Just Kiddin
Mini Goats
Breeders
of
Australian Miniature Goats
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Just Kiddin
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The Australian Miniature Goat is a developing breed, created over many years by selectively cross breeding small standard goats to create an animal that is genetically small and breeds true to type. As this is a height breed, we do not consider a 58.5cm (23") goat to be truly 'miniature' as many of the standard breeds such as angora and cashmere are typically already quite small. At Just Kiddin Mini Goats, we aim to breed animals that grow to around 44 to 50cm (about 17-20") at maturity. Whilst breeding for this small size, we are also focussed on ensuring that these genetically small animals are healthy, do not have breeding difficulties and consistently breed true to type. For more information on height and comparison between a 45cm adult goat and a 58cm adult goat, see the Australian Miniature Goat Association Inc (AMGA) - Heights, the Real Story web page. |
The number of Australian Miniature Goat breeders and availability of stock has grown steadily over the years. In 2007, it can still be difficult to obtain genuinely good 'quality' stock at reasonable prices. Whilst small stock is available, it is more difficult to obtain proven genetically small animals who also carry the correct genetic make up to pass on to their progeny. If you are serious about breeding, we encourage you to do your homework before you start, and to obtain the best quality stock you can afford, even if that means you have to wait for quality stock to become available.
At Just Kiddin, we have been keeping extensive records on all our breeding lines over many generations. Based on this we can generally give breeders information (photos and statistics) about sire/dam, grandsire/granddam, siblings and progeny (if appropriate) of any potential breeding animal so that you can obtain a true picture of the potential of any young animal, or see the results of any mature animal. This is essential information if you are looking at obtaining a quality breeding animal. Just looking at a doe and its dam in no way guarantees its potential, you do need this broader and deeper perspective to really give you that insight.
For more information on the breed, standards, types etc - please visit the Australian Miniature Goat Association Inc (AMGA) website.
| When buying stock, kids under 3 years of age are referred to as miniature bred if they have two registered parents. Recorded kids are not eligible to be transferred to the registry until they reach at least three years of age at which stage they are given a grade and type. If you are buying a kid, you are really buying a lottery ticket, it may or may not mature to be the animal you are expecting. All kids are incredibly cute, but they do grow up. We believe an 44-56cm adult animal still retains many of those 'kid like' qualities, a 58-68cm or bigger animal does not. |  |
If you really want to get a kid or a bottle baby, make sure you view the animals parents, grandparents and siblings so that you can get some idea of what the animal might grow up like (although this is not foolproof). If you are interested in breeding, a safer bet is to buy a mature animal so that you know what you are getting although again it is important to view parents, grandparents, sibling and progeny as the appearance of the animal will not reveal its full genetic makeup. Just because an animal is small, does not prove that it has the genetic makeup to produce small progeny.
Grades
All of our animals are registered with the Australian Miniature Goat
Association Inc (AMGA), the official breed Association of the Australian
Miniature Goat. They therefore have to meet the highest standards (Type 1) required
by the industry. For more information please refer to the AMGA
website.
At Just Kiddin Mini Goats, grades are not our priority. Whilst we have many very highly graded animals, we believe that unless the genetic qualities of an animal are firmly in place, there is little value in simply having a high grade. As this is a height breed, the AMGA requires that to progress up in grades, successive generations should also be reducing in size until the true 'miniature' size is achieved. Whilst our stud has some of the smallest registered animals, we are continually monitoring all of our animals to assess breeding quality and to determine the genetic benefits each animal can contribute to our herds development.
| Just Kiddin has developed a very robust and accurate goat measuring stick. To help enable other breeders to accurately measure their animals we are happy to share the instructions on how to make your own goat measuring stick. For detailed materials list and instructions, click here to download |  |
Breed
Types
The Australian Miniature Goat is recognised in three (Type 1) breed types -
Minikin, Nuwby and Sheltie. For more information on these breed types and the
standards, please visit the AMGA
- Breed Types section of their website.
At Just Kiddin Mini Goats, we are focussed on breeding the Minikin Type. Most of our stock has some level of cashmere in their coats which means they have a beautiful soft fluffy winter coat which they shed naturally in spring so in summer they have a smooth sleek coat where their colours are even more distinct. Whilst out highest priority is on size & conformation, we are also focussed on great colours, coat types and body type.
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All text and images contained herein are owned by and are copyright © 2003-6 Just Kiddin Mini Goats. None of the contents of this site may be reproduced or republished except where written permission is given by Just Kiddin Mini Goats. Information about Australian Miniature Goats has been gathered from personal experience, experiences of other Australian Miniature Goat breeders and members of the Australian Miniature Goat Association Inc (AMGA)