Udder evaluations please?

ani's ark · #1 10/17/12, 01:57 AM

Hi all, I'm hoping for some feedback on Salma's udder, at 3 weeks fresh, 2nd freshening.

Please ignore the post-kidding bloody goo that is still happening here! I hastily grabbed a shot before milking while she scoffed all her grain. She was unfortunately over-uddered when I took the photo - prior to previous post about overfilling. I've now shortened the separation from kids down to 8 hours until she stops making so much milk.

She does of course have a forever home here and I am very happy with her as a home milker, but curious about her conformation. So how do her attachments, teats etc look to knowledgeable people?

Again, please excuse the goo (goat forum only!)

jcatblum · #2 10/17/12, 02:07 AM

So glad this is in the goat forum & not general questions! Can only imagine the comments you would get!
Not a dairy goat owner, but my thoughts are that has to be uncomfortable.

Ford Zoo · #3 10/17/12, 06:43 AM

Oh my! How much did you get out of her with that?!

LoneStrChic23 · #4 10/17/12, 07:33 AM

Not bad

Estucheon is high & wide, attachments look good. I'd like her teats to be closer together & more narrow (think cigar shaped), but I think she looks good.

How's her foreudder look?

chamoisee · #5 10/17/12, 11:14 AM

She has a good strong medial suspensory ligament, wide escutcheon, and the teats at least are large enough to milk although the shape could be more cylindrical. The udder is also very nicely balanced...overall, much better than 75% of the udders out there! I would look for how far down her inner thigh the side udder attachment is and then check out the foreudder. With the teats, how big are the orifices, how easily does the milk come out? IMHO the *worst* teats to milk, (after teeny teats + pin prick sized orifices) are huge, leathery teats with tiny pin prick orifices, because you've got this huge handful of teat and it's very tiring to squeeze all that milk through the tiny opening. At any rate, this is a doe worth keeping!

ne prairiemama · #6 10/17/12, 11:42 AM

Looks pretty good to me too! I agree with thelast 2 ladies

copperpennykids · #7 10/17/12, 01:35 PM

Nice udder - how old is this doe? If she were mine, I would try to find a buck that can add width to rump and back (actually overall) so that her body can accommodate that udder a little more easily.

CaliannG · #8 10/17/12, 07:41 PM

I am with Camille. She needs a bit more width to be great, but that udder shot looks nice.

I, too, would prefer the teats closer together, however, there is no such thing as the perfect goat or the perfect udder. If her fore and side attachments are as good as her rear attachments, she is definitely one you will want to keep doelings out of.

I, however, rather like the large teats, but that is just me. For showing, cigar-shaped teats are preferred.

ani's ark · #9 10/17/12, 11:56 PM

Thanks everyone, thats some really useful feedback. I love how I can post pics of my goats rear end on here and get genuine helpful responses instead of unbridled mockery! I can just imagine putting that pic as my screen saver at work, I'd be a complete outcast, even in a farming town heehee. Some people just dont understand the important things in life....

Ford Zoo - the day I took this shot she gave me close to a gallon at one milking! I have since scaled back how long the kids are off her by an hour or two each night to ease her pressure.

I totally identify with the comments about her width, she is now nearly 5 years old. She is so narrow from head to rump that by the end of her last lactation she looked scarily skeletal despite being healthy, there's just no real heft to her for a saanen so I think she's a bit of a runt.

I have a new doeling called Willow by her, from a 'good'Saanen buck (assuming I take the word of the farmers who leased him to breed their herd, I havent seen his stats). He was a strapping lad, so hopefully he brings a more robust build and even more defined teats. I can only hope with goats being quite a...ahem...specialised animal for farming in NZ, that a decent breeder would only keep a buck around if he had some good qualities to pass on.

Her teats have small orifices as well as being fiddly to milk, so I end up with crampy thumbs and frothy milk ho hum. But she is the only goat I've ever hand milked, so dont have any basis for comparison. I checked her fore udder, it has a strong band of attachement, but a kind of pocket in front when she's really full. I dont know if thats good or bad. I'll try and get pics from the side over the weekend.

We have a long weekend - Labour Day here in NZ! Yay!! So I am borrowing a press and planning to attempt my first ever hard cheese. Wish me luck to not waste 2 and a half gallons of milk :-)

LoneStrChic23 · #10 10/18/12, 12:42 PM

Sorry, double post.

LoneStrChic23 · #11 10/18/12, 02:30 PM

lol, yes, we're a bunch of weirdos here.... Most of us stare at goat rears far too much for the general populations comfort

I've found that different folks like different teats.

Orifice size is a biggey.... Doesn't matter how fabulous the udder, I'll send them packing for tiny orifices. I like cigar shaped teats as opposed to wider, coned shaped teats as they are easier on my hands to milk quickly, so I select for what I like.

This year I also discovered teat deliniation is a biggy for me. A new doe I bought has ok teat length, good orifices, but poor teat delination, so when I milk I have to becareful or I end up pinching udder tissue & earning myself a kick.... So that doe will be moving out after I get a doeling from her & my buck....

After you've milked a variety of goats you'll make your own list of what you can & can't tolerate