In my opinion it is a personal choice as a breeder whether you want to have the 100% certainty if the pygmy goat you purchase-breed is in fact by the progeny stipulated on the registration papers.
At Lals Haven Goat Stud we pride ourselves in having all our goats DNA approved-verified. If you buy a pygmy goat from our farm it will possess registration and DNA papers.
Your prized pygmy’s % ( percentage) stipulated on the certificate will be 100% true.
Fully verified- or verified means this animal has full DNA certification of its lineage-parentage on the family tree-registration papers. We can confirm this goat is by the parentage stipulated on the registration certificate. This pygmy goat and his lineage-breeding all have DNA numbers on file.
Approved means the DNA certification has been completed for this single animal alone. A hair sample has been sent to the lab and tested. Now having its own DNA number. Therefore all its progeny moving forwards can be checked off by this DNA hair sample on file. A copy of a DNA certificate is shown above.
Not all of this particular animals parentage-family tree ( breeding ) has been be found or sourced – to have a DNA hair sample number therefore it cannot be” fully verified “. I have been unsuccessful on a few occasions obtaining hair samples from some of our goats family tree – either deceased or not able to get hold of the new owners or people do not think DNA is necessary.
Do not let this deter you if you are passionate about DNA
If you are wanting to have the 100% confirmation of what your breeding papers say. You can start your own trace of your herd from the moment you start breeding. I have and it is great fun and feels fabulous knowing 100% what I am breeding is by the buck and doe mentioned on the registration papers.
Bucks and does are relative to DNA hair sampling. To work out how much % percentage your kid will have when it is born. You simply add the two % together and half it.
eg- Buck 50% pygmy – Doe 50% pygmy = 100% therefore the kid will be 50% pygmy
The question is will it be 50% verified or approved when you send in the DNA ?
It is a very exciting process – establishing your own records with DNA verification. You are in this for the long haul so you may as well give it your all. I have purchased animals and through this DNA sampling found out they are in fact not by the parents on the registration papers.
That does not matter – I have decided that from here on I can only do what I can moving forward. I love all the goats we have purchased – they all belong here and we have a plan for them to produce what we like to see in a pygmy goat.
Remember – first and foremost you must love what you are doing – and producing. It does not matter if somebody else thinks your pygmy goat is to tall – to short – to long – wrong colour – long nose – ears to low, I can go on and on.
Most importantly it matters that you adore the look of what you produce. And I will say it again – In my opinion it is a personal choice as a breeder whether you want to have the 100% certainty if the pygmy goat you purchase-breed is in fact by the progeny stipulated on the registration papers.
At Lals Haven Goat Stud we choose our stock by what we like to see – colour & type. Sure percentages are important to us. We are striving for our all our herd to be fully DNA verified. For now we have a mixture of both so make sure you enjoy the journey and make the most of loving your gorgeous goats-we sure do !
Review from a happy buyer-
Trish was wonderful to deal with. Very knowledgeable and has been a wonderful support while I’m new to goats. Her goats are beautiful and well cared for. I love my new small herd and will be adding more of Lals haven goats to my herd next year.