Evaluation and Selection of Meat Goats
OVERVIEW
INSTRUCTOR:
UNIT: Knowledge of Current Topics in Animal Science
LESSON: Evaluation and Selection of Meat Goats
IMS REFERENCE: #8643-C
TOPIC NOTES
EVALUATION AND SELECTION OF MEAT GOATS
Goat is the meat of choice in some countries. In Greece, families dine on goat to celebrate
Easter in the same way American families eat turkey at Thanksgiving. Goat meat
(cabrito) is a traditional barbecue meal in
Mexico. In France, chevon is a special delicacy. Goat meat is not a traditional meat
source in the United States; however, goat meat has increased in popularity, partly
because goat meat has considerably less fat than most other meats consumed, as shown in
the following table. In addition to health conscious decisions to eat goat meat, an influx
of new residents from countries that traditionally eat goat meat has resulted in a demand
for this meat product.
Goats were first brought to the United States in the 1500s by early European explorers
who used goats as a source of meat and milk. Goats were desirable because of their small
size and ability to thrive on native plants. Many of the early goats escaped or were
released into what is now Texas and Oklahoma. Their descendants are known today as
Spanish goats and found across the Southwestern United States.
Spanish goats are popular with ranchers who keep them for brush control and weed
management. As a result of increasing demand for goat meat, these same ranchers also
manage goats for meat production.
Many ranchers use selective breeding and crossbreeding programs designed to increase
the size and meat characteristics of the Spanish goat.
Meat goat production is a profitable business provided a sufficient demand for the meat
product exists. Goats have lower feed costs, thrive in areas too poor to support cattle, and
have a much higher reproductive rate than do cattle.
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Evaluation and Selection of Meat Goats
As a result, meat goat production is potentially twice as profitable as beef cattle
production and considered by many producers to be the most underdeveloped farm
resource. A primary reason for the slow development of meat goat production in the
United States was the lack of uniform goat breeds with high carcass quality and yield.
Today, the introduction of the South African Boer goat has given producers uniform
genetic material upon which to build a meat goat industry.
BREEDS OF MEAT GOATS
Two major meat-type goats are the Spanish goat and the Boer goat.
Spanish Goat
The Spanish goat is not what breeders traditionally call a breed. The term Spanish goat is
really a collective name used to distinguish goats of dairy or fiber types from the semiwild and unselected goat populations in the Southern United States. Spanish goats are
generally small and agile. They represent a broad mixture of goat types including dairy
and Angora. Traits such as large udder size have been selected against because large
udders are hazardous for animals living in rocky, desert-like territory where cactus thorns
can easily rip open a pendulous udder. As a result, the Spanish goat is no longer a milkproducing breed. However, their muscularity and value as a meat source remains.
Breeds of animals have strict pedigree registry and breed standards for all animals
accepted within the breed.
Breed standards determine color, size, color patterns, and other distinct breed
characteristics depending on the specialization of the breed. Characteristics such as head
and ear shape and the presence or absence of horns are important for defining breeds.
Because the Spanish goat is not a breed and has no registry standards,
Spanish goats are highly inconsistent in size, color, body shape, ear shape, horns, and hair
type and length. Conventional breeds, such as the Boer goat, have had many years of
breed selection making them visually uniform with distinctive red and white color
patterns. The Boer is also uniform in stature and carcass lean meat yield, whereas the
Spanish goat is highly variable.
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Evaluation and Selection of Meat Goats
Boer Goat
Ranchers in the Easter Cape Province of South Africa developed the Boer goat as a meatproducing breed during the early 1900s. Its Dutch name means "farm" or "farmed."
The name was originally used to distinguish between native South African goats and new
importations, such as the non-meat type Angora goat from Turkey. The Boer goat is a
combination of indigenous South African breeds plus imported European and Indian goat
breeds. The majority of Boer goats in the United States are imported from New Zealand.
International laws regarding the movement of livestock are extremely strict to control the
spread of infectious diseases. As a result, shipment from countries such as New Zealand,
Australia, or Canada into the United States is easier than moving animals directly from
South Africa. In general appearance, the Boer goat has a dark red head, lop ears, and
horns that curve backwards. The goat is strong, vigorous, and symmetrical, with wellbalanced muscling. Bucks should be masculine and well proportioned. A mature buck
weighs as much as 300 pounds. Does should be feminine, yet strong, with a slightly more
angular chest than bucks. Does breed easily and have the conformation and constitution
to easily raise fast growing kids. Does are highly productive and have a kidding rate of
200%. The doe also has an extended breeding season allowing her to produce three sets
of offspring every two years.
Over the last 70 years, the Boer Goat Breeders' Association of South Africa (BGBASA)
has selected the Boer goat for large frame size, high carcass yield, and uniform visual
appearance. The BGBASA recognizes five types of Boer goat based on performance and
visual characteristics.

The Ordinary Boer Goat has good meat conformation and fine short hair. However,
the Ordinary Boer goat does not meet the breed coloration standards. Ordinary Boer goats
are varied in color and include brindle, gray, and dark brown and white patterns.

The Long Hair Boer Goat is later maturing and has less acceptable meat quality than
the Improved Boer goat. Long hair also reduces the value of skins, making this type
undesirable.

The Polled Boer Goat is naturally polled. The conformation of the Polled Boer is the
major factor reducing the desirability of this type.

The Indigenous Boer Goat has long legs, a variable and poor conformation, and a
variety of color patterns. This line has not been highly selected or managed.

The Improved Boer Goat is the selected breeding stock of the Boer breed. Over the
last 70 years, the BGBASA have emphasized good conformation, rapid growth rates,
high fertility and fecundity, color and type uniformity, hardiness, and adaptability to
varied environmental conditions.
The BGBASA, unlike most breed registries, does not maintain or use pedigrees to
register goats. A trained inspector evaluates each goat, and only goats meeting the highest
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Evaluation and Selection of Meat Goats
standards are admitted to the breed. The Improved Boer Goat is the only type that can be
registered as a breeding animal in South Africa.
The American Boer Goat Association (ABGA) uses pedigrees to document and maintain
bloodlines. However, only animals that meet or exceed ABGA breed standards are
eligible for performance testing.
Performance tested animals that display high visual conformity, structural soundness,
adaptability to environmental conditions, high carcass lean yield, and high fertility are
eligible for inclusion in the ABGA "Ennobled Book."
Breed Standards for the American Boer Goat
The ABGA has defined the breed standards to uphold overall quality, size, appearance,
and breed type of the American Boer Goat. The ABGA identifies conformation, skin and
covering, reproductive organs, and coloration as the major traits with which to evaluate
Boer goats. Judges in purebred Boer goat competitions use the ABGA breed standards.
Conformation
The conformation trait is subdivided into head, neck and forequarters, body, and
hindquarters. The head characteristic is very strict with standards designed to ensure
longevity in the breed. Breed standards indicate that a two-tooth (1-1.5 years of age) goat
can have no over-bite or under-bite, while a four-tooth and older (over 1.5 to 2 years)
goat can have a ¼-inch overbite. All permanent front teeth must be in their anatomically
correct positions. The horns of a quality Boer goat are strong, of moderate length,
positioned well apart, and curve gradually backward before turning symmetrically
outward. The horns are as solid as possible and dark in color. The ears are broad, smooth,
medium length, and hang downwards. Short ears, concave foreheads, straight horns,
overshot jaws, undershot jaws, and blue eyes are not acceptable characteristics.
In addition to the characteristics of an ideal meat goat described later, the ideal Boer goat
has well-fleshed forequarters, a deep and broad brisket, fleshy shoulders, and strong,
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Evaluation and Selection of Meat Goats
well-placed legs. The legs are particularly important because goats must forage and often
cover many miles daily while searching for food. Boer breed standards require legs of
medium length and in proportion with the depth of the body. The hooves of the ideal
Boer are well formed, tight, and as dark as possible. The ABGA specifies that the base of
the tail must be centered while the tail is straight and curves upwards.
A concave topline, poor conformation, inadequate and excessive muscling, and muscle,
bone, joint, and hoof deformities disqualify goats from the registry.
Skin & Covering
The Boer goat has loose and supple skin, with folds over the neck and chest, especially in
bucks. These skin characteristics help the Boer goat adapt to very hot climates. In
addition, the eyelids and other hairless areas are pigmented to prevent sunburn. The Boer
has short, glossy hair and a limited amount of winter down during cold months. Long,
coarse hair is discriminated against.
Reproductive Organs
The Boer goat is highly fertile. Many years of strict selection in South Africa have
determined the reproductive characteristics of this breed. Does have well formed udders
with good attachment, and no more than two functional teats per side. Ideally, all goats
should have a single functional teat on each half of the udder. Permitted is a split teat
with two distinctly separated milk ducts and openings with at least 50% of the body of a
teat separated. In the male, scrotal circumference is a very important measure of fertility
and libido. Scrotal circumference increases up to mature age. High-quality, young bucks
have a scrotal circumference of greater than 9.75 inches at eight months or at 100 pounds
of body weight. Adult bucks two years old or older should measure at least 11.5 inches,
but preferably 12.5 inches or larger.
Coloration
The ideal Boer goat has red hair on the head and ears and white hair on the remainder of
the body. Hair coloration may vary from light to dark red or brown. The face has a white
blaze. Hair coloration on the head is most desirable if it extends partially down the neck
to an imaginary line connecting the point of the shoulder blades and the top of the brisket.
Although this is the ideal, 50% non-coloration of the head and neck area is acceptable.
Ideally, the ears should be 80% colored and pigmented.
Cashmere Goat
The Cashmere goat is not strictly a meat goat; it is considered to be a dual-purpose (meat
and fiber) goat. The Cashmere is famous for its very soft, elastic, downy fiber. Cashmere
is an extremely expensive and luxurious material. The Cashmere goat originates from
Kashmir, which is an area on the northern border of India and Pakistan.
Cashmere goats are used for both fiber and meat production in their native areas and
considered to have meat-producing potential in the
United States in crossbreeding programs with native Spanish goats.
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SELECTING AND EVALUATING MEAT GOATS
Four general characteristics considered when selecting and evaluating meat goats include
conformation (structural correctness), general appearance (size and scale, capacity, and
depth and width of body), muscling (growth and weight per day of age), and condition
(amount of finish or fat the animal is carrying). Goats deposit fat internally before they do
externally. The ideal condition for a meat goat is a thin, but uniform covering over the
loin, rib, and shoulder. The external fat thickness over the loin at the 13th rib should be
0.08 inch to 0.12 inch, or an average 0.10 inch.
Desirable Meat Goat Traits
A good meat goat is rectangular in appearance from the side, with straight and level top
and bottom lines. Length of rump, length of body, and length of leg are important to
market desirability.
The rump is fairly level and the overall body shape is trim. The legs are straight and
placed square under the body; the goat should not be post-legged or cow-hocked. Both
fore and hind legs should show evidence of muscling. Meat characteristics can be
visually determined by examining the hindquarters, loin, shoulders, and neck.
From the front, it is desirable for a market goat to have width between the forelegs,
muscling in the forearm and shoulders, trimness in the brisket, and soundness and
correctness in the front feet and legs. The head should be in proportion to the neck and
body. From the rear, the hindquarters should be muscular and long.
The back, loin, and rump should be uniform in width. The feet and legs should be straight
and spaced square and wide under the goat.
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Evaluation and Selection of Meat Goats
The American Meat Goat Association (AMGA) score card assigns "point values" to the
most important characteristics of a meat goat. The score card is used to determine the
overall value of a market animal, by comparing it on a trait-by-trait basis to an ideal meat
goat. Meat goats are evaluated based on size, structural correctness, and market
desirability. Market desirability is determined by the level of finish (fatness) based on the
size, weight, and age of the animal. Market desirability for market goats is often referred
to in terms of USDA yield and quality grades used for market lambs.
Traits identified by the AMGA for meat goats differ from those for Boer goats in
purebred competition. Boer goat purebreds have certain characteristics unique to the
breed; those are discussed separately. However, purebred Boer goats judged as meat
goats are evaluated on the AMGA "points" system.
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Evaluation and Selection of Meat Goats
General Appearance
General appearance is an assessment of the meat production capability of the goat, as
well as a measure of the structural correctness required for adaptation to the environment
and breeding. Evaluators look for a well-balanced, deep, wide body. A straight top and
underline are required, as well as discernible muscling and desirable conformation.
Quality meat goats have an adequate length of cannon bone from knee to pastern and are
above average in overall length of body and general size. Cannon bone length is a good
indicator of skeletal size. Height measured at the withers is slightly more than at the hips.
A meat goat has a wide chest floor and prominent brisket with a smooth blending of
shoulder blades and sharp withers.
Long, deeply attached muscles that are relatively thick at the thigh and stifle are desirable
in meat goats. Heavier muscling on the outside of the leg is acceptable. Muscle cover
over the thurl and rump should be obvious.
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Evaluation and Selection of Meat Goats
Head, Neck, and Shoulders
The head of a superior meat goat combines beauty of eyes, nose, ears, and overall form,
with strength and refinement. An ideal head has a balance of length, width, and substance
that insures an ability to consume large amounts of forage.
The muscling on a meat goat should increase from the withers to the point of the shoulder
with the thickest muscle occurring immediately above the chest floor. The circumference
of the forearm is the second most important indicator of meatiness, so it is desirable for
the forearm muscle to exhibit a prominent bulge and tie deeply into the knee.
The neck and shoulders should be free of excess tissue and balanced with the remainder
of the body. The neck should slope gently, indicating muscling, smoothness, and quality.
A long, clean neck with muscling in balance to the remainder of the animal is highly
desirable.
Back and Loin
The loin eye, or ribeye, is the best indicator of meatiness in market goats. The loin of a
quality meat goat is wide with a symmetrically oval shape on each side of the backbone.
The loin muscle must carry forward over the ribs or rack. A straight, strong, wide, and
level back is desirable. This denotes a strong body build with good muscling and is
indicative of strength.
Rump
The ideal rump of a meat goat is long, wide, and level from thurl to thurl, cleanly fleshed,
and has a slight slope from hips to pins. The shape of the rump is important as it
influences the leg set.
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Legs
The front legs of a quality meat goat are straight, perpendicular to the ground, sound in
the knees, and full at the point of the elbow. The legs should move with the front feet
pointing straight ahead. If a meat goat's rear legs are wide apart and straight with clean
hocks (as viewed from the rear), this indicates a good combination of bone refinement
and strength. When observed from the side, a plumb line originating at the pin bone
should fall parallel to the leg bone from hock to pastern and touch the ground behind the
heel of the foot. The resulting angles produced at the hock and stifle joint are ideal for
easy walking and a minimum of joint problems.
Feet
Meat goats need strong pasterns and strong, well-formed feet with tight toes, deep heels,
and level soles. Strong, tidy feet are highly resistant to injury and infection, and easy to
keep trimmed. Goats with uneven toes and extremely weak pasterns should be culled.
SELECTED WEB SITES FOR INFORMATION ON MEAT GOATS
http://agpublications.tamu.edu/pubs/4h/as34060.pdf
http://goats.clemson.edu/NC%20Handbook/breeding.htm
http://jrm.library.arizona.edu/data/1984/374/12warr.pdf
http://marketingoutreach.usda.gov/info/99Manual/goatstandards.htm
http://www.agric.gov.ab.ca/agdex/400/3523001a.html
http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/goats/BOER/
http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/goats/SPANISH/
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http://www.boergoats.com/
ADDRESSES OF MEAT GOAT ASSOCIATIONS
American Meat Goat Association
P. O. Box 333
Junction, Texas 76849
(915) 835-2605, fax (915) 835-2259
http://www.meatgoats.com/
American Boer Goat Association
P. O. Box 248
Whitewright, Texas 75491
Toll free 800-414-0202, fax (903) 965-7229
http://www.abga.org/
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Holly Hutton, Graduate Assistant, Department of Agricultural Education,
Texas A&M University, revised this topic.
Larry Ermis, Curriculum Specialist, Instructional Materials Service,
Texas A&M University, reviewed and edited this topic.
Vickie Marriott, Office Software Associate, Instructional Materials Service,
Texas A&M University, prepared the layout and design for this topic.
Christine Stetter, Artist, Instructional Materials Service,
Texas A&M University, prepared the illustrations for this topic.
REFERENCES
Breeds of Goats. Color slide set with script (catalog number 5023). Instructional
Materials Service,
Texas A&M University: College Station, Texas.
Craddock, Frank and Ross Stulz. 4-H Meat Goat Guide. Texas Agricultural Extension
Service, Texas
A&M University: College Station, Texas.
Martinez, Edmundo, Joe Paschal, Frank Craddock, and Wayne Hanselka. Selection,
Management, and
Judging of Meat-Type Spanish Goats. Publication B-5018, Texas Agricultural Extension
Service,
Texas A&M University: College Station, Texas.
Meat Goat Standards. American Meat Goat Association: Junction, Texas.
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USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. Agricultural Research Service:
Washington, D.C.
Available: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/cgi-bin/list_nut.pl (August, 2002)
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Buck – A male goat.
Chevon – Goat meat.
Cow-hocked – A structural conformation fault in which an animal’s hind legs are close at
the hocks and the hooves are toed-out.
Doe – A female goat.
Fecundity – Reproductive productivity.
Indigenous – A native or local breed or species.
Kidding – In goat production, the process of giving birth.
Kid – Young goat.
Libido – The behavioral drive associated with the desire to mate; sex drive.
Plumb line – A line used to determine verticality, a straight vertical line.
Polled – Naturally or genetically hornless.
Post-legged – A structural conformation fault in which an animal’s hind legs are set too
far to the rear, thus making the legs too straight, as viewed from the side.
Reproductive rate – The number of offspring per female per gestation, usually expressed
as a percentage.
Thurl – The hip joint.
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