Crossing Boers and Saanens

[Loda Farm]

Has anyone crossed these two for the purpose fo 4H wethers? I saw a couple wethers from this cross, and they were huge, even bigger than a lot of boers I have seen. My main market is 4H and meat for my boys, so anything that increases size is a good thing for me.

For those that have crossed these, how was the growth rate? Especially in the first 6 months.

Will anyone have any Saanen does/doelings for sale in the next few months?


Laura

[Tracy in Idaho]

I know some folks just south of me that have recently sold out their VERY nice Saanen herd and went with Boers....this last year they crossed all the Saanen does with their Boer buck and got some really nice kids. They were not as "thick" as the Boer kids of the same age, but they were taller and longer.

The downside is that only a few had the shadowing of a traditional red head -- and here, for the meat market, the red headed goats bring more $$.

As far as using them for 4-H wethers -- I'd say it would depend on how competitive your area is. In our little county, they'd do great -- in a big show, nothing is going to beat a purebred Boer.

Tracy

[HazyDay]

We have a 3/4 Boer 1/4 Saanen wether. He was huge from the start we were told. He now is almost 2 years old and should be near or over 200 pounds.

[Loda Farm]

Our county is very competitive which is why I bought 6 fullblood Boers from a guy who shows, I paid big money, but they are really big animals. However there is a couple of counties surrounding us that is just not real competitive. I found most boer stock around me is more poor grade stock, with only a few breeders with really nice animals. So I guess while the kids might do ok with some of the fairs, in mone they may not so so well.
On another note, I want to train some wethers to be cart goats, so maybe a few wethers from this cross may work. I might have to try it just to see what I get. It might be interesting to see what the kids would be like breeding the saanen/boer doe kids back to a Boer. Maybe a taller meatier mix? I guess before doing all that work, I just want to see if anyone else had bred the two together and when their results were.

Laura

[copperpennykids]

Hi Laura,

We have Saanens and Boers. Our Boers are quite nice and do very well at shows.
Our Saanens are also milk/show goats.

We love a Boer/Saanen cross. A 50% cross from this will make weight and should look pretty good, but can in no way compete with a higher % Boer.

A doe from this cross bred back to Boer...now you're talking! 75%-88% Boer make ideal crosses (we generally prefer 88% ). Large frames to pack all of that meat onto. The loins on some of my Saanens are soooo long and wide....put that thickness of a Boer on it and it is amazing!

Your average Fullblood may not be real milky so sometimes these crosses grow faster than their Boer counterparts. We breed for udder, milk, and great bodies on our Boers, so it can be tough to beat those fullbloods, but the 4-H kids are real competitive either way.

For Example: 2005 Kootenai Fair GCH...75% Boer
2006 Kootenai Fair GCH...88% Boer
2006 Spokane Interstate Fair GCH....92% Boer
2006 Spokane Interstate Fair RGCH....Fullblood
2007 Kootenai Fair GCH...88% Boer
2007 Kootenai Fair RGCH..75% Boer
2007 Bonner County Fair GCH...Fullblood
2007 Spokane Interstate GCH ...88% Boer

These are just the goats bred at our Ranch and sold to the 4-Hers over the past 3 years.

BTW, a Boer X Saanen makes a very nice pack goat as well. We have people come here specifically to purchase those wethers for packing. The height and length of the Saanen, the extra bone and pigment of the Boer is apparently very attractive to them. I would imagine the same would be true of a cart wether. Pack goat people generally want a kid that has been bottle-fed.

Oh, and they want to know that they are CAE negative...pack goat is no good with swollen knees!

Camille

[Loda Farm]

Thanks Camille.. I think I may add a Saanen doe to my herd then. I also want to try to make soap, so if all else fails she can be used for that. They are just such large goats, I would think they would add some nice size to soem kids. My Boer buck is huge for his age, so if his kids has as good a growth rate as he does, then a Saanen mix should do well.