# Deformed kid



## goatkid (Oct 26, 2007)

Caliope, a yearling had twins today. The buckling was born deformed and I had to put down a newborn for the first time. He had a bad parrot mouth, one ear was not fully formed and he was blind on that side and on the side with the normal ear, he had what appeared to be a tiny ear under the regular ear.


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## goatkid (Oct 26, 2007)

He's the result of his dam being bred to her sire. Dam's parents were an outcross. Do you think this is just a fluke or the result of inbreeding?


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## Horsehair Braider (Mar 11, 2011)

My vet used to tell me, "If it works out it's called 'line breeding' and if it does not work out it's called 'inbreeding'. " 

Now, you have to inbreed (or linebreed) in a way. That is how traits are set in certain lines. It's just that, you may occasionally come across traits you do not want. It's like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle: if you take two different puzzles, throw the pieces on the floor and then try and put them together, some pieces may not fit - that's why you linebreed. In that case you have two puzzles that are mostly the same, so lots of the pieces will fit together. When you bring in different genetics, more of the pieces are not going to fit. Nevertheless, bringing in new blood is an important thing to do. You are going to increase whatever is there - so you must make sure that when you linebreed you use only the very best. And then, there are those times when you get an unpleasant surprise from a recessive gene. 

One of the most important lessons I learned in breeding livestock was that you just can't keep *every single* animal you breed. Some just need to be in the freezer. This is sad but necessary in improving your lines. I think you did the right thing, my hat is off to you.


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Both lines would have to carry parrot mouth, and if it's an older line you have used you would have seen even that recessive gene. With the other abnormalities I would not blame this on genetics. Inbreeding like this will show you parrot mouth, extra teats, G6S obviously, eventually a much smaller animal, but won't give you freaks.


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## doublebowgoats (Mar 6, 2008)

Aw, that's too bad. But yeah, with all that was wrong, I would say this didn't happen from inbreeding.


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## Ashley (Oct 25, 2007)

Aw, so sorry.


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## tjgoatgirl (May 2, 2008)

So sorry too. Very sad, but probably the smart thing to do.


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## SherrieC (Oct 26, 2007)

Very sorry, I would have done the same, I don't think he could've eaten well enough to grow for meat, and who knows what else was wrong.


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## Caprine Beings (Sep 19, 2008)

Bummer Kathie!


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## goatkid (Oct 26, 2007)

I really had no choice but to put him down. Those photos were taken when he was still alive. He was breathing, but that's about all. His dam had cleaned off his sister but not him and his mouth was cold. There was no way I was going to try and revive him. He didn't fight when I put him in the bucket of water.
This breeding was to the new buck I bought in '09. He's doing wonderful things for my herd. The two does out of him that have freshened so far have really nice udders with improved extension of foreudder. I just need to be careful with close linebreeding. When I checked over the sister of this kid, I noticed she has a small extra teat. It doesn't look like anything that would interfere with milking, so she gets to live. She'll be sold without tattoo or papers to someone who just wants a pet or family milker. I get so many calls for cheap goats.
I think the extra teat thing is from my buck's sire. Last year I bred Raphael to his paternal half sister and the result was a doeling with a spur teat. This year, she was bred to Raphael's son out of an unrelated doe and her twin doelings are normal teated.


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## Bernice (Apr 2, 2009)

So sorry to hear that Kathie.


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## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

Very sorry.


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