Raising Nigerian Dwarf Goats

Our Own Adventure

© Dr. & Mrs. Jill Quilligan

We got started with goats about seven years ago, first with grade milking does and then with purebred Nubians. We had enjoyed milking our Amish raised Jersey cow, but due to lactose intolerance within the family had decided to try goat's milk instead. We saw the Nigerian Dwarfs on the internet and sent for six animals from a couple of different breeders in Texas, to add to our Nubian population. When Jay and I both underwent back surgeries and had to sell our ranch, we gave up the larger goats and stuck with the Nigerians. We moved to Idaho from Alabama just over a year ago and have since added to our Nigerian herd. We home school our daughters, ages 11 and 17, and enjoy gardening as a family, in addition to raising Nigerians. We're learning about herbal goats milk soap and would also like to get involved in the national Nigerian show circuit in the future.

History of the Nigerian Dwarf

The Nigerian Dwarf goat is of West Central African origin. There are several recognized breeds of dwarf goats in West Africa with a mingling of varieties. It is from these herds that the first dwarf goats were imported into the United States. The first documented imports arrived in the country early last century and continued through the 1960's. Illegal imports were suspected earlier than this. They represented a broad range of body types and colors, with some carrying genes for greater stature.

Genetically, the imported population contained two types of dwarfism; 1) achondroplastic, which was characterized by a large head, wide body and short limbs; 2) pituitary, which was a true miniature and ideally would have a proportional sized head and body for its short stature. In the 1960's and 1970's a distinction was finally made between the breed of African Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf and selective breeding began. Although both are of African origin, they are true American breeds.

The Nigerian Dwarfs are still considered rare by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy. The United States Department of Agriculture has approved Nigerian Dwarfs as a livestock dairy goat, which makes them eligible for 4H and FFA projects.

Their Niche

For those goat lovers among us with physical limitations, acreage and facility limitations or small children, Nigerian Dwarfs fill a wonderful role. Due to the fact that Jay's spine is deteriorating and I have had low back surgery myself, we cannot handle larger dairy goats. We found that our own Nubians, although gentle could really pull you around if they had a mind to. We must rely on our two daughters, ages 11 and 17, for help with our small herd and we don't have to worry about them handling the Nigerians. We recently met an Arizona Nigerian breeder who has MS. For her also, the Nigerians were an excellent choice and allow her to continue milking goats for her herbal soap business.

They don't require a lot of space for either housing or pen size. They are personable and easy to handle for the most part, although personally we've had to cull animals who were hard to catch. We've never had a Nigerian Dwarf show any inclination to bite or nail us to a wall. We find that bottle raising makes a difference. We've never had worry about catching a bottle baby! They are a hardy, naturally healthy breed, and of course their feed intake is significantly less than the larger breeds. For those of us who have seen huge vet bills with horses and other animals, it's a real pleasure to keep the vet bills down. For their small size they produce a surprising quantity and quality of milk. Jay and I recently figured out that by milking three of our does, the return in milk and dairy products would reimburse us for the entire expense of hay and grain for our whole herd. Unlike their larger goat cousins, they're easy to transport and ship by air or car in medium to large dog kennels, even as adults!

Breed Registries

Nigerian Dwarves were first registered by the International Dairy Goat Registry in 1982, Canadian Goat Society in 1985, American Goat Society in 1993, and finally the Nigerian Dwarf Goat Association in 1996. AGS is the largest registry of Nigerian Dwarf Goats, listing over 15,000 in the herdbook for November 2000. In the United States both AGS and NDGA sanction shows, with the largest number of shows in Texas, with the extreme Northeast and extreme Northwest growing in show numbers. These three areas contain the highest concentrations of breeders also.

Most breeders register animals with both AGS and NDGA, with AGS being the primary. Official appraisal of animals can be done by either registry. All champion legs, milking stars and appraisal under AGS may be carried on to NDGA registration papers for a nominal fee.

The American Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Association is a breed club which promotes the Nigerian Dwarf as a dairy animal and is currently pursuing American Dairy Goat Association recognition. This recognition is needed for various reasons, including to increase the number of available judges for the Nigerians nationwide.

Breed Standards

There are slight differences in AGS and NDGA height standards for bucks and does. AGS standards hold bucks at 23.6" at the withers, does at 22.4". NDGA standards are slightly smaller, bucks 23" and does 21" maximum. Otherwise, both breed registry standards are similar. There is no minimum height, as long as the animal is proportional. Disqualifications are basically the same for each registry, i.e. curly coat, Roman nose, pendulous ears, myotonia (fainting), and of course oversized individuals.

The Nigerian Dwarf goat conformation standards are similar to those of the larger dairy breeds. Most animals are horned, a few bloodlines polled. Horns are discouraged in these miniature dairy herds and disqualified in the show ring. Body parts should be balanced in proportion to small stature. General appearance is of refinement and dairy character. Loose dairy skin and soft, short to medium dairy type hair coat is desired. Facial profile straight or slightly dished. Relatively deep, wide muzzle. Upright ears, relatively long in comparison to head size, dairy type. Long, slim neck blending smoothly into tight shoulders and high, sharp withers. No dewlaps or fatty deposits on neck. Long, wide body which deepens at the heart girth. Flat ribs, well sprung. Level topline with only slight slope from hips to tail. Long rump. Legs straight, set squarely apart with short, strong pasterns. Bones preferably flat. Short feet with tight toes.

As with the larger dairy breeds, mammary system should be deep, wide and capacious in relation to the size of the doe. Strongly attached, soft and pliable with proportionally shaped and sized teats. Udder should be balanced and tightly attached as viewed from the side and the rear.

Color

Agouti coloring is a moderate show ring fault and not desired in breeding animals. All other colors, patterns and variations are allowed. One recent herd we saw on the internet was breeding for the Alpine type patterns and colors with great success! Eyes are either brown or blue. We've found in our own animals that blue eyes tend to be slightly predominant.

In The Milk Pail

Nigerians average 799 lbs of milk and 49 lbs of butterfat for a 305 day lactation. Butterfat percentage averages 6.1%. The minimum requirement for Nigerian Dwarf milk production is one third that of the standard sized breeds. It increases 2 pounds of milk for each additional month of age at time of freshening. The butterfat content is based on 5% of the minimum pounds of milk for the respective age.

The 1997 all time breed leader for milk production was Gay-Mor Reggae's Nestle Quick 2*D, who milked 1,499 pounds in a 305 day lactation with butterfat averaging 7.1%! That's an average 4.9 pounds per day from a doe that stood less than 22" tall at the shoulder. A good doe can produce from one to two quarts a day of high butterfat (averaging about 6%), high protein milk.

The American Goat Society gives milk production awards, oversees DHI rules and procedures for the Nigerian Dwarfs and keeps records of production. The standard sized breeds have had the advantage of many decades of Dairy Herd Improvement testing, with accumulated official production data. The Nigerians have only been production tested for a little over a decade and their full dairy potential is just beginning to be realized. Many Nigerian does, however, produce enough pounds of butterfat in a lactation to meet AR requirements for butterfat set for the large breeds.

Breeding Nigerian Dwarfs

Nigerian Dwarfs cycle year round, making it very easy to maintain level milk production if desired within a herd for an entire year. Bucks are precocious and can reach sexual maturity at seven weeks of age and therefore should be separated at this time from the doelings. Bucks are gentle enough for hand breeding, if desired. Most breeders breed does at seven months of age to a year, depending upon maturity of the individual animal. Many breeders breed twice a year, giving the does breaks in the cycle as desired. Gestation period is 145 to 153 days with does usually not needing assistance in birthing. Does that would need consistent birthing assistance or ceasarian sections would be culled as pets and not rebred. Kids usually average about three pounds at birth, with live, healthy 1-1/2 pound babies not unheard of. Twins are most common, followed by singles and triplets. Quads, quints and more have occurred. Many breeders bottle raise, as dam raised babies can tend to be a bit stand offish. Does are usually excellent mothers. Weaning occurs usually at 8 to 12 weeks of age. Free choice hay and grain is offered to the babies at one to two weeks of age.

Health Maintenance

We have personally found that health maintenance is a very serious issue to the Nigerian Dwarf breeder in general. Herds that we purchase from are certified CAE negative and usually state certified for TB and brucellosis, as well as John's disease and contagious abscess. Immunizations and worming schedules, as with the larger goat breeds, are routine. CDT is given to the doe within six weeks of kidding date. Kids are then immunized at six weeks of age, ten weeks of age and then annually as adults. Safeguard, Panacur and Ivomectin products are commonly used for internal and external parasites. The frequency with which these products should be used would depend upon location and your personal herd management practices.

Housing and Feed

Their are many different opinions on feeding the Nigerian Dwarf, as with other goats. What works for us is free choice, leafy pure alfalfa. We only purchase clean hay, free of mold or dust. As our goats chose only to eat the leaf, we feed the leftover stems to our horses. We feed twice daily and make sure that we're feeding enough that the goats can nibble throughout the day or night, between feedings. Our goats despise 'goat pellets' or 'dairy goat rations', but love 9% horse grain with a good molasses coating. This is fed twice a day also, perhaps averaging a cup a day to our bucks and two cups a day to lactating does. Does are also fed grain twice a day while being milked. Free choice mineral salt and baking soda are offered to both bucks and does. We make no changes in feeding schedules throughout growth, pregnancy or at breeding times. We find that by feeding basically free choice, there is no rush to over-consume feed and limited butting and jostling for feed amongst our herd animals.

We've used housing as simple as a large dog house and as complex as 12x12 heated indoor stalls in our horse barn. Nigerian Dwarfs thrive in all sorts of weather conditions but, as with all goats, need appropriate cover in severe cold and rain. Our bucks are housed together and do very well. We personally feel that since goats are herd animals, the bucks are happier with this situation. A pasture area or a simple pen large enough for play and 'goat races' are equally acceptable, with equal emphasis on confining the goats and keeping predators out. We make sure all enclosures have spools or log rounds to jump and play on. Even our adult animals enjoy play time.

Costs and Availability

There is a high demand for show quality bucks and does nationally and strict attention is paid to individual evaluation numbers, either AGS or NDGA, show placings and MCH or PGCH status achievement. Strict attention is also paid to herd health certification, especially for CAE. We've noticed recently that reservation opportunities for doelings are closed on some of the top animals in the nation due to demand. We finally had a reservation filled recently on a MCH, multiple BOS and BUS doe after waiting an entire year. Occasionally one might locate a fine doeling or buckling for between $200.00 and $300.00, if one pays attention to pedigrees and watches sale pages closely. More often a pet quality doe or buck will run $300.00 and up, show quality babies run from $400.00 to $1,000.00, with does selling significantly higher than bucks. We recently watched a show herd dispersal with MCH or PGCH animals selling between $1,000.00 and $3,000.00. Their entire herd, over 30 animals, sold out within 24 hours of being listed on the internet! The Nigerian Dwarf sells very well on the internet, probably due to the ease in shipment of these small animals by air. Weaned babies can be shipped, two to a kennel for the same price as long as the weight total is under 50 lbs.

Availability of animals here in Idaho and the five surrounding states of Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Montana, and Colorado is limited due to a small number of herds. We are one of only two areas in the United States without a show circuit for the Nigerian Dwarfs. Herd numbers have recently grown in coastal Washington, Oregon and California, with both fair and private show circuits and a nice amount of competition. There is an abundance of large herds in the Texas area, with the largest show circuit. There is also a growing group of breeders in the extreme Northeast. When we purchased our animals six years ago in Alabama, we were the only herd listed in that state and that area of the United States still remains limited in herd numbers.

PUBLICATIONS

If you desire more information on the Nigerian Dwarf goat, I would suggest the following:

Ruminations - Journal of the Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Goat. Excellent articles and show results with photos. Subscriptions: $20.00 per year for six issues. Editor/publisher: Cindy McSeveney, 920 Ropa Court, Atascadero, CA 93422.

Nigerian Dwarfs: Colorful Miniature Dairy Goats - by Jody Leigh. Published in 1993. You'll need to contact Jody for up to date price. Chapters include history, judging and showing, color genetics and fascinating herd summaries from some of the premier Nigerian Dwarf breeders in the nation. Color photos. Jody Leigh, 10633 Twin Spruce Road, Golden, CO 80403.
 

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© Copyright Dr. & Mrs. Jay Quilligan

Article Information
Author: Dr. & Mrs. Jay Quilligan
Author Email: julie@quicksilverfarms.com
Authors Website: http://quicksilverfarms.com
Additional Information: Article Courtesy of IdahoFreedom.com

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