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RED
BOERS........
WHERE DO THEY
COME FROM?
By Ann
Marie Hauck, The RAM H Breeders Ltd., Alberta,CANADA
It is all in
the genetics. The traditional phenotypical boer goat has a red (brown) head
and a white body. With the genetics of the boer goat the white is the dominant
gene and the red is the recessive. This is why many of the progeny are
predominantly white on an F1 (first generation or half blood) cross many of
the progeny are dominantly white. The strength of the white genes in boers is
typically stronger than the genes which affect color in most breeds of goats.
As the white is the dominant gene, the red (brown) gene is the recessive gene
for color in boers. Some boers carry a double recessive (red or brown) gene.
If through breeding, you can identify the genetic lines which carry the double
recessive red genes, and mate does to a buck both carrying the double
recessive red genes, you have a good chance of coming up with progeny which
are full red.
Not all double recessive red genes can be identified by simply looking at the
goat. Obviously if the boer is full red, it must be carrying the double
recessive red genes. The double recessive then become dominant over the white
genes the boer is carrying but may not necessarily be strong enough to be
dominant over a traditional boer (white body /red head). Conversely, you may
have a buck and doe which are both color correct and mate them. The resulting
progeny may be color correct or you may have red progeny. This happened to us
several years ago. We bred a doe which was color correct to a buck which was
color correct, the doe had twins, "Thunder and Lightening". Thunder
was a full red buck and Lightening was a traditional color correct doe. By
going back and studying the genetics of the sire and dam, observing the
results and studying the genetics of future progeny, it is possible through
time to identify genetic lines which carry the double recessive red genes and
the potential for full "red boers".
The full red
boer is more of a "niche market" product. Some breeders simply
prefer the look of the full red boer and will seek product to purchase. Some
ethnic groups prefer a meat goat which does not have a white hide. In tropical
countries, or countries with intense sun, the red or brown boers can be
desirable due to resistance to skin cancer. Other breeders have stated that
they feel the red kid is better camouflaged to predators. Personally I would
think most predators, can see well enough to spot either a white or red kid.
In our research and development of the fall red boers we have found correcting
and/or improving other genetic traits can be more difficult and take more
breeding (more generations) than traditional boers because of the narrowed
genetic pool. First the breeder must limit themselves to boers which carry the
recessive red genes or are red, obviously this in turn limits the choice of
potential sires and dams. At the RAM H we have worked with full red boers for
the past six years and extensive embryo transfer work, it is only in the past
two years in which we have been able to make some marked gains in conformation
and muscling.
Typically, the full red boers are more expensive than the traditional boers
due to the limited supply and market demand.
I would recommend to the potential buyer of a red boer that you obtain some
verification that the potential red boer you are purchasing is in fact a
purebred boer. With our registration system in Canada you know the red boers
are in fact purebred by the DNA verification of our registry system Whatever
your choice in boers, traditional or full red, the more information you can
obtain from the seller in regards to production information of the stock, the
better you will be able to purchase the boer which will meet your
expectations.
**NOTE: In
Canada, a boer which is purebred originating from foundation stock is termed
PUREBRED.
In the United
States, the term is FULLBLOOD
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