Introduction
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While goats were transported to Australia in 1788 with the First Fleet to be used as a source of meat, milk and fibre in the new colony, goats may have arrived in Australia even earlier as survivors of shipwrecks or deliberately released from visiting ships as a future food source. Regardless of which were the earliest arrivals, and whether deliberately released or escaped, some of these goats survived, became feral, and adapted to the Australian environment, becoming the foundation stock for what is now known as the Australian Bush Goat. Australian Bush Goats are widely distributed throughout Australia and today are predominantly found in the scrublands of Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia. Australian Bush Goats come in a variety of different colours and colour combinations. Their coats vary from short to long and flowing, and from thin to thick and woolly in texture. Their growth and breeding rate depend on environmental conditions. Animals with sufficient food supply and a suitable environment can grow much larger than others living in harsher more arid areas. Many people over the years have captured Bush Goats for a variety of reasons and some have bred these goats and domesticated their offspring. Australian Miniature Goats are direct descendants of the Australian Bush Goats. In 2003 a group of Australian Bush Goat enthusiasts joined together to form the Australian Miniature Goat Association (AMGA) to set height standards for Miniature Goats and to promote them as a ‘designer pet breed’ to the broader public. Since 2003 there have been many people involved in continuing to breed and improve the quality of the Australian Bush Goat, both in the AMGA and in other groups that have formed since. Some breeders have crossed Australian Bush Goats with smaller domestic goats such as Cashmeres, and others have crossed them with larger breeds such as Boers and Anglo Nubians in order to introduce some of the characteristics of these breeds into their miniature stock. The hard work and dedication of many breeders past and present have created the diverse breed known today as the Australian Miniature Goat. Breed standard General appearance (style & quality): Refinement and femininity in Does, boldness and masculinity in Bucks. Temperament: Friendly, curious, intelligent, alert and cooperative especially when showing. Head (eyes, ears, mouth): Profile can be straight, slightly dished or curved ‒ as long as the muzzle and nose are symmetrical. Polled or neatly disbudded for showing. Ideally the teeth should fit snugly against the dental pad, but they may extend beyond, provided it is not to the extent that they are visible. All ear types accepted (excluding those that define other recognised breeds such as Elf and Miniature Anglo Nubian), but should be even in shape, size and position on the head. Eyes should be medium round, not bug eyed, and set wide apart. Neck: Strong, moderate length, in proportion to the body. Blending smoothly into the shoulders and chest. Masculine in males. Wattles and absence of wattles are both acceptable. Backline: Back should be straight and level. A small dip behind the shoulders is acceptable. Forequarters: Withers blending firmly into shoulders, not pinched. Chest medium width and blending smoothly into the shoulders and body. Body (barrel): Medium to long, increasing evenly in width from heart girth to rear barrel. Well sprung ribs. Brisket moderately prominent with low chest floor. Hindquarters: Rump rounded and slightly sloped but not too steep. Good length between pin and hip. Well-muscled in proportion to size. Tail straight. Legs: Strong and straight. set squarely to the body. Short to medium length with no inclination to cow hocks or weak pasterns. Feet: Proportionate in size to bone structure, neat, even, level bearing. Udder: Showing a good attachment and preferably no pocket (but a pocket is acceptable). Soft and pliable with clearly defined and evenly sized teats. Slight division in udder allowed. No extra teats or sprigs allowed when showing. Testicles: Well developed, evenly balanced, not divided, carrying two testes. Rudimentary teats: Two, set wide apart and slightly to the fore each side of the scrotum, evenly sized but not overdeveloped. Coat: Can range from short to long and have a variety of textures. When exhibited all goats should look presentable with a neat, tidy and healthy-looking coat. Colour: Any colour or combination of colours. May be plain (all one colour), broken coloured or mottled. Skin can be any colour. Pink skin is not desirable but is acceptable. Size (height at withers): Ideal heights for Does ‒ up to 58cm, and for Bucks ‒ up to 60cm. (AABMGS Maximum Height Guidelines are just that – a guide for the information of breeders.) Faults: Fine bone. Roach back or sway back. Weak or narrow chest. Unduly divided and uneven udders. Cow hocks. Dropped pasterns. Poor feet. Splayed feet. Visible teeth. Lack of masculinity in bucks. Disqualifications: Wry face. Divided or uneven scrotum. Undescended testicles or one testicle only. Supernumerary teats. Double teats. Double orifices. Intersex. Nasty temperament. Destructive behaviour. Height exceeding the maximum. |
Kidunot Happy , Miniature Doe
Permission Amy Eatts
Buccanwood Persephone and dam Buccanwood Maya. Photo by Claire Pearson
Scapegoat oreo (perimisson from Ashley-Erin Colin-James Parker-Manderson
Wataview Myfawny
owned by Lyndell Bentley
Mya-Ora Prim-Rose (Pikamini Grover – Mya-Ora Darling Clementine). Pippinwood Stud. Photo by Bernard Grace
Buccanwood Miss Dior Generation 3 doe 53cm at 3 years (Owned by Buccanwood Stud)
Craiglea Baloo Generation 2 Miniature buck (Permission Buccanwood Stud )
Clareth House Petti
Aussie Mini doe helping build a little shelter.
(perimisson from Ashley-Erin Colin-James Parker-Manderson
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Show height limits
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For Show purposes there are enforced height limits. Most animals exhibited at Shows are well under the Show height limit but the Steward will measure any that appear too tall.
Australian Miniature Goat height limits are reviewed on a yearly basis to take account of progress in the development of the breed. Below are the height limits as updated at the 27/08/2018 AABMGS General Meeting.
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Checking the height of an Australian Miniature Goat at a Show. Photo by Bernard Grace
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The AABMGS recognises the Australian Miniature Goat as a breed still in development. We apply the following grading rules aimed at facilitating that development process.
Grading rules
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Breeders are encouraged to continue to develop Australian Miniature Goats with no imported (Pygmy or Nigerian Dwarf) influence, but a limited percentage of imported bloodlines is allowed, depending on the generation number as outlined below. An estimate of an animal’s percentage of imported bloodlines will be recorded on its registration certificate.
Foundation Any goat (preferably small), of any background may be recorded as a Foundation animal provided it has no more than a 25% combined total of Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf bloodlines (based on pedigree). A goat with an unknown parent must be recorded as Foundation. Generation 1 A goat with one registered Australian Miniature Goat parent (Gen 1 to Purebred) and one recorded Foundation parent, or two recorded Foundation parents. Maximum combined pedigree contribution of Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf bloodlines: 12.5%. Maximum Height Guideline: Does up to 63.5cm, bucks up to 65.5cm. Generation 2 A goat with both parents registered no lower than Generation 1. Maximum combined pedigree contribution of Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf bloodlines: 6.25%. Maximum Height Guideline: Does up to 63.5cm, bucks up to 65.5cm. Generation 3 A goat with both parents registered no lower than Generation 2. Maximum combined pedigree contribution of Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf bloodlines: 3.125%. Maximum Height Guideline: Does up to 61.5cm, bucks up to 63.5cm. Generation 4 A goat with both parents registered no lower than Generation 3. Maximum combined pedigree contribution of Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf bloodlines: 3.125%. Maximum Height Guideline: Does up to 60cm, bucks up to 61.5cm. Generation 5 A goat with both parents registered no lower than Generation 4. Maximum combined pedigree contribution of Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf bloodlines: 3.125%. Maximum Height Guideline: Does up to 59cm, bucks up to 61cm. Purebred (Generation 6) A goat with both parents registered no lower than Generation 5 Maximum combined pedigree contribution of Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf bloodlines: 3.125%. Maximum Height Guideline: Does up to 58cm, bucks up to 60cm. Calculation of Generation number If the two parents have the same Generation number, the Generation number of the offspring is one higher. That is, the offspring of two Gen 1 parents is a Gen 2. If parents have differing Generation numbers, the offspring’s Generation number is one higher than that of the parent with the lower Generation number. So, for example, the offspring of a Gen 5 animal and a Gen 1 animal will be Gen 2. Percentage of imported bloodlines and its impact on grading The percentage of imported bloodlines of an animal is estimated as the average of the percentage of imported bloodlines of its parents. For example, the offspring of a Gen 1 animal with 12.5% imported bloodlines and a Gen 3 animal with 0% imported bloodlines is estimated to have (12.5 + 0)/2 = 6.25% imported bloodlines. This percentage is equal to the maximum imported bloodlines allowed for Gen 2 so the grading of the offspring as Gen 2 is unaffected. However, the offspring of two Gen 2 animals with 6.25% imported bloodlines (which would normally be graded Gen 3 based on the Generation numbers of its parents) is estimated to have an imported bloodlines percentage of (6.25 + 6.25)/2 = 6.25% which exceeds the 3.125% figure allowed for Gen 3, so in this case the offspring must be graded as Gen 2 (the closest grade to Gen 3 that allows a percentage of 6.25%). Over height rules In the AABMGS Generation grading system the grading of an animal will not be affected by the height of a deceased, sold or unlocatable parent not being submitted, nor of a parent or more distant ancestor going over the Height Guideline for its Generation number. AABMGS Maximum Height Guidelines are just that – a guide for the information of breeders. |
A. Ch. Dundula Wendell (Dundula Roja - Dundula Ebony). Photo by Gracie Bilson
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