Q: I've never had registered goats. What do I need to do first?
A: If you plan to breed your goats, you will need to determine what name to call your herd (it will be the prefix for kid born to goats bred and born on your property ). You will also need to decide if you want to have your goats registered with both of the major registries (ADGA and AGS). NDGA is another registry; however ADGA and AGS do not recognize goats from these registries. After deciding on the registry you will need to pay to join the registry. Your next step will be to come up with a herd name, which will precede the name of the goats born on your property (unless it was bred by the prior owner). Your herd name must be unique and can't be too close to another breeder's herd name. If choosing both societies (I did), it is best if you get approval from both registries or one may accept the name and they other may disapprove. Your next step will be to get a tattoo approved for your herd (usually 3 to 4 letters) with both societies. Our tattoo is WRG1 since our herd name is We R Gloating. The society added the one since there was another member that already had WRG as their tattoo.
I have a friend who was approved a tattoo with AGS but ADGA already had a member with that tattoo so they assigned her a different one. This caused some big issues when registering her herd.
If you do not plan to breed your goats then you will not need a herd name, since your goats will carry the name of the herd of origin.
AGS forms: americangoatsociety.com/forms-brochures.php
I have a friend who was approved a tattoo with AGS but ADGA already had a member with that tattoo so they assigned her a different one. This caused some big issues when registering her herd.
If you do not plan to breed your goats then you will not need a herd name, since your goats will carry the name of the herd of origin.
AGS forms: americangoatsociety.com/forms-brochures.php
ADGA forms: adga.org/forms/
Q: I have a goat already registered with AGS but I want to register it with ADGA also. What do I need to do?
A: This is a common question. The first step is to fill out this form with AGS ($5 for members, $10 for non-members). You can either mail it to them or send it to them by e-mail: americangoatsociety.com/forms-brochures/Transfer-Record-Request-Form-2-16.pdf
A: This is a common question. The first step is to fill out this form with AGS ($5 for members, $10 for non-members). You can either mail it to them or send it to them by e-mail: americangoatsociety.com/forms-brochures/Transfer-Record-Request-Form-2-16.pdf
AGS will mail you a form like the form on the right. The reverse side is a copy of "Frosty's" registration certificate. You will need to send this certificate to ADGA along with the ORIGINAL AGS registration certificate. You will need to put a note for ADGA to return the original to you. I also send a note asking ADGA not to fold the certificates, or they will use a smaller envelope and fold it.
You will need to fill out a registration form just like you were registering a new goat. adga.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/adga-registration-application.pdf Next you will fill out a work order form. You will pay a fee for registration and for re-registration. In this example the cost is $11 to get "Frosty's" ADGA registration (on top of the $5 you already paid to AGS).
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It's not always that easy though. Oftentimes you will get an "error report" from ADGA. In Frosty's case, the owner was not associated with ADGA and her herd tattoo was registered by another breeder. On the error report it was suggested a Q was added to the right, left or center tail.
In the comment section you will need to note how the corrections were completed. You have 90 days to either mail this form back to ADGA or you can send it via e-mail. If everything was correct then you should receive your registration certificates in the mail.
In the comment section you will need to note how the corrections were completed. You have 90 days to either mail this form back to ADGA or you can send it via e-mail. If everything was correct then you should receive your registration certificates in the mail.
Q: Do my goats have to have a tattoo?
A: Unless your goats have a Scrapie tag, they will need to be tattooed. The USDA requires that the origin of the goat be documented (where it was born) in case Scrapie's is found. It is actually illegal to transport a goat without a tattoo (with paperwork showing the tattoo and herd of origin) or Scrapie tag. You also will need to register your herd with the USDA and get a premise ID.
www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_diseases/scrapie/downloads/approval_registry_tattoos.pdf
www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_diseases/scrapie/downloads/approval_registry_tattoos.pdf
Q: What if my goat wasn't tattooed when I got it?
A: You will need to find a veterinarian to do it, or you may purchase a tattoo kit at most farm supply stores so that you can do it yourself.
A: You will need to find a veterinarian to do it, or you may purchase a tattoo kit at most farm supply stores so that you can do it yourself.
ADGA Registration form
1. Name - must be kept to 30 letters or less including the herd name and spaces. Check off the box that says they can make changes, if desired. I usually only give one option for the name. In this case the goat must have been born on my property since it has "We R Gloating" as the prefix.
2. Name of sire, including herd name. It is rare that people lease goats; however using someone else's buck is common. We'll discuss that later.
3. Name of dam, including herd name and ADGA number.
4. Breed - Nigerian Dwarf or other purebred dairy goat.
5. Color and markings: www.nigeriandwarfcolors.com/coat-patterns.html Whereas it seems this would be easy to determine, it's actually a little difficult to correctly identify the color / pattern. I have found this to be a valuable group to help with tough color combinations: https://www.facebook.com/groups/349310121875233 (Nigerian Dwarf Colors is the name of the Facebook group).
6. Buck or Doe - if you have questions on this you may want to ask your parents. ;)
7. Date of birth - please be accurate on this.
How many in birth. Give the total number in the first block (it is up to you on whether to include stillborn in this number).
Note how many bucks and how many does were in this litter.
8. Horn information: Polled is when the goat was born naturally hornless. Disbudded is when you use a disbudding iron to burn off the horn buds at a very early age. Dehorned is a surgical removal of horns, performed by a veterinarian. Horns means, well, that they have horns. Ears for a ND are erect to meet breed standards.
2. Name of sire, including herd name. It is rare that people lease goats; however using someone else's buck is common. We'll discuss that later.
3. Name of dam, including herd name and ADGA number.
4. Breed - Nigerian Dwarf or other purebred dairy goat.
5. Color and markings: www.nigeriandwarfcolors.com/coat-patterns.html Whereas it seems this would be easy to determine, it's actually a little difficult to correctly identify the color / pattern. I have found this to be a valuable group to help with tough color combinations: https://www.facebook.com/groups/349310121875233 (Nigerian Dwarf Colors is the name of the Facebook group).
6. Buck or Doe - if you have questions on this you may want to ask your parents. ;)
7. Date of birth - please be accurate on this.
How many in birth. Give the total number in the first block (it is up to you on whether to include stillborn in this number).
Note how many bucks and how many does were in this litter.
8. Horn information: Polled is when the goat was born naturally hornless. Disbudded is when you use a disbudding iron to burn off the horn buds at a very early age. Dehorned is a surgical removal of horns, performed by a veterinarian. Horns means, well, that they have horns. Ears for a ND are erect to meet breed standards.
9. Tattoo. The right ear (when looking at your goat from the back) is where the approved herd tattoo will be located. The left ear will have the year letter (2021's letter is N) followed by the number this goat was in the order of birth (you start at N1 in 2021).
10. Breeder name - this is who owned the dam at the time she was bred (if you purchased a doe that was already bred you will put the name of the person you purchased the goat from in this space along with their ADGA number. 11. Signature: If the dam was purchased as a bred doe, the owner of the animal being presented for registration/recordation must sign item #11 and submit a service memorandum. Otherwise, the applicant must sign item #11. (This is the most confusing blank). 12. Transfer: This item is used only when the animal being registered is being transferred to another ownership. Do not use this space unless you wish to transfer the animal to a new owner. (This is another big source of confusion for many). 13. Payment section - to the right they want the name and/or ID of the person submitting the application. |
Q: The sire was ADGA registered, but the dam is AGS registered (or vice versa). I would like to register my kid with ADGA (or AGS). How do I do that?
A. This is pretty easy. You'll put the registration number for the sire or dam that is registered with the other agency on the form in the area where it's asking for the sire or dam's name and number. You'll fill that out with the other registry information and send a copy of the registration certificate with the paperwork when you mail it in.
A. This is pretty easy. You'll put the registration number for the sire or dam that is registered with the other agency on the form in the area where it's asking for the sire or dam's name and number. You'll fill that out with the other registry information and send a copy of the registration certificate with the paperwork when you mail it in.
Not everything is difficult, and it gets easier the more often you register them. If you happen to own both sire and dam and have them registered with ADGA then you can register kids online really quickly. You choose the sire and dam from a drop-down list, fill in the name, sex, number in birth, DOB, coloring, tattoo, etc, and they will give you a print out of a temporary registration form. You can even have it mailed to the new owner. This is so much easier than doing it all by hand, as I have done in the past. Henceforth when I sell goats I will allow them to name the kid and I'll send the temporary registration form with them when they pick it up.