Udders- Good/Bad/Ugly/Improved UPDATED! 3/12/18

[TAH]

Very good thread... Now I'm just dieing to get moved and settled to get goats again (not getting kikos)!

 

[Bayleaf Meadows]

@Southern by choice - I haven't gotten any photos of Zaph's udder yet, but she will not be a milker this year. I am going to dry off the rest of the herd soon and she will be only nursing her kids. We're planning to be away in late January so we don't want to have to have someone milking any of the goats then. She has a nice udder, high and tight, and just ok capacity. My experience may be different from many. I don't pull kids, I haven't shown or milk test. I'm a relaxed, once a day milker for my own use and the pleasure of being around goats.

 

[OneFineAcre]

I can tell you that Zamia wasn't full in that pic.

Clarabelle ended up placing first in that group, Taffy 2nd, Zamia 3rd and Rosie 4th.

I wouldn't change to much about Zamia or Clarabelle. Both Rosie and Taffy's teats could be a little better placed, but not to bad, I've seen worse. All have good sized teats that hand milk easy.

 

[Hens and Roos]

Ok, so when you look at her udder- even though she doesn't have much fill right now what do you see?
What do you like?
What do you think needs improvement?

Looking at the picture:
She might have a bit more capacity in her udder if we could separate her from her kids over night.
Her medial suspensory ligament could be better/stronger-
She seems narrow rear udder arch
She does pretty well kidding but her rump width could be wider- the single buck she had in 2016 was a harder delivery for her
To be extremely honest- I don't really care for her udder-the small teats make it hard to hand milk. We have used a hand milker on her and that works okay.

so improvement wise- better sized teats(diameter) for easy hand milking, a stronger medial suspensory ligament, higher rear udder arch and rear udder height

What I do like about her is she does a very good job of raising healthy kids- has produced enough milk to handle triplets, hardy as far as us not having to treat her for parasites all the time(only treated 2 times since we have had her).

Any feedback is appreciated

 

[Southern by choice]

Keep in mind - starting this thread was to look at udders, and discuss what we like, what we don't , what we would change etc.
Actually @Bayleaf Meadows you are exactly what the majority of goat owners are-

I don't pull kids, I haven't shown or milk test. I'm a relaxed, once a day milker for my own use and the pleasure of being around goats.

Regular udder shots when just brought up for milking are better for the purpose of this thread.
That is what the majority of the people here on BYH have.

Similar to what the video @Bayleaf Meadows put up- none of the goats are in show fills, just goats coming up for milking.

The majority of people here are not doing LA, Milktest, or showing. We have all kinds of FB groups for that- this is just for BYH that want to do some better things with their goats. I actually find more people get discouraged by seeing a bunch of great udder shots, what most don't realize is unless you have been breeding for forever and have had whole herd consistency for 15-20 years there are a whole lot of not so great udders... those udders are never showcased. These are the goats sold to BYH and homesteaders... they are perfectly good goats but may not meet the criteria to stay in the herd. Those same goats however can generally be improved, so they can be excellent starter goats.

For us we are small, there are goats that may not be stellar but still worth me breeding up. Makes me a better breeder, I learn a lot more.
I am sure we will learn a whole lot during LA. It will be a great tool for us. I can't do this for every doe- having a few brood does is one thing but I don't want a whole herd.

I am working on putting folders together so I can post pics with more ease.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Looking at the picture:
She might have a bit more capacity in her udder if we could separate her from her kids over night.
Her medial suspensory ligament could be better/stronger-
She seems narrow rear udder arch
She does pretty well kidding but her rump width could be wider- the single buck she had in 2016 was a harder delivery for her
To be extremely honest- I don't really care for her udder-the small teats make it hard to hand milk. We have used a hand milker on her and that works okay.

so improvement wise- better sized teats(diameter) for easy hand milking, a stronger medial suspensory ligament, higher rear udder arch and rear udder height

What I do like about her is she does a very good job of raising healthy kids- has produced enough milk to handle triplets, hardy as far as us not having to treat her for parasites all the time(only treated 2 times since we have had her).

Any feedback is appreciated

I do like how the distance between the vulva and top of esctcheon is very close!
I agree with your assessment, it does look like her lateral attachments need improvement.
She has lots of positive qualities, it will be exciting to see how the bucks improve with her daughters.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I will put up one pic-
Everyone should play
Do you see the nice 1/3,1/3,1/3?
What can you see about this udder?
What can't you see about this udder?
This is overnight- taken just before milking. NOT a full udder

 

[Green Acres Farm]

I will put up one pic-
Everyone should play
Do you see the nice 1/3,1/3,1/3?
What can you see about this udder?
What can't you see about this udder?
This is overnight- taken just before milking. NOT a full udder

Which one is that?

IMO...

I love her plumb teats. It looks to me like she could use more rear udder height, but it might be lower because she's not full. I don't see a pocket in her foreudder in this angle of the photo, but she could maybe use more foreudder extension if I'm being picky. I'd love to see a rear udder pic!

 

[Southern by choice]

Which one is that?

IMO...

I love her plumb teats. It looks to me like she could use more rear udder height, but it might be lower because she's not full. I don't see a pocket in her foreudder in this angle of the photo, but she could maybe use more foreudder extension if I'm being picky. I'd love to see a rear udder pic!

(I will put up one pic-
Everyone should play
Do you see the nice 1/3,1/3,1/3?
What can you see about this udder?
What can't you see about this udder?
This is overnight- taken just before milking. NOT a full udder)

Thanks @Green Acres Farm
I like your assessment
The rear udder pics will follow... what I was hoping to show is from a side udder shot you can only see so much.
This is a close up which most pics are not... so you even see less.

You are spot on with the fact she is NOT uddered up... something I think is important when looking at udders
What you can see:
the third third third
teat length
teat size
some of the foreudder

What you cannot see:
teat placement- are they close to the leg? centered?
teat shape- (do they flare out) from side view you cannot see this
full shape of foreudder- is there a split?
rear udder attachment, medial, capacity, lateral attachments (side attachment)


LOL I used "paint" to show some observations-
See the yellow circle? There is a shadow there- what does that mean? Is it just she is not uddered up? Is the udder too far forward?
If she were really full would you expect it to look like the red outline? Also if really full would the teats point more downward rather than forward?

I think this can be a really good and fun thread for everyone!
Most goats are being milked for family use and will never do more than be a family pet and milker... these goats I love!
But when thinking about the pet/family milker they still need to be bred and produce kids in order to milk so why not try and do some things that will help improve the offspring?
Some kids will be kept as replacement does, some will be sold... improving each generation can make a big difference.
When you don't have good rear legs, or too narrow or "pinched" escutcheon this affects the udder placement, the attachments and overall the longevity of the goat as far as being a milker. The udder will break down much faster. Some goats are basically done by 5 years old their udder is such a mess. For the homesteader, that can be costly. Bad orifices are also a nightmare.

Anyone following that needs clarification n terms please speak up.
I think the paint diagrams are helpful, I will keep doing them if you all like... let me know.

I will put some rear pics up soon.

I also thing knowing "the rest of the story " behind this goat is important. That is the "whole goat" picture that I personally like to look at.

 

[Green Acres Farm]

This is my Saanen, 2F and a few months into her lactation.

I love her medial and teat placement (although you might say they are too close as they touch during some stages of her lactation/fill). She could use a wider rear udder arch. Definitely could use more capacity and her udder doesn't milk down as much as I'd like. I'd like a higher rear udder, but I wouldn't say it is super low. The buck's dam we bred her to scored a 44 in rear udder height, so hopefully he will improve that. Overall, I'd say it's a nice udder.

Other critiques are welcome!

 

[Southern by choice]

How long of a fill?
Can I draw on this?

 

[Green Acres Farm]

How long of a fill?
Can I draw on this?

12 hr.
Of course!