The directory will be available on the Internet and in printed form. Producers in nearby states are eligible to have listings in the directory if they conduct business in Maryland. To be included in the directory, please fill out and return the enclosed survey (self-mailer). Feel free to make copies of the survey and give it to other producers. If you have goats, but do not sell goats or goat products, there is no reason for you to fill out the and be included in the directory.
If the goat directory is successful, a similar directory can be developed for sheep, lambs, and wool.
Download a PDF copy (294 K) of the directory survey.
Garrett College (McHenry, MD) began offering agriculture courses in cooperation with the University of Maryland Institute of Applied Agriculture in 1993. The Agricultural Management program began by offering a few courses, but has now grown into a full-time program. It was expanded in 1998 to include three major options for students: Farm/Agribusiness Management, Horticulture, and Land Management. In the fall of 2003, students will have an additional option of Equine Business Management. Students enrolling in the Equine Business Management will spend three semesters at Garrett and one at the University of Maryland College Park.
In 1997, Garrett College received a grant through the Maryland Higher Education Commission to work with agriculture businesses. The project at Garrett College involved setting up demonstration alternative agriculture enterprises to provide access to hands-on experience and information. The alterative agriculture enterprises established at Garrett College were meat goats, meat rabbits, aquaculture, and hydroponics. In 1998, Garrett established the Alternative Agriculture Center at the newly developed Center for Adventure and Outdoor Studies, which is located on a 30-acre parcel of land connected to the main campus in McHenry. The Alternative Agriculture Center is staffed with a coordinator (Kris DeWitt) and an Americorp volunteer (Amanda Gregory). Kris and Amanda provide daily management of the Alternative Agriculture Center and assist persons interested in touring the Center. The Alternative Agriculture Center promotes alternative agriculture through workshops and tours.
Willie Lantz serves as an instructor for the Agriculture Management program and as supervisor of the Alternative Agriculture Center. Willie grew up on a dairy and livestock farm in nearby Aurora, West Virginia. His family also ran a small retail feed and supply business. Willie attended Potomac State College and West Virginia University, receiving a B.S. degree in Agriculture, majoring in Agriculture Education. Willie taught high school vocational agriculture in Hedgesville, WV, for five years before coming to Garrett College. Willie received his Master of Science degree in Agriculture Education in 1993 from West Virginia University. He lives with his wife, Arlene and two sons, Aaron and Levi on a small farm in Garrett County where they raise percentage Boer goats.
The meat goat project at Garrett College is a small commercial herd, consisting
of a few dairy goat breeds, percentage Boer goats, and a few full blood does.
The focus of the project is to upgrade local goats (dairy, brush, and percentage)
through the use of full blood Boer bucks. The college has conducted a few feeding
projects. 
In 2002, the Alternative Agriculture Center received a grant which provided funds to develop and pilot a record keeping project. Willie Lantz developed a meat goat record keeping database based on the FileMaker Pro database program. Five local producers,
along with the college, are piloting the record keeping program. Plans are to expand the project to include more producers in 2003. In 2003, the Alternative Agriculture Center has also received a small grant to develop a rotational grazing demonstration project at the college.
Garrett College along with the MPWV Meat Goat Producers Association will be sponsoring the 6th Annual Meat Goat Conference on Sunday, June 8. The two organizations will also be hosting the 4th Annual Mt. Top Boer Goat Show and Production Sale at the Garrett County Fairgrounds on Saturday, June 7. The show and sale will be held in conjunction with the McHenry Highland Festival.
Editor's note: On July 1, 2002, Garrett Community College officially changed its name to Garrett College.
Web site: www.meatgoat.biz
While sheep numbers declined nationally, they increased 1% in the Southeast region, which includes Maryland. Sheep numbers increased 5% in VA, 8% in NY, and 7% in OH, but declined 8% in WV and 3% in PA. No change was noted in the New England states.
The only goat statistics reported were in Texas and the other major mohair-producing states. Texas goat numbers declined 4% from a year ago, while mohair production in TX, NM, and AZ was up 8%, though receipts were down 20%. In the future, NASS will report goat statistics from more states.
Make sure your sheep and goats are counted!
Call 1-888-4AG-STAT if you need an extension to fill out your 2002 Census of Agriculture form or if you did not receive a form in the mail. The deadline for filling out the Census form is March 15. If you have $1,000 in agricultural sales (or potential), you qualify as a farm and should fill out the Census. It is especially important that sheep and goat producers take the time to complete the form, since our industry is likely under-represented.
The loan rate for ungraded wool in our region (1) is 42 cents per pound. The posted price for ungraded wool for the week of 2/12/03 to 2/18/03 is (was) 36 cents per pound. The LDP payment is the difference between the loan rate and the posted price, so the LDP would be 6 cents per lb. (0.42 - 0.36 = .06/lb.). Payments are also available for unshorn lambs. Sign-up is at local FSA offices.
Pasture meat production has become a sustainable agriculture practice under quite a bit of scrutiny lately. Small ruminants are ideal for small acreage and offer farmers/producers a chance to make a profit without excessively high input costs.
Issues involved in pasture small ruminant meat production, especially in sustainable systems, include labor inputs (foot trimming, vaccination/deworming, shearing, offspring processing, etc.), parasite problems, and pasture maintenance. In order to maximize outputs and lower inputs from market sheep and goat production (especially on pasture), the breed of animal you raise should complement your labor inputs and pasture/feeding situation.
There are many different breeds of sheep and goats, so there are many options
available to you. When considering strictly market (meat) animal production,
not necessarily breeding stock production, no one breed is absolutely ideal
for every situation. But through crossbreeding, you can "create" a "breed" that
is ideal for your specific inputs to increase your output (and thus profits).
You could use a crossbred for breeding stock or just produce them for market
(meat) and benefit either way. 
Crossbreeding occurs naturally, as with dogs ("mutts or mixed breed"), cats ("domestic shorthair"), horses (quarter horse "type") and other pets. Genetically, crossbred animals are hardier and more productive than the average of their parents or parent breed. For example, our Boer x Spanish cross females are meatier than purebred Spanish but breed out-of-season better (and are hardier) than purebred Boer. This crossbreed could be used as your doe herd, or you could have a group of Spanish females and a Boer buck and take advantage of the purebred characteristics and benefit through a better market animal produced with lower inputs. Replacement females could be produced by buying or borrowing a purebred Spanish buck to breed only your top 10% maternal females every year or by using a Spanish buck every other year.
A "sheep" example of utilizing cross-breeding would be our Katahdin x White Dorper crossbreds. We choose a Katahdin female as our ewe herd because of her maternal characteristics combined with "easy care" characteristics of this hair sheep breed. However, although she is more muscular than many hair sheep breeds, she is primarily a "mother" breed and she is not meant to be extremely meaty. Crossbreeding can increase the meat in our market animals by breeding the Katahdin females to our White Dorper, Texel, or Suffolk sire (depending on the market for which they are bred). A Katahdin x White Dorper hair sheep (just a small percentage of White Dorper) could maintain hair sheep characteristics of no shearing, hardiness, etc., while adding a bit more muscling, so using that crossbreed with a different breed sire (our Texel or Suffolk for example) would give even more of cross-breeding benefits.
The fact that there are so many breeds already available means producers can create their own breeds (crossbreeds) perfect for their own situation. Some researchers are trying to create a "perfect" breed for sustainable small ruminant production by cross-breeding. But in all actuality, there are so many different types of individual sustainable farms in vastly different climates with different local markets. Therefore, a researcher could not create any one universal "perfect" breed. But individual farmers can create a crossbreeding system that works for their pocket.
For information about crossbreeding, contact Susan Schoenian, Niki Whitley (410-651-6194; nwhitley@umes.edu) or your local University or Extension livestock personnel.
Chris Parsons and Susan Schoenian of the Northeast Sheep and Goat Marketing Program had the experience of selling a group of goats through the New Holland Sales Stables, in New Holland, PA on October 7, 2002. The goats were from another Cornell University project, "Goats in the Woods". These animals were in market condition and included Boer crosses and dairy goats. Information on the Goats in the Woods project can be found at: www.dnr.cornell.edu/ext/goatsinthewoods.
The purpose of the trip was to market the goats. In the process, we were able to document the shrink of the goats on the 245-mile trip and to request that the goats be sold by the pound. This provided first-hand experience about the feasibility of lamb and goat producers using this major regional market.
Each goat was weighed as it was put on the truck. Weighing started at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, October 6, 2002, and was completed by 4:30 p.m. when Chris Parsons started driving the truck to New Holland. The goats were unloaded at New Holland at 10:30 p.m. and there was a $0.25 charge per animal for hay and water overnight.
Susan met Chris at the auction barn the next morning. The auction started at 9 a.m. and the goats sold at 11 a.m., 19 hours after they were loaded the previous day. Although the sales manager has been resistant to selling goats by the pound, he agreed to sell the "Goats in the Woods" by the pound.
The 42 animals weighed a total of 2,527 pounds, for an average starting weight of 60 pounds per head. The total sale weight was 2,283 pounds, for a loss of 244 pounds or a 9.6% shrink. Thus, the average selling weight was 54.4 pounds. The average price paid was $0.91 per pound or $49.50 per head. Fuel ($81.00), tolls ($6.80), and meals for the driver ($18) made the trucking cost $105.80, or $2.52 per goat. The sales commission per animal was $4.00 for total sales cost of $6.52 per goat. Thus, the net return on the New Holland sale weight was $42.98 per head or $0.79 per pound. The net return per pound of starting weight was $0.72 per pound. If the animals could have been sold from the farm for $0.91 per pound, or $54.60 per head, then the difference in price would have been 21% or higher. Recognizing that there are significant costs associated with on-farm marketing, the information gathered on this marketing trip to New Holland can be used to evaluate whether marketing from the farm makes economic sense.
Shrink (244/42 x .91) . . . $5.29
Trucking ($105.80/52) . . $2.52
Commission ($4/head) . . $4.00
Yardage ($0.25/head) . . $0.25
Total marketing bill . . . $12.06
NESGMP staff traveled to New York City the week of October 14, 2002 to make final arrangements to sell to a live market facility for the Ramadan market. Several producers accompanied the staff to help explain to the live market owners the type of animals they will be able to provide. By seeing first hand the type of animals being sold through the NYC live animal markets, producers and NESGMP staff were able to better grade the livestock being shipped to them. The objective was to establish several permanent pools of goats and lambs to service the NYC markets.
Update
A pool has been established whereby 15 producers have been supplying a live market in Queens, NY, with market sheep and goats. So far, over 300 animals have been sold at a value of almost $30,000. The animals being sold are kid goats and lambs weighing between 80 and 100 lbs. Some cull animals have also been sold for similar prices.
The effect of nutrition and growth rate on the development of the sheep's mammary gland is recently receiving more attention from researchers both in the United States and abroad. Most sheep producers understand that providing young animals with adequate high quality feedstuffs is crucial for growth and development, which subsequently affects market weight, fleece yield, and reproductive efficiency. However, the old adage of "more is better" may not necessarily be true when it comes to growing replacement ewe lambs. A large amount of research now indicates that rapid daily gain in pre-pubertal replacement females can significantly reduce udder growth. By growing replacements as quickly as possible, sheep producers may be producing ewes with less capacity for milk production and, in effect, may be shooting themselves in the foot, or they are spending money on feed supplements for ewe lambs who then become less productive milkers precisely because they grew so well as lambs.
This brief report summarizes current findings from scientific literature that we recently reviewed and reported in The Shepherd Magazine (April 2002) and in the proceedings of the 6th Annual Great Lakes Dairy Sheep Symposium held in Eau Claire, WI, in Nov. 2001.
Within the mammary gland are two types of tissue which actively interact with one another during growth and development, and which ultimately affect lactation performance. The "parenchyma" refers to tissue made of epithelial cells, such as the cells that will eventually secrete milk and the cells that make up the ducts that will transport milk. The "stroma" or fat pad, includes the support and framework of the mammary gland and is made up of adipose tissue (fat) and connective tissue, blood vessels, nerves, and the lymphatic system. Although growth of these tissues is under separate hormonal control, there exists a dynamic relationship between mammary epithelial cells and the fat pad during mammary development, especially prior to puberty.
During the first month or so of the ewe lamb's life, the parenchyma and the fat pad grow at similar rates to the rest of the body (isometric growth). During the second or third month of life; however, the mammary gland embarks on an increased growth rate (allometric growth) relative to the body. This growth is primarily influenced by growth hormone (GH). During this period of allometric growth (prior to puberty), epithelial cells of the ducts extend into the fat pad, forming more ducts and also laying down the groundwork of the eventual sits for milk synthesis (alveoli).
It is precisely during this time of allometric growth that nutrition and growth rate of the animal can have a major impact on mammary development and subsequent lactation performance. A high level of nutrition (specifically: dietary energy level, rather than ration formation or total intake) prior to puberty in lambs is understood to inhibit GH levels in the blood via complicated hormonal mechanisms. Furthermore, the mammary gland also becomes insensitive to other hormones and growth factors as a result of high feed levels. Thus, high feed levels result in less allometric growth of the mammary gland, which is strongly correlated to decreased milk production.
Reduced udder growth prior to puberty in dairy heifers (result of high growth rate prior to puberty) can result in 10 to 17% less daily milk production during the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd lactation, compared to heifers grown at a slower growth rate. Research in dairy cattle indicates that growth rates prior to puberty should be adjusted to achieve 65 to 75% of ad-lib feeding levels in order to not decrease mammary development and subsequent milk production. Following puberty, high feeding levels do not appear to have a negative impact on mammary development. Moreover, the relationship between growth rate and milk production is curvilinear and is dependent upon the animal's genetic potential for growth and milk production. In other words, animals with higher genetic potential for milk production will have higher optimal daily gain and, therefore, higher feeding levels in these animals (relative to animals with lower genetic potential) should not prove to be as deleterious on milk production. In light of these findings, producers may want to group replacement animals for pre-pubertal growing based on their parents' genetic potential for milk production.
In summary, replacement ewe lambs are most sensitive to the negative effects of high feeding levels on mammary development during the pre-pubertal period. High levels of feeding after puberty appear to have no negative effect on mammary development and actually will improve live weight and breeding and subsequent reproductive efficiency.
1 Tolman Sheep Dairy Farm, Cazenovia, NY
2 Department of Animal Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI
This research review was funded by a SARE (Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education) Farmer/Grower grant.
Because the organism can survive for long periods of time in the soil and surrounding environment, eradication of CLA can be a lengthy and frustrating process. However, eradication should be considered because of the economic impact and human health risks of the disease. The lesions associated with CLA can be found in animals less than 6 months old, but may occur and recur throughout the lifetime of an animal. As the animal ages, the chances of developing the disease increase. This is most likely due to repeated exposure to the organism.
Economic Importance: Losses from CLA are difficult to quantify and are
due to a large number of factors. The visceral form (abscesses of internal organs)
is the cause of significant economic loss in the sheep and goat industries due
to condemnation of carcasses. One source ranks CLA as the third most significant
cause of condemnation at slaughter. The superficial form (abscesses of lymph
nodes and other areas just under the skin) is the cause of abscess scars that
decrease pelt value. Other causes for loss include decreased weight gain, wool
growth, milk production, and reproductive efficiency. In addition, affected
animals are unthrifty, frequently culled prematurely, and occasionally die.
Increased somatic cell counts in dairy animals and decreased value of breeding
stock have also contributed to economic losses. 
Clinical Signs: Two forms of the disease have been described. The superficial form involves abscessed and enlarged lymph nodes that are located closest to the skin surface. Most commonly, the lymph nodes around the head (intermandibular, parotid, retropharyn-geal, and cervical) and lymph nodes near the origin of the limbs (prescapular, prefemoral, and supramammary) are affected. The second or visceral form of the disease involves abscesses of the internal organs and lymph nodes and is often associated with long term debilitation.
The organs most likely to be affected are the lungs and associated lymph nodes, kidney, liver, and mesenteric lymph nodes. Both forms are found in sheep and goats; the superficial form is more common in goats, and the visceral form is more common in sheep.
The involved lymph nodes are distended by a thick and often dry discharge (purulent exudate) that is a white, yellow, or greenish color. If external lymph nodes are affected, there is a well-defined, non-painful swelling that grows larger over time. If left untreated, the skin covering the node will become thin and the abscess will eventually rupture to the outside, releasing exudate and bacteria into the environment.
Disease Transmission: In both sheep and goats, direct contact with the bacteria results in infection. Such contact can occur when the infectious material of a draining abscess from one animal touches another animal, allowing the bacteria to enter through the skin or mucous membranes. Because the bacteria are capable of surviving for extended periods of time (months to years) in the environment, surfaces can harbor organisms and continuously infect animals as they come in contact with them. It is believed that feed bunks become easily contaminated, particularly in goat herds, resulting in the high occurrence of abscesses around the head and neck in this species. In sheep, the bacteria are spread most commonly at shearing through contaminated equipment. Contaminated sheep dips have also been implicated. Crowding during shearing is another mode of transmission.
Numerous routes of infection have been studied experimentally. Researchers have shown that the organism is capable of entering the lungs by inhalation and can spread to internal organs by injection into the bloodstream. Studies also show that it can cross the membranes of the digestive tract and vagina, and that a break in the skin is not needed for an animal to become infected.
Diagnosis: The superficial form of CLA is usually diagnosed based upon the presence of abscessed lymph nodes and culture of C. pseudotuberculosis from abscess contents. Enlargement of one or more superficial lymph nodes with discharge is suggestive of the disease, but should not be the only criteria for diagnosing this disease.
A necropsy may reveal internal abscesses that can also be cultured for confirmation. If CLA is suspected, a gram stain to reveal gram positive, club-shaped rods may aid in determining if an animal should be isolated while awaiting culture results. There are also blood (serologic) tests available that can detect animals infected with early (no abscess formation) or internal forms of CLA. There is a wide variation in the accuracy and cost of these tests. False positives will occur in animals that have been vaccinated against CLA.
Other Causes of Abscesses and Disease: Staphylococcus spp., Streptococcus spp., and Actinomyces pyogenes also cause abscesses. It is important to confirm that the cause is truly Corynebacterium pseudotuber-culosis before initiating stringent control or eradication measures. When the internal form is present, a chronic wasting disease may be all that is apparent. In such cases, it is important to consider the possibility of other problems such as abnormal or poor teeth, Johne's disease, pasteurella pneumonia, ovine progressive pneumonia, scrapie, internal parasites, neoplasia, or inadequate nutrition.
Once the organism enters the body, it travels to local lymph nodes where it forms an abscess. The bacteria release an exotoxin (a toxic phospholipase D or PLD) that causes an intense inflammatory reaction and enables the bacteria to move into the lymph nodes. The healing process causes the development of a thick wall surrounding the bacteria. The bacteria continue to multiply inside the abscessed lymph node. With time, many of the abscesses rupture, causing the bacteria to contaminate the environment and other animals.
Source: Small Ruminant Production Medicine and Management CD-ROM. Reprinted with permission from Infovets (www.infovets.com).
Look for Part II in the next issue.
More stats . . . .
The equipment is intended mostly for limited- resource producers and small producers and 4-Hers who cannot justify the purchase of such equipment. Contact Susan Schoenian at (301) 432-2767 ext. 343 or ss80@umail.umd .edu, if you are interested in borrowing any of the equipment listed above. In addition, let us know if there is other equipment you would like to see available.
www.cvm.umn.edu/smallruminant/
Topics
Nutrition for the small ruminant
Parasite control strategies
Judging and showing tips
Sheep dog demonstration
Marketing Update
Call (301) 475-4484 to register or for more information.
March 15 (see article)
MPWV Meat Goat Producers Spring Meeting
Garrett College, McHenry, MD.
Contact: Willie Lantz.
March 28-29 (see article)
Beginners' Sheep Shearing School, Westminster, MD
Contact: David Greene at (301) 329-6241.
March 31 (see article)
Deadline to sign up for wool and mohair marketing loan payments (LDP's).
Contact: Local FSA office.
April 12 (see article)
Sheep and Goat Production Workshop.
8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
St. Mary's County Fairgrounds.
Contact: Ben Beale at (301) 475-4484 or bb165@umail.umd.edu
May 3-4 (always the first full weekend in May)
Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival
Howard County Fairgrounds, West Friendship, MD.
Contact: (410) 531-3647 or info@sheepandwool.org
June 7-8
Mt. Top Boer Goat Show1 and Production Sale and 6th Annual Meat Goat
Conference2.
Garrett County Fairgrounds1 and Garrett College2, McHenry,
MD
Contact: Willie Lantz at (301) 387-3331.
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by Maryland Cooperative Extension or the University of Maryland. Mention of
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Cooperative Extension that no person shall be subjected to discrimination on
the grounds of race, color, sex, disability, age, religion or national origin.
 The
Maryland Sheep & Goat Producer is published bi-monthly by University
of Maryland Cooperative Extension. It is edited by Susan Schoenian, Area
Agent for Sheep and Goats at the Western Maryland Research & Education Center.
Dr. Niki Whitley, UMES Extension Animal Scientist is a regular contributor
to the newsletter. To subscribe to the newsletter, contact Susan at the
Western Maryland Research & Education Center, 18330 Keedysville Road, Keedysville,
MD 21756, (301) 432-2767 ext. 343, fax (301) 432-4089; e-mail: ss80@umail.umd.edu.
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