Asal usul Kambing Boer pada dasarnya tidak begitu jelas, tetapi ramai penyelidik mempercayai ia mempunyai gene pool dari pelbagai baka terutama kambing asli Afrika yang menjadi binatang ternak suku Namaqua Hottentots dan suku asli yang berhijrah dipanggil ‘Souhtern Bantu’.
Di percayai juga terdapat pengaruh kambing dari India, Angora dan Eropah. Kelahiran kambing polled (tidak bertanduk) dipercayai mempunyai pengaruh baka kambing susu dari Eropah. Boer bermaksud ‘farm’ atau ‘ladang’ dalam bahasa Belanda. Boer yang kelihatan hari ini telah ujud semenjak awal 1900an apabila beberapa ladang di Wilayah Timur Cape, Afrika Selatan mula membuat pemilihan baka untuk tujuan pengeluaran daging kambing. Pada 1959 , pembiakan dan pemilihan Kambing Boer mula di kawalselia oleh Boer Goat Breeder’s Association (South Africa).
Berdasarkan Piawaian Baka oleh Boer Goat Breeder’s Association of South Africa, ciri-ciri Boer yang ideal adalah berbadan putih dan coklat/merah dikepala dan leher ( blaze). Kehadiran tompok coklat/merah dibahagian badan pada kadar minima adalah dibenarkan.
Boer adalah binatang yang kuat dan mantap, konformasi badan yang baik. Kaki nya pendek , tegap , berisi serta paha dan bahagian belakang yang tegap dan berotot. Ianya jelas menggambarkan ciri-ciri kambing daging yang baik.
Kambing Boer Jantan mencapai berat 110-135 ketika matang manakala kambing betina 90-100 kg. Daging Boer terkenal tentang keenakannya. Buat masa ini ia mendapat pasaran yang begitu tinggi di Amerika Syarikat terutama untuk kacukan Boer yang mempunyai 75% atau lebih darah Boer.
Ringkasan Ciri-ciri Boer
* Mempunyai gene pool dari pelbagai baka terutama kambing asli Afrika
* Diternak suku Namaqua Hottentots dan suku Southern Bantu
* Terdapat pengaruh kambing India, Angora dan Eropah
* Berbadan Putih & Coklat/ Merah dari kepala ke leher
* Konformasi badan yang baik, tegap dan mantap. Kaki pendek, tegap, berisi serta bahagian paha dan belakang yang tegap dan berotot.
Nota: Ciri-ciri Boer Standard boleh diperolehi dari : http://www.embryoplus.com/other_boergoat_standards.html
Lagi pasal BOER...
BOER GOAT
(Dipetik dari Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Boer goats commonly have white bodies and distinctive brown heads. Like the Nubian goat, they possess long, pendulous ears. They are noted for being docile, fast growth, and having high fertility rates. Does are reported to have superior mothering skills as compared to other goats. Mature Boer bucks weigh between 110-135 kg (240-300 lb), and mature does between 90-100 kg(200-220 lb).
Commercial meat production
Meat goats are minimal care animals that are browsers by nature, preferring brush, shrubs, and broadleaf weeds rather than grass. Boer goats raised for meat production are typically raised on pastures. The main reasons for this are twofold: pastured goats are on average healthier animals than pen-raised goats; secondly, it costs far less to raise Boer goats on a diet of brush and weeds, than on bags of commercial feed. The ideal option is adequate year-round grazing with only mineral supplementation. Boer goats can be raised effectively in combination with cattle due their preference browse and the resulting limited impact on the grass cover.
Trace minerals are particularly important to good goat health, especially copper. Feed and mineral blocks mark "for sheep and goats" should be avoided. Copper in quantities suitable for goats is toxic to sheep, so dual sheep/goat feeds will almost always lack sufficient copper for goats. Copper deficiency is known to cause anemia, diarrhea, infertility, spontaneous abortions, and lethargy.
Fencing
The three main cost of any Boer goat operation are land, goats, and fencing. Fencing is the second most important thing for goats after land. Without good, strong fencing, you can not have any goats. If goats are not overstocked then fencing is much less of an issue; however, goats are clever and stubborn and there is usually a few in every herd who dedicate themselves to mining every inch of the fence line looking for a weak link. Once it is discovered, they make the most of it, and the rest of the herd will not be far behind. Most farmers use 12.5 gauge fencing, with commercial 1047-6-12.5 (six-inch holes) being the least expensive and most common, however an electrically charged wire or three placed in between the goats and the fencing is often required to prevent escapes. More and more producers are experimenting with 8 and 10 strand four prong barb wire, with good success.
Bucks
The most critical part of any meat goat operation is the selection of a herd sire (breeding buck). A high quality buck can produce high quality offspring even when mated with an average doe. Boer goats tend to gain weight at about the same rate as their sire, so a buck from a proven fast growing bloodline will command the highest price, as its offspring will tend to also be fast growers. The primary market for slaughter goats is a 35-80 lb kid; kids should reach marketable size at weaning age. The kid of a proven fast-growing sire might weigh 80 pounds at 90 days, while the kid of a poor quality sire might weigh only 35 pounds at 90 days. An average quality buck will initially be less expensive to purchase; however, they can significant undermine an operations long-term profitability. Other criteria for a breeding Buck include:
* Jaw alignment – most meat goats are raised on pasture. A goat with poor jaw alignment will be at a significant disadvantage when feeding on pasture; poor jaw alignment is not acceptable in a commercial herd sire.
* Good feet and legs: needed to move about the pasture. Hoof rot is a common problem for goats that live in high rain areas if the hoofs are not clipped regularly.
* Two well formed equal size testes in a single scrotum: -the main purpose of a buck is to breed does.
For breeding purposes, one buck is normally required for every 25-35 does. Under ideal conditions the ratio can be as high as one buck for every 50 does. Bucks are normally separated from the does except for when breeding is specifically intended. Often does are bred for six weeks every 8 months, resulting in three kid crops every two years!
Successful bucks must be able to survive on pasture. Pen-raised bucks will stay near their pen, while the does they are supposed to breed are out in the pasture.
Does
Does used to breed show quality goats are normally very large, as show goats are expected to be of large stature. For commercial meat production medium size does are normally preferred as they produce the same number of kids, but require less feed to do so.
As a general rule the more kids born per doe, the greater profit margins for the owner. Boer goats are polyestrous (they can breed throughout the year), and they reach sexual maturity at 5-9 months of age. A typical breeding program is to produce 3 kid crops every 2 years; meaning the does are pregnant for 5 months, nurse their kids for 3 months, and then are rebred. Multiple births are common and a 200% kid crop is achievable in managed herds. Usually first time does will have one kid, but it is possible for them to have more. After that, they will have an average of two kids each time.
Weaning size is largely controlled by how much milk the mother produces, along with how long she allows each kid to nurse. Does weaning large kids should be kept, those weaning small to medium kids should be removed from the herd.
The presence of a buck causes does to come into estrus (heat) which lasts about 24-36 hours. The gestation period for does varies from 149 to 155 days.
Boer does are normally very good mothers requiring only minimal attention from the owner; however, this is not always true when a doe delivers her very first kid. First time moms should be supervised as the mothering instinct may not manifest itself the first time she delivers. After the first time, Boer does normally make excellent mothers. If after that a doe does not present herself to have "mothering instincts" it is best not to keep her.
Cross breeding
While purebred bucks are usually preferred for breeding purposes, it is common to use crossbreed does for kid production, with the resulting offspring being 7/8 or more Boer. Common crosses are Boer x Spanish goat, Boer x Angora goat, Boer x Kiko goat, and Boer x Nubian goat.
Percentage Boer goats are very common in commercial meat herds, and with those just starting out in the Boer goat business due to ease of acquisition and affordability. Over time, percentage animals can be bred up to American purebred status. An American purebred is a Boer goat of 15/16ths Boer blood (for does) and 31/32nds blood for Boer bucks. Bucks must be one generation of Boer breeding higher then does to achieve this status because they have the potential to spread their genetic pool much further then any single doe; a higher level of Boer blood lessens the chances of other breed qualities in the offspring. American purebreds can never be registered as fullblood, many breeders will still use a good American Purebred buck with excellent results.
Many producers still prefer purebred or fullblood bucks and does, and intentional crossbreeding is far from universal.
Show goats
Although Boer goats raised specifically for show purposes may seem to have little in common with pastured commercial goats, the difference is superficial. They are bred to be larger than normal goats, and meet specific visual appearances, but these very characteristics are valuable genes to add to the commercial herd. Boer goats were originally imported into the US and other countries for this very reason. Their value to ranchers lies in the improvement the addition of their unique genes can offer any breed of goats being raised for meat. Few producers could afford to maintain a herd of essentially useless animals. Show goats are bred to represent the most desirable characteristics of the Boer goat. And their main purpose is to introduce these animals to the public. It is also a method of recognizing the best of the best, although some really superior goats are not shown due to owner preference. Bucks and does that have been bred for show can be and often are used for commercial breeding stock.[1] To show, most Boer goats have to be registered with either the ABGA, IBGA, or USBGA.
Overstocking
Once a section of pasture has reached is full capacity, adding more goats becomes counterproductive. Adding goats does not increase the owners profit margin, instead the forage resource is depleted, the goats must browse closer to the ground which leads to far more parasites, toxic plant problems increase, overall heath of the animals declines, and the goats fail to gain weight. In addition rainfall becomes less effective because the soil has been laid bare, so what rain that does fall turns to run-off instead of being absorbed; thus drought management becomes much harder or impossible. All these factors reduce profit. It is not possible to starve a profit from livestock or rangeland.
Udder Structure
In other breeds of goats it is a disqualifying trait to have more than two teats, Boer goats have been bred to have two or four, in order to easier nurse the higher numbers of kids they have been bred to have. Although the different breed registries do not agree 100% on other aspects, they do agree that up to two teats per side is acceptable.
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