Welcome to the Wisconsin Dairy Goat Association

Its finally summer, (kind of). It’s the end of May and I think I have only worn a short sleeve shirt once! We live in Wisconsin and should be used to this type of weather but I would just like it to get warm and stay for a while. I hate the fact that we are still turning on our furnace every once in a while just to “take the chill out”.

With summer comes show season! It’s the time of year for many of us to see if our breeding and management programs are working. How will our goats look this year compared to other breeders? For Mary and Me the first show of the season is always hectic. We seem to forget so much from last year’s show season. We can never find enough show chains. The clipper blades are always dull, and there are never enough water pails and feeders. Where did they go? We had all this stuff last year! You would think we had never been to a show before! The first show for most of us was the WDGA Badger State Show, and it was a great show. We had approx 300 goats on Sat. and 200 on Sunday from 4 states.

Congratulations to all winners, and thanks to everyone who helped make the show possible. When you are out showing this year take a moment to thank those who put on the show. A personal “Thanks for all you’ve done” is always appreciated. They do a great deal of work (on their own time) to make sure it is a successful and enjoyable show.

Even though it is early summer, if you need a new young herd sire this fall you should be looking now. I know most producers are just getting over kidding season and the last thing you want to think about is breeding season, but fall will come. If you wait until fall to buy your new buck you might not find the quality you are looking for. Attending a few summer shows is a great way to talk with several breeders at one place. You will be able to see what type of goats each breeder is producing and make a better decision on what you are looking for in a new herd sire. We have already had calls for buck kids. Remember a good buck will affect 50 percent of your next kid crop!

Even though this is a busy time for everyone there are several projects WDGA is working on to continue promoting and improving the Dairy Goat Industry.

• The Dairy Goat Research Herd Feasibility Study

• Work is continuing on the 2009 Fall Goat

Conference. This year the conference will be held Oct. 30th and 31st in Sinsinawa which is located in Southwestern Wisconsin, approx. 20 miles South of Platteville. This area has a great deal of producers and it was felt we would also attract producers from Iowa as well. If you have any suggestions or ideas for the conference contact a committee member. (Listed in newsletter) Look for more info to come.

• Don’t forget about the WDGA Doe Kid Raffle!