# Oh, craigslist...



## Ferguson K (Feb 3, 2016)

In just want to know how they know he's going to throw "100% blue eyes no matter what! " 





He's a yearling.... 




Everything about this post if you read or over and over. .


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## frustratedearthmother (Feb 3, 2016)

* http://nigeriandwarfgoats.ning.com/forum/topics/dominant-traits-in-ndg*

*I can't take credit for this information - I copied it from the abovementioned website but I think it explains it pretty well: *

"I thinks sometimes we throw around the word "dominant" in a non-technical way when we really mean that something is pervasive ... like buckskin or white. It seems like you get those two a lot if they happen to be in a goat's genes. However, a dominant trait is actually one that will be expressed if a goat has it. Recessive is a gene that a goat may have, even though you don't see it.
Blue eyes and polled are dominant genes because if a goat has one of those genes, it will be expressed. In other words, if a goat has a blue-eyed gene, it will be blue eyed. So, if you ever see an ad for a brown-eyed goat that "carries blue eyes," that person is either misinformed or dishonest. Blue eyes are dominant over brown eyes. The polled gene is dominant over the horned gene.
The reason you don't get 100% blue eyes or polled is because each parent contributes a gene. A blue-eyed goat has a gene for blue eyes and a gene for brown eyes if it had a blue-eyed and a brown-eyed parent. If it is bred to a brown-eyed goat, that goat has two genes for brown eyes, so with each parent contributing one gene, the brown-eyed goat can only contribute a brown-eyed gene, and the blue-eyed goat has a 50/50 chance of contributing a blue or brown gene because it has one of each, so you have a 50% chance of blue eyes.
It is possible to have a blue-eyed goat with two blue-eyed genes IF it had two blue-eyed parents AND IF it got the blue-eyed gene from each parent. In that case, it can only throw blue-eyed kids, but if bred to a brown-eyed goat, the kids would still have one blue and one brown gene. You don't know if you have a homozygous blue-eyed goat, however, until it has thrown ten blue-eyed kids.
As for colors, I mostly ignore them because they give you nothing in the milk bucket or the show ring, and I like them all. However, off the top of my head, I can tell you that I have a black buck that came from a chocolate dam and a red sire, and he throws a lot of buckskins, so it's probably recessive, but the whole dominant/recessive thing can get complicated once you get beyond the "simple" traits."


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## Ferguson K (Feb 3, 2016)

My light buckskin doe came from a champagne doe and red buck. Her sister was a painted dark buckskin with blue eyes.

Neither parent had blue eyes. Aelia has green eyes.

So the only throws blue eyes thing, to me, is just a gimmick to sell the buck. I want to see udders, not color. Blue eyes are just a different look. They don't produce the milk.


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## animalmom (Feb 3, 2016)

I agree with @Ferguson K, can't milk those blue eyes!  Would I like some blue eyes in my herd, sure, but blue eyes don't make the meat taste better or the doe milk better, so I'm sticking with what works for me.


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## Ferguson K (Feb 3, 2016)

At least he's cheap and they aren't up charging him because of his blue eyes.


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## Southern by choice (Feb 3, 2016)

I like brown eyes  I am a sucker for them... on people and animals. 

I have a buck that is blue eyes- he has produced at this point 90% blue eyes offspring.
This year I bred a different blue eyed buck to a blue eyed doe... and the same buck to a brown eyed doe... all kids from both groups total 7 kids... only 2 blue eyes.

this buck was horned both does polled... we thought 3 were polled... nope EVERYONE horned.

We have not ever had 50/50 on polled genetics. more like 75% horned 25% polled (average).

I don't care either way for eye color or polled BUT clients do... 
If they can have a choice between two great milkers and one with blue eyes and one with brown they will take blue every time.


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## Ferguson K (Feb 3, 2016)

I can't wait to see if anyone is hiding recessive polled in my bloodlines this year. It'll be exciting to see.

Aelia carried the blue eyed gene. Maybe whomever bred her ( I think Duli ) will have hidden polled genes. 

I doubt I'm that lucky.

I just don't get how they can say with a solid heart that he will throw 100% blue. What will happen when kids start hitting the ground out of him and the seller gets a called from a very angry buyer? I wouldn't want to put my farm name on odds like that. Be more realistic... Blue eyes have a HIGHER chance of throwing blue eyes. If that's what you want, buy it, but don't tell people false information.

:shrug maybe they don't know either.


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## Southern by choice (Feb 3, 2016)

Ferguson K said:


> I can't wait to see if anyone is hiding recessive polled in my bloodlines this year. It'll be exciting to see.



You will need one polled. If both are horned then they will be horned... at least it is my understanding.. this is a good chart
http://www.americangoatsociety.com/education/polled_genetics.php


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## Ferguson K (Feb 3, 2016)

Oh no I know. 

I was just saying what IF someone has genes hiding. Chances are so slim its ridiculous.


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## Mini Horses (Feb 3, 2016)

Well, with horses, some traits are dominant.   Goats, I really don't know that much and REALLY don't care.   I think I buy what I see but, look to genetics for such things as milking traits, their conformation, etc.  Their color is just icing on the cake.

Most buyers look for "eye appeal" that they like.  Most breeders look to genetics for what they want == be it milk or meat production.   Most sellers look for what a "buyer" wants to buy.


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## Southern by choice (Feb 3, 2016)

I don't know- I like all the right stuff but I like eye candy too.
I have a friend that has black goats unfortunately that black is all her goats seem to produce... kinda boring really. 
I don't want a whole herd of black goats or white goats so if a goat is pretty like you said it is icing on the cake. 
2 goats that are the same- but one is flashy and one is boring... I'd go with the flash too.


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## Ferguson K (Feb 3, 2016)

Southern by choice said:


> I don't know- I like all the right stuff but I like eye candy too.
> I have a friend that has black goats unfortunately that black is all her goats seem to produce... kinda boring really.
> I don't want a whole herd of black goats or white goats so if a goat is pretty like you said it is icing on the cake.
> 2 goats that are the same- but one is flashy and one is boring... I'd go with the flash too.



I can agree with you on this. 

My main point here is that they're selling a goat as a producer of 100% blue eyed offspring. At a year old the odds of him having offspring on the ground is slim, but not unaccomplished. 

My goats are all different colors. I like that. 

My Boer's always looked alike. Very few variances. When Prudence came along and was a red, I got excited.

Don't get me wrong here..  I'd LOVE some moon spots or paints. I'm happy with my greys and champagnes... But variety would be nice.


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## babsbag (Feb 3, 2016)

If that little buckling is only a year old and he has kids on the ground then he was serving does at 7 months of age. While that is certainly possible highly unlikely that he has enough kids on the ground to know that he only throws blues eyes. However IF he came from an homozygous blue eyed sire AND dam I do believe that he would only throw blue eyes. Possible, but not probable.

@Southern by choice , are you saying that your blue eyed buck bred to a blue eyed doe did not give you all blue eyed kids?  They should have been. 

I have a polled doe and out of 5 kids only one has been polled. Her polled daughter has given me three polled kids out of 10 kids, and two of those are 0 for 2. I am hoping that I get some polled does this year but the odds are not in my favor. Since most people won't ever breed polled to polled I think it is harder to see that gene thrown consistently.


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## Southern by choice (Feb 3, 2016)

yep and the only buck the two does were with


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## babsbag (Feb 4, 2016)

@Southern by choice That breaks all of the rules of genetics and dominant genes. So is the buck wearing blue contacts or the doe? 

Seriously though, I just looked it up and you can get brown eyes from two blue eyed parents if they aren't homozygous so I guess that explains it. However if you have two brown eyed goats (or humans) you will never get blue.


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## Mini Horses (Feb 4, 2016)

I LOVE EYE CANDY, TOO.

The wonderful variety of color in goats (some) is exciting.   Given the choice of two genetically equal, I'd go with color I liked.   I have Saanen doe who has given me 3 white does, upright ears, from a very black Nubian buck.   Now these are beautiful does!!  The body is better than mom's....both lines had outstanding milk backgrounds.  The buck has consistently given me kids of great body on his kids regardless of doe being less than streamlined.   THAT is what I wanted.   Let's face it, some mini-nubs show more of the slightly bulkier look of the nigies.

The Saanen cross does will be considered for keeping for milkers.   I am not "loving" all white herd but these are beautiful does.   The twins may be sold, once milking....because I don't need this many to milk.

The buck was purchased because of the lovely kids he throws.   He is 4gen mini  (but not small) and except for the Saanen, has always given be dropped ears on even the "flying nun" ears of the lower gen mini nubs.  If I could change anything on the buck, only his 4 gen to a 5 or 6.  LOL...obviously can't.   So I am good with him anyway.   But, in his case he was not looked at for his own color --- I saw his kids from a couple yrs, owner posted she "may" sell and I jumped on it!!


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## samssimonsays (Feb 4, 2016)

Eye candy   LOL babsbag, I had similar frustrations with the animals I bred. They never seem to follow the rules...


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