Goat Glam July/August 2025

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Goat Glam will feature two goats for conformation assessment each Time. We’ll discuss each doe’s good traits, what could be better, and what to look for in a buck to improve her kids

One of my favorite things to do is to look at goats; luckily for me, I have the pleasure of evaluating goats for this column. Thank you to everyone who submits their goats! In this issue, we’re focusing on Nubians submitted by Michaela Fisher.

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4-Year-Old Purebred Nubian Doe – 3rd freshener

Isn’t she lovely?! I love the breed character of this doe! This is what you want when you decide to get into Nubians. She has wonderfully long ears and a great Roman nose; this doe is a picture of Nubian breed characteristics! I also love this doe’s long, elegant neck, which, along with her body, oozes dairy strength. She’s in excellent condition and has a lot going for her.

I’d like to see more depth of body, however. You want a nice wedge shape as they start to mature, and more depth as you approach the rear rib. It may come with age, but as she’s now considered mature as a 4-year-old, that depth of body should already be developing. I’d also like to see a longer extension to that foreudder and what I’m guessing would be better rear udder support. I don’t have a picture of her udder from behind, but as the teats tilt forward, instead of toward the ground, I’d assume she needs just a little more rear udder height.

Overall, she’s a very correct doe and one I’d breed to a buck that’s powerful and deep with awesome udders behind him.

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2-year-old Purebred Nubian Doe – First Freshener

This roan doe is flashy and, again, exhibits wonderful breed characteristics, with a beautiful nose and ears. I’m going to preface this evaluation by saying this doe is a baby and has a lot of maturing to do. So, don’t throw the baby out with the bath water. That said, I like the long neck this doe is showing.

However, she’s short in the rump and raised in the dorsal process. I’m not sure if she had a rough kidding or if she’s newly fresh, but that’s the first thing I noticed about her. I’d like to see a little more curvature in the thigh of those rear legs and a little more angulation to the legs. She’s almost standing on her toes in the picture, which could be because her legs are set too wide or too far back, or it could be a thurl placement problem. Again, she’s a baby and may very well grow out of it.

She has a nice front-end assembly, and I like the first freshening udder I’m seeing in this picture. Sure, I’d like a little more extension to that foreudder, but it may come as she matures. I’d also like to see a little more of that rear udder when viewing from the side, and her teats placed a little better. Judging from the picture, her teats appear to be set wider. Overall, this is a nice doe that I’d definitely want to see freshen again and have another year of growth.

Thank you so much for submitting these beauties!

I look forward to seeing more readers’ goats in the next Goat Glam. If you want to get an insight into how some of your goats stack up conformationally, don’t hesitate to send us some pictures and a little information. We’d be happy to help. Happy goating, everyone!

Jon Kain lives and breathes goats, literally. By day, he’s a superintendent of a goat and cow dairy. By “night,” he and his family raise a small herd of Oberhasli goats while chasing his 3-year-old daughter or talking about goats on his podcast, Ringside: An American Dairy Goat Podcast.