Our Herd: Progress & Goals
Our herd is still very young and we’re in the process of developing type and consistency, but in 2019 we sold over half of our animals to reduce numbers and narrow our herd down to our best and favorite does as well as reduce damlines in an effort to reach consistency faster.
Our breeding goals for the past couple of years have been to improve front ends and increase bone and strength to create strong, powerful yet still dairy animals with sound structure that can support high milk production. We have been very pleased to see improvements in these areas. We also really love truly “wedge” shaped animals with spring of rib and depth of barrel and sharp withers. Our other goal has been to increase milk production, with much more focus on longer, more level lactations and increasing components vs simply flashes in the pail. We would like animals that can milk through with ease, and while we firmly believe in providing quality care and nutrition, we particularly select for animals that are productive without requiring more maintenance than is reasonable even in our subtropical climate that is hot and humid the majority of the year (i.e. we like animals that can thrive in commercial settings). Does must meet our requirements for temperament as well.
While production is given highest value here, longevity is vital and we still select for sound conformation and also select for feet, legs, shoulder assemblies, and correct udder structure in addition to our above goals. Most of our does have received nice compliments regarding toplines and width and levelness of rump as well. While we are working on improvements, we have condensed our genetics and are learning what we like to work with, in hopes of developing consistency over the coming years.
Our main damline consists of Sweet Song CP Under the Sea (Ariel) and her progeny. So far she’s had four daughters to freshen, three earning “E” mammary scores and a yearling daughter earning a “V,” and a few granddaughters and great-granddaughters to freshen with well attached mammary systems as well.
We also have two other promising does we hope to develop damlines from, Sweet Song PT Lilybet, a beautiful Tweed Navigator granddaughter with one of the best udders and steadiest production in the herd, and our 2019 purebred experimental doe, Whimsy Oak CB Jasmine. As we move forward, we will be looking to develop and cross our damlines.
We also added two new herdsires in 2019: SG +*B Lucky*Star’s ME Henning and *B Lucky*Star’s RJ Lights-Up! With these boys we hope to improve bone and strength, add more milk as well as a more level lactation curve, and improve front ends as well as many other qualities the Lucky Star herd brings to the table. In 2021, we brought in Rustic Wood’s OK Akia to continue working with these genetics and work further toward our goals. We’ve been blessed to additionally use outside bucks with tremendous genetics.
Our breeding goals for the past couple of years have been to improve front ends and increase bone and strength to create strong, powerful yet still dairy animals with sound structure that can support high milk production. We have been very pleased to see improvements in these areas. We also really love truly “wedge” shaped animals with spring of rib and depth of barrel and sharp withers. Our other goal has been to increase milk production, with much more focus on longer, more level lactations and increasing components vs simply flashes in the pail. We would like animals that can milk through with ease, and while we firmly believe in providing quality care and nutrition, we particularly select for animals that are productive without requiring more maintenance than is reasonable even in our subtropical climate that is hot and humid the majority of the year (i.e. we like animals that can thrive in commercial settings). Does must meet our requirements for temperament as well.
While production is given highest value here, longevity is vital and we still select for sound conformation and also select for feet, legs, shoulder assemblies, and correct udder structure in addition to our above goals. Most of our does have received nice compliments regarding toplines and width and levelness of rump as well. While we are working on improvements, we have condensed our genetics and are learning what we like to work with, in hopes of developing consistency over the coming years.
Our main damline consists of Sweet Song CP Under the Sea (Ariel) and her progeny. So far she’s had four daughters to freshen, three earning “E” mammary scores and a yearling daughter earning a “V,” and a few granddaughters and great-granddaughters to freshen with well attached mammary systems as well.
We also have two other promising does we hope to develop damlines from, Sweet Song PT Lilybet, a beautiful Tweed Navigator granddaughter with one of the best udders and steadiest production in the herd, and our 2019 purebred experimental doe, Whimsy Oak CB Jasmine. As we move forward, we will be looking to develop and cross our damlines.
We also added two new herdsires in 2019: SG +*B Lucky*Star’s ME Henning and *B Lucky*Star’s RJ Lights-Up! With these boys we hope to improve bone and strength, add more milk as well as a more level lactation curve, and improve front ends as well as many other qualities the Lucky Star herd brings to the table. In 2021, we brought in Rustic Wood’s OK Akia to continue working with these genetics and work further toward our goals. We’ve been blessed to additionally use outside bucks with tremendous genetics.
Families/ Damlines
ARIEL FAMILY
I. Esmeralda- daughter (reference)
…A. JuneBug (reference)
…….1. LoveBug
…B. Gypsy (reference)
…C. Tillie (reference)
II. Epiphany - daughter
….A. Bombshell
…….1. Echo (reference)
….B. Eureka (reference)
…….1. Shazam
…….2. Hurrah (reference)
III. Avaris - daughter (reference)
…..A. Aravis
…..B. Fire-Flower
IV. Belle (Wildest Dreams) - daughter
……A. Bea (A Million Dreams)
V. Moana (Heart of Te Fiti) - daughter
VI. Hula Pi - daughter
LILYBET FAMILY
I. Kitten - daughter
….A. Fawn
JASMINE
I. Jade - daughter
I. Esmeralda- daughter (reference)
…A. JuneBug (reference)
…….1. LoveBug
…B. Gypsy (reference)
…C. Tillie (reference)
II. Epiphany - daughter
….A. Bombshell
…….1. Echo (reference)
….B. Eureka (reference)
…….1. Shazam
…….2. Hurrah (reference)
III. Avaris - daughter (reference)
…..A. Aravis
…..B. Fire-Flower
IV. Belle (Wildest Dreams) - daughter
……A. Bea (A Million Dreams)
V. Moana (Heart of Te Fiti) - daughter
VI. Hula Pi - daughter
LILYBET FAMILY
I. Kitten - daughter
….A. Fawn
JASMINE
I. Jade - daughter