2006 News and Highlights
August
Brags and Congrats!
I have been remiss in publicly acknowledging those of you have achieved success with Twincreeks goats over the last year. Hearty congratulations go to:
Joanne Karohl (MA) on her (pending) AGS MCH with Giacamo, a two-year old Bay Watch x Butterfly son. One of his daughters was RsCH junior doe under two different judges at the show where he finished.
Suzanne Nevada (AK) on her buck Sebastian Bach who remains undefeated in his breed and has won 2 Best Buck in Show awards at ADGA shows. He is now finished in both AGS and ADGA.
Melissa Van Orsdel (AZ) on finishing her doe Fanciful in both AGS and ADGA, as well as classifying Excellent in AGS. Two of Fanciful's daughters have earned at least one leg in one or more registries as well.
Greg and Barbara Brown (CA) on earning 2 RsCh's and a Grand on their buck Fathom This, who is a look alike Bay Watch son out of MCH/CH Nonpareil.
Carol Lindblom (MA) on getting a dry leg on little Teacup Tempest in a huge class of junior does.
Do you have show wins or milk test awards to brag about on your Twincreeks animals? Please let me know!
We have received word from ADGA and AGS that several of our does that we milk tested at the AGS National in June qualified for their milking stars (some are repeats as they already had their stars in AGS):
MCH Twin Creeks ARG Mithril Silver 2*D (*M)
MCH/CH Twin Creeks BW Fantasea 2*D (*M)
MCH/PGCH Twin Creeks Midsumernitedream 2*D (*M)
Piddlin Acres SC Shelia 2*D (*M)
Twin Creeks BW Obsidian Bay 3*D
The weather was beastly hot and production was down, but the girls pulled through anyway. Fantasea was the high milking Nigerian Dwarf with 4.6 pounds in the 24 hour period.
July
3 Just got notified by the ADGA office that Fantasea and Nonpareil have now qualified for their Permanent Champion (CH) titles, so they are now finished in both ADGA and AGS. Yay!
1 The Red River Dairy Goat Association Annual Spring Show was our last show of the spring/summer season and I must say we finished with a bang! We started with winning the 2006 Bluebonnet Junior Doe Futurity with our beautiful yearling, Fancy Free, and kept on rolling from there. In 3 senior and 2 junior rings we accumulated 4GCHs, 3 RsCH's, 3 Best Udders, and 2 Best Doe in Shows! Here's how it broke down:
Ring 1 Judge Tamara Taylor, Texas (Senior Does Only)
GCH Senior Doe - Twin Creeks Midsumernitedream
RsCH Senior Doe - Piddlin Acres SC Sheila
Best Udder of Breed - Piddlin Acres SC Sheila
Champion Challenge Winner - Twin Creeks Midsumernitedream
Best Doe in Show - Midsumernitedream
Ring 2 Linda Libra, Minnesota
GCH Senior Doe - Twin Creeks WB Talk About Me
RsCH Senior Doe - Twin Creeks WB Meadowlark (owned by Gary & Sandra Whitehead)
GCH Junior Doe - TX Twincreeks WDF Sarafina
Best Udder of Breed - Talk About Me
Champion Challenge Winner - Talk About Me
Best Doe in Show - Talk About Me
Ring 3 Judge Aaron Carter, Texas
GCH Senior Doe - Twin Creeks Midsumernitedream
RsCH Senior Doe - Twin Creeks WB Talk About Me
Best Udder of Breed - Midsumernitedream
Champion Challenge Winner - Good Day Sunshine
RsCH Junior Doe - Harmonica
1st place dairy herd (all breeds)
June
11 We showed just a few senior does in the 2-ring ADGA show that was held the day after the AGS National, and were thrilled that under Judge Rusty Repp, Gay-Mor's Nonpareil was not only GCH Senior Doe which should complete her CH status in ADGA, but also Best Doe in Show!
8-10 AGS National Show in Duncan, OK.
2006 National Champion Senior Doe and Reserve National Champion Senior Doe
MCH Goodwood Good Day Sunshine E MCH Twin Creeks BW Fantasea 2*D E
Best Dairy Herd:
MCH Good Day Sunshine
MCH Mariri's Zinnia
MCH Fantasea
MCH Mithril Silver
We had two does classified by Keith Harrell and were very pleased that MCH Twin Creeks Fantasea scored an Excellent with 90.7 points, and Mithril Silver as a 2 year old second freshener was also scored Excellent at 90.1.
May
27 South Central Texas Goat Club Show in Hempstead, Texas (ADGA)
Ring 1 Judge Julie Matthys
GCH Senior Doe - Twin Creeks BW Fantasea
RsCH Senior Doe - Gay-Mor's JJU Nonpareil
GCH Junior Doe and Best Junior Doe in Show! - TX Twincreeks WDF Happy Hour
Ring 2 Judge Anna Thompson-Hadjik
GCH Senior Doe - Twin Creeks ARG Mithril Silver
RsCH Senior Doe - Twin Creeks BW Obsidian Bay
GCH Junior Doe - TX Twincreeks WDF Euphoria
Ring 3 Judge Kris Fraley (Senior Does Only)
GCH Senior Doe and Best Senior Doe in Show! - Twin Creeks BW Fantasea
RsCH Senior Doe - Twin Creeks Midsumernitdream
6 We attended the 3-ring ADGA East Texas Goat Raiser's Association 4th Annual Caprine Classic in Lufkin, TX, this weekend. The show was small in numbers but the competition was incredibly tough - many of the senior does competing were already finished champions in AGS and most of the others had 2 legs - it was almost like one big Champion Challenge class! The judges were from other parts of the country and were very impressed with the quality of Nigerian Dwarf Show. I am very pleased and excited with how we did. In the first ring under Sam Whiteside our beautiful Zinnia was GCH Senior Doe. At over 6 months fresh she lacked the udder capacity that some of the fresher does had, but the judge commented that she was the "total package". That should be her 3rd and final leg needed for her ADGA CH status, so we pulled her from the rest of the shows. We also got a GCH on Fantasea and a junior grand on Forgetmenot, as well as a couple of reserves.
April
24 I made a
frightening discovery this evening when I went out to start bottle
feeding
and milking and discovered that heavy bred Madam Butterfly had suffered an
accident and peeled a huge area of hide off her right flank and stifle area,
completely exposing a large area of flesh underneath. An emergency trip to the
vet resulted in 30 stitches to piece her back together. Ouch!
The good news is she delivered healthy twins just a few days later and we hope she will make a full recovery and be able to resume her show career in 2007.
March
31 The
Queen of Twincreeks Farm is dead.
MCH/PGCH and 2-time AGS National Champion Twink’s Pixie was humanely euthanized today at 11 years old. I had wanted her to live forever, but failing that, at least was able to ease her passage from this world. She was suffering from cancer (yes, dark-skinned goats can get it too) which had internalized and was causing her pain. She’s meant too much to me to let her suffer needlessly.
After
seeing her at the 1999 AGS National Show, Jeff Klein, editor/publisher of United
Caprine News, wrote "...MCH
Raha Acres Twink's Pixie *D is unquestionably a phenomenal doe with the best
udder I have ever seen on a Nigerian. She would put many of her "big
sisters" to shame."
More importantly was how well she passed her attributes on to her offspring: 3 MCH daughters and 2 MCH sons to date, and her beautiful 2002 AGS National Champion and Best in Show granddaughter, Zinnia, and lots of milking ability. Her bloodlines can be found in herds throughout the country through her influential sons and grandsons such as MCH Bay Watch and ARMCH Luck of the Draw, and many, many others.
Never a people-friendly doe, she nonetheless purported herself with the utmost dignity and grace, in and out of the show ring. She was a benevolent herd queen and loving dam to her kids. It’s going to be very hard to walk out in my pastures and not see her there, queen of all she surveyed. Twinkie…..you will be missed.
MCH/PGCH Raha Acres Twink’s Pixie *D E
1994-2006
11-12 Cibolo Classic Show in Boerne, TX
We took a small show string to the Kowalik's annual show in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. The show was dual sanctioned AGS/ADGA. The weather was gorgeous this year - very warm and dry. We've had years at this show when the temperature was in the teens and icy, so this was a nice change.
The girls did very well:
Nonnie - 2 x GCH, 3 x Best Udder, 2 x Best Doe in Show! Nonnie just needs one more leg to be finished in both AGS and ADGA
Zinnia - 2 x RsCH Georgia judge Will Pearson just raved about her but she wasn't carrying quite enough milk this time to beat Nonnie.
Happy Hour - GCH Junior, Best Junior Doe in Show
Disco Darlin - GCH Junior
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February
19
Not goat related but.....we have a new family member! Meet JoJo, our Toy
Australian Shepherd. She just had her first vet visit and weighs 3.8 pounds at a
week short of 3 months old. She is very smart, loves her toys, loves to walk at
the park, and is learning to respect the cats and the goats!
January
20 Got sonograms done today! Took 21 does and all 21 does are confirmed pregnant. We have coming: 3 sets of triplets, 2 sets of 2+, 12 sets of twins, and 3 singles. It's going to be very busy around here in March, April and May!
15-16 As we've done for the past 9 years, we began our show season at the Fort Worth Stock Show. This show has always been a good one for us and this year was no exception. Our show string was small, 3 senior does and 4 juniors, including my daughter Sara's first homebred doe. In the AGS show Hill Country's Chardonnay took grand under Judge Tim Flickinger, which should be her 3rd and final leg towards her Master Championship. Also under Tim, our lovely junior doe Honeymoon Cruise was Reserve Champion Junior. Sara's doe, a Shadowfax daughter, was RsCH Junior doe under Judge Mark Baden.
In the ADGA shows Zinnia and Clementine took Grand and Reserve Senior Champ in the AOP division in both shows, and Clem's half sister, Disco Darlin, was Junior Champion AOP under Mark Baden. Clem and Disco Darlin also won Best Pair and Produce of Dam under Mark, and Produce of Dam under Tim Flickinger as well.
