Evaluation of lactation performance identifies superior sire in Anglo Nubian dairy goat herd

Abstract

Anglo Nubian goats are commonly considered poor milk-producers among Australian dairy goat breeds and fall short of the 300+ day lactations desired in commercial dairies (Abud and Stubbs 2009). Anglo Nubians have milk with a high % of fat and protein however, lower overall milk production results in low total fat and protein yields. Markets for Australian goat milk include whole milk, cheese, yoghurt, and milk powder, meaning that both quality and quantity of milk are commercially relevant. Lactation recording can identify animals with superior milk production traits including lactation length, total milk, fat and protein yield. Understanding the performance of related animals forms the basis of a breeding program, therefore sire identification is critical (Lindsay and Skerritt 2003). The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the benefit of lactation recording to identify sires of high producing does in a case study Anglo Nubian herd.