUICE!  The CIDRs prep the goats to ovulate, the Pimp Juice makes them ovulate...it's a process followed by those that do AI...so even with live cover from a buck it works.

Also...with the "Pimp Juice"...please note: IT is SUPPOSED to be mixed and used FRESH! Not kept refrigerated between breedings. THERE IS A RUMOR that you can mix it and freeze it by dose and thaw as needed...I DO NOT KNOW IF IT WORKS, lord knows I am NOT a vet...but since you can only get one huge vial (enough for 5 pigs or 15 goats)...it is worth a try I suppose! I have a cohort working on this theory now - she took the rest, did a few shots that same day and has frozen the left over...when I hear back what she has to say I will report on it!

Needless to say, a little time and money has gone into this effort.  The supplies and days spent doing this DOES add up - BUT - it is worth it! It makes my year so much more manageable to be able to be on a schedule I set! I am happy with it, and I can't wait to see who comes back open and who comes back bred! Watch for updates...more news to come!

Oh...what breeds will we be getting you ask? I bred saanens, nubians, and a few crosses....so we will see who comes back bred :)

An Ear Update :)

See that mostly white goat? Remember the taped up head? The one that looked like it had a pair of underpants on it? Yup - that's Hannah - AND LOOK AT THAT EAR!!!!

Tape came off a week or so ago and WOW! FULLY normal again :) Back like it should have been :)

So, remember, with those floppy eared goats, when the ear ain't right - TAPE IT! There's nothing a little duct tape can't fix ;)