Breed Standards of the Boergoat

The following are the breed standards as drawn up and accepted by the Boer Breeders’ Association of South Africa. The aim of the breeding standards are to improve the race and to increase the economy value.

Conformation

Head:

Characteristic cull defects: Concave forehead, horns too straight or too flat, pointed jaw, ears folded (lengthwise), stiff protruding ears, too short ears, too long lower jaws, short bottom jaw and blue eyes.

 

Neck & Forequarters

Characteristic cull defects:
Too long, thin neck, too short neck, shoulders too loose.

 

Barrel

Characteristic cull defects:
Back to concave, too slabsided, too cylindrical or pinched behind the shoulder.

 

Hindquarters

Characteristic cull defects:
A rump that hangs too much or is too short. A too long shank or flat buttocks.

 

Legs

Characteristic cull defects:
Knock knees, bandy legs, “koeisekel of regophak”. Legs too thin or too fleshy. Weak pasterns and hoofs pointing outwards or inwards.

 

Skin and Coverings

Characteristic cull defects:
Covering too long and coarse or too furry.

 

Sexual Organs

Ewes: Well-formed udder firmly attached with no more than two functional teats on a side. Permissible defects:

Rams: Two reasonably large, well formed, healthy and equal sized testes in one scrotum. A scrotum with no larger split than 5 cm is permissible. The scrotum must be at least 25 cm in circumference.

Characteristic cull defects:
Bunched, calabash or double teats. Too small testes, a scrotum with more than a 5 cm split.

 

Quality

This is achieved with short glossy hair and a fine lustre.

 

Size

Characteristic cull defects:
Goats too large or too small (pony).

 

Colouring

The ideal is a white goat with a red head and ears, and fully pigmented. The blaze must be evident. Shadings between light red and dark red are permissible. The minimum requirement for a stud animal is a patch of at least 10 cm in diameter on both sides of the head, ears excluded. Both ears should have at least 75 % red colouring and the same percentage pigmentation.

The following is permissible for stud purposes:

 

Explanation of Breed Standards

In applying standards, there are many aspects which cannot be fully defined. In such cases the inspector or judge must use his discretion. In spite of the breed standards being clear and to the point, it is never the less necessary to supply additional information in respect of certain descriptions.

The major part of the body of the goat must be white to make it conspicuous and to facilitate the rounding up of goats in dense terrain. A pigmented skin on the hairless parts, e.g. under the tail, round the eyelids and mouth etc., is absolutely essential, because it offers resistance to sunburn which may result in cancer.

A pigmented skin is also more resistant to skin disease. A loose, supple skin is essential for adaptability to climatic conditions. In South Africa, which is a warm and sunny country, an animals with a loose skin and short hair is better adapted. In addition a skin of this kind provides additional resistance to external parasites.

 

General Appearance & Type

In appearance it is a goat with a fine head, round horns bent backwards, a loose, supple and pleated skin (especially in rams) with different body parts well fleshed in perfect balance. The ewe must be feminine, wedging slightly to the front, which is a sign of fertility.

The ram, never the less, appears heavier in the head, neck and forequarters. The upgraded Boer goat is an animal with symmetry, with a strong, vigorous appearance and enough quality. In the ewe there is strong emphasis on femininity; in the ram one of masculinity.

 

Fertility

Shows: An ewe must have lambed at six tooth age already or must visibly be with young or she will be culled. Auctions: six tooth and older ewes must visibly be with young or be certified in writing as pregnant by a veterinary surgeon or the ewe will be culled. Certificate to be handed in during inspection.