Accurate evaluation of the breeding or market value of livestock and livestock products is essential to the economic success of any livestock or meat industry enterprise. In market animal evaluation, the feeder must be flexible in his preference of feeder types and be willing to change with the market or feeding situation demands. He must be able to recognize an animal's performance potential and select those feeders which will be most efficient and profitable for the given situation. The feeder, as well as the livestock buyer, must also be able to determine the value of the slaughter animal. This involves a knowledge of the animal's weight, body composition and estimated carcass quality, plus an understanding of the market conditions and trends.

The animal breeder must make decisions as to which animals are to be kept or culled from the herd or flock and which animals should be chosen as replacements. The breeder must be able to combine "eyeball" or subjective evaluation with the more objective methods of evaluation (performance testing, production records, linear measurements, determinants of body composition, etc.) to determine which seedstock should be incorporated into the selection program.

There are well-defined and widely used grade standards for cattle, swine, and sheep in use today. These grades provide a "common language" between producers, marketers and end users to facilitate the transition of ownership from the farm, to the market, to the consumer. The understanding of grade standards by all parties and the accurate application of these grades provide the foundation to livestock marketing in the United States. Currently, the meat goat industry in United States does not have an established and understandable description to relate live goats to slaughter value. An important step in the process of establishing and maintaining a viable meat goat industry is the development and implementation of uniform standards that will accurately describe a live slaughter goat and correlate this description to a predictable type of carcass.

A complete understanding of the factors that affect carcass quality and yield grade is essential to every producer, feeder, buyer and consumer of livestock and meat. Producers, feeders and buyers must become proficient at visual or subjective evaluation, yet continue to incorporate objective tools and aids into their selection programs to improve the accuracy of their evaluations.

Live Evaluation of Market Goats

There are several characteristics that we should look when evaluation a live goat for slaughter purposes. These include conformation, general appearance, muscling and condition. These evaluation criteria are taken from Texas Agricultural Extension Service Publication No. B-5018.

Conformation

Meat goats should be evaluated on "type" and "market desirability." These terms refer to frame size, skeletal correctness and how these blend in the market animal. "Market desirability" relates how much finish the goat has in relation to its weight, size and age and is sometimes referred to in terms of USDA quality and yield grades used for lambs.

A good market goat should be rectangular in appearance from the side with straight, level top and bottom lines. Length of rump, length of body and length of leg are important to market desirability. The rump should be level and the overall body should be trim. The legs should be straight and placed square under the body, not post-legged or cow-hocked. The fore and hind legs should show evidence of muscling.

From the front, a market goat should show width between the forelegs, muscling in the forearm and shoulders, trimness in the brisket or breast area and soundness and correctness in the front feet and legs. The head should be in proportion to the neck and body.

From the rear, the hindquarter should be muscular and long and the back, loin and rump should be uniform in width. The feet and legs should be straight and spaced square and wide under the goat.

Stature: The term stature refers to the overall skeletal size and length of the goat. Goats must have an adequate length of cannon bone from knee to pastern and should be above average in overall length of body and general size. Cannon bone length is a good indication of skeletal size. The goat's height measured at the withers should be slightly more than at the hips, and bones must be of good size.

Head: The head should combine the beauty of eyes, nose, ears, and overall form with strength and refinement. It should have a balance of length, width and substance that insures an ability to consume large amounts of forage with ease.

Front End: The front end is a combination of chest and shoulder features. The goat should have a wide chest floor and prominent brisket with a smooth blending of shoulder blades and sharp withers. This insures room for the heart and lungs to do their work with ease and also is evidence of proper muscle and ligament strength.

Front Legs: The goat's front legs should be straight, perpendicular to the ground, sound in the knees and full at the pint of the elbow. The legs should move with the front feet pointing straight ahead.

Back: A back that is straight, strong, wide, long and level is desired in goats. This denotes a strong body build with good muscling and is indicative of strength to carry large quantities of feed.

Rump: The goat's rump should be long, wide and level from thurl to thurl, cleanly fleshed and have a slight slope from hips to pins. The shape of the rump is important as it affects leg set.

Hind Legs: The goat's rear legs should be wide apart and straight when viewed from the rear, with clean hocks and a good combination of bone refinement and strength. Observed from the side, a plumb line originating at the pin bone would fall parallel to the leg bone from hock to pastern and touch the ground behind the heel of the foot. The resulting angles produced at the hock and stifle joint will be most ideal for easy walking and a minimum of joint problems.

Feet: Meat goats need strong pasterns and strong, well-formed feet with tight toes, deep heel and level sole. Such feet are highly resistant to injury or infection and easy to keep trimmed. Goats with uneven toes and extremely weak pasterns should be culled.

Muscling

Meat characteristics can be visually determined by examining the animal hindquarters loin, shoulders and neck.

Hind Quarters: A long, deeply attached muscle, relatively thick at the thigh and stifle is desirable in meat goats. Heavier muscling on the outside of the leg is acceptable. Muscle over the thurl and rump should be obvious.

Loin: The loin eye or ribeye is typically the best indicator of meatiness in market goats. It should be wide with a symmetrically oval shape on each side of the backbone. This musc1e should carry forward over the ribs or rack.

Shoulders: The goat's muscling should increase from the withers to the point of the shoulder with the thickest muscle occurring immediately above the chest floor. The circumference of the forearm is the second most important indicator of meatiness, so the forearm muscle should exhibit a prominent bulge and should tie in deep into the knee.

Neck: The juncture of the neck and shoulder should be free of excess tissue. It should gently slope to indicate muscling. Smoothness and quality are important in this area. A long clean neck with muscling in balance to the remainder of the animal is desired.

Condition

The term condition refers to the amount of finish or fat the animal is carrying. Goats deposit fat internally before they do externally. The ideal condition is a thin, but uniform, covering over the loin, rib and shoulder. The external fat thickness over the loin at the 13th rib should be between .08 to .12 inches or an average .1 inch.

Selection for Breeding Goats

There are many different types of goats with many different uses. It is important to realize the traits that these animals have and be able to supply them to a scenario where these types of goats can be the most efficient and economical. These traits include: Structural Correctness, Size and Scale, Body Capacity, Femininity and/or Masculinity, Durability, Breed Character and Reproductive Soundness.

Structural Correctness: How well the animal is put together. In breeding animals, it is absolutely imperative that these animals are comprised of good structure. The goats need to be sound and free moving off of their feet and legs, and they need to be level down their top and over their rump.

Size and Scale: The goats need to possess some length of body, and they need to appear growthy and late in their maturity pattern.

Body Capacity: This refers to the amount of internal volume the animal has. This is typically analyzed by studying the base width, rib shape and depth.

Femininity and/or Masculinity: More important in the doe, it describes how closely the animal looks like a female. A doe should look like a doe and she should be more refined in her features than a billy would be. Conversely, the buck needs to be masculine. His secondary sex characteristics need to be well developed and he needs to be rather stout in his appearance.

Durability: This refers to the bone structure and the expected longevity of the animals. An animal that is more durable is generally more rugged in their design and they will have more enhanced longevity in the herd.

Breed Character: This is a term that describes how closely that animal resembles what is ideal for that breed. An Angora goat needs to look like an Angora goat, etc.

Reproductive Soundness: In the female, this refers to the soundness of the reproductive tract and whether or not the doe is cycling. It is also critical in does to evaluate the attachment and quality of the udder and the teats. This will help eliminate any udder problems in the future. The males, on the other hand, need to be evaluated for scrotal circumference and for breeding soundness. All males that will be used for breeding should have a semen evaluation done.

Grade Standards for Goat

The grades assigned taken "Meat Goat Grade Standards" published by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

Prime

Slaughter kids having minimum requirements for the Prime grade will exhibit superior meat type conformation and possess a high degree of finish. Prime slaughter kids are smooth over the top and the backbone is well covered and smooth when the hand is pressed down on the back. Prime grade kids will have the appearance of being thickly muscled throughout the body and particularly well muscled in the rear legs and loin. Prime kids shall be at least moderately wide over the back, loin, and rump. Shoulders and hips should be smooth in appearance. The overall appearance of Prime slaughter kids shall be one of very good overall health and give indication of a very high level of nutrition.

Choice

Slaughter kids meeting the minimum requirements for the choice grade will exhibit at least average meat type conformation. Choice kids will possess a moderate amount of finish over the ribs, back and loin. Choice kids when handled will express at least average muscling in the leg and loin. They should also express at least some development of the brisket. When handled the backbone of choice kids will be only moderately prominent to the touch. The overall appearance of Choice slaughter kids shall be one of good overall health and give indication of an adequate level of nutrition.

Choice slaughter kids will have a muscling score of at least slightly thick throughout their body. They will express average or better width through the loin, back and rump. The shoulder and hip will be moderately smooth.

Good

Slaughter kids meeting the standards for the Good grade will have meat type conformation that will be less than average. The muscling present in Good grade kids will be typical of slightly thin muscling patterns. Good grade kids are relatively narrow in relation to body length and height and somewhat narrow over the back, loin, and rump.

Good grade goats will have little or no detectable fat cover and very little or no development in the brisket. When handled Good grade kids have prominent ribs and backbone indicating little or no fat cover. The loin and back will be more angular and the leg will be less than average in conformation. Good grade kids will be healthy in appearance and have the potential to reach the choice grade before breaking yearling teeth.

Utility

Slaughter kids failing to meet them the minimum standards for the Good grade will be graded Utility. Utility kids will exhibit symptoms of poor management including lack of adequate nutrition, lack of parasite control or poor genetics. Utility kids are very thin fleshed with a hair coat that is rough and dull in appearance.

Selection 1: A goat in this class will be moderately thickly muscled throughout; moderately wide back and loin, moderately neat and smoothly laid in shoulders and hips, slight fullness of plumpness over the rib, loin, rump and legs and somewhat rounded and moderately refined appearance.

Selection 2: A goat in this category will be slightly thickly muscled throughout, and slightly wide back and loin with flat loin, rump, and leg (little of no evidence of fullness). Hips and shoulders are somewhat smoothly laid in, but appear slightly prominent and slightly refined appearance.

Selection 3: A goat in this classification will be thinly muscled throughout with narrow back, loin, and rump with slightly sunken appearance, tapering and narrow legs with somewhat prominent hips and shoulders. May have heavy bone and thin fleshing with coarseness or small bones and angularity with over-refinement.

Cull: Very thin muscled goat with back, loin and rump show little indication of muscling. It has moderately shrunken appearance and hips and shoulders are very prominent.

References

Drinkwater, F.W., T.A. Gibson, D.D. Johnson, P.P. Graham and B. Shankle. 1997. Meat Goat Grade Standards. Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Division of Marketing, Richmond, VA.

Louisiana Goat Meat Project: Carcass Evaluation Criteria. 1999. (Unpublished)

Martinez, E.E., J.C. Paschal, F. Craddock and C. W. Hanselka. Selection, Management and Judging of Meat-Type Spanish Goats. Texas Agricultural Extension Service, Publication No. B-5018.

Campus address for the author: Associate Professor, Animal Science, College of Agricultural, Family and Consumer Sciences, Southern University and A&M College, Baton Rouge, LA 70813

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