adga membership/registry -worth the trouble?

[eclipchic]

Just wondering if its worth the trouble to register kids in the spring and get an adga membership/herdname etc. We don't care for ourselves since we don't show and other than we have to breed to keep them in milk, we really don't see ourselves as breeders. Does it help in selling extra kids or offer any other benefits? I think our goal is to have 4 does and 1 buck as stock, everything else will be eaten or sold and I think we plan to stick with Nubians

[KimM]

Even if your're only breeding does to bring them into milk, you're producing kids and so you are a breeder. With 4 does, that's potentially 12 kids per year. I'd say the price per kid, very much depending on the quality of the dams and sire, can bring you twice as much if they are registered than if not. It's not that much trouble or expense to become and maintain a membership or register kids, it can be done online for less money than sending in paper forms. Also that if someone eventually wants papers, it's much more work to backtrack and get it done.
But if you're not striving for better conformation, better udder/teats, better production, etc., and getting your does in milk is your only goal, then maybe you could raise the kids long enough to butcher, and in that case, I wouldn't bother with registering or selling kids.
Just my 2 scents. (cuz sometimes my opinions stink!)

[houndlover]

Of course its worth it. Knowing the genetics of your animals is 99% of improving the quality of the offspring. If you're just breeding garbage to garbage in order to have milk in the bag, you're going to end up with a bunch of kids nobody wants.

[Alice In TX/MO]

BUT..... keep in mind that there are crappy registered goats out there, too.


I had purchased her one winter that I HAD to have milk for a sick friend. Yes, she was registered. Her kids all went to freezer camp, and I put her down after two years of udder dragging the ground.

[julieq]

Alice, all I can say to that photo is 'WOW'!

Yes, it is worth joining ADGA and going through all the herd name registration, tattooing, etc. if you're going to sell kids for breeding stock.

[Creamers]

Yes - no question - join the ADGA

[dustin biery]

Not to hijack, but do you guys register your animals with multiple registrations?

[mygoat]

My dairies - no, they're all ADGA. I love ADGA in that experimentals (mutts) can be registered because it is less important the purebred status of the goats and more important the production and qualities of the animals, it seems. Most people use and trust ADGA, too. I very rarely see any AGS registered goats - I think I've only seen nigerians AGS registered that I can recall.

The boer does came USBGA registered, but since the ABGA was closing their books (IE, they wouldn't allow USBGA registered goats to be registered through them after this year) I dual registered all my boer does with the ABGA. It seems most people (at least in MI) deal mostly with the ABGA. Figured it would be best to keep my options open, as ABGA registered animals can still be dual registered with USBGA, just not the other way around anymore.

[houndlover]

If you take the total of people who show and register goats, and look at the percentage who belong to AGS as opposed to ADGA, it's a very small percentage, so no, I don't dual register, don't see the point. ADGA has a lot of levels of political hoo hah but in the end, they provide many tools, the genetics site, milk test, improvement programs, and they're picky about who gets registered.

[Creamers]

If you don't show - Ags might be the best choice, I do both, but anyone can transfer if they want to ADGA with their AGS paperwork, but it is less money for you to invest. . . I just have a few Nigis that are AGS.

[Alice In TX/MO]

I register some minis with the IDGR as well as the Miniature Dairy Goat Assn.

[saanengirl]

ADGA registration is great for people who don't plan to show because they offer DHI testing and Linear Appraisal which can help with herd improvement in closed herds. You may say you don't intend to breed more than just to keep your does in milk, but goats are addictive I have heard many people say that, and three years later they have 20+ goats. My parents said that when we got into goats. Several hundred registered goats later they are back down to a herd of about 10, and I have about the same sized herd. Our names are well-known in the dairy goat world (particularly in the Southeast), and we have had animals that placed well at Nationals. So much for just having a few milk goats...

[eclipchic]

I appreciate all the feedback. I just have the one registered goat now, I'm hoping it works out that we'll get another registered doe in the fall. I'm just thinking with spring kids if it'd be worth it. Sounds like it is.

[Donna1982]

My boyfriend said he never wanted to show.... He's now looking for a good registered boer to show. Just saying never say never.

[southerngurl]

I enjoy my ADGA membership. I don't show but I do linear appraisal and I have learned a lot from just doing it twice. It is really cool to have someone who knows their stuff thoroughly go over each goat and teach you what's good and not so good.