IKGA Members are Invited to Participate in the Breed Advancement Program™ (BAP)

The IKGA membership voted to adopt the Breed Advancement Program™ (BAP) at the KikoFest 2004, business meeting. The BAP is now ready for member participation.

 The BAP provides standardized data collection methods to help breeders keep good records on their farm and to advance their breeding program. Data is collected in three major areas:

 Level I (Form BAP.I) captures birth scores and weights (birth, 30, 60, 90 days and at 1 year, if applicable). Form BAP.I also collects nutrition data during the growth cycle and provides formulas for calculating average daily gain (ADG).

 Level II (Forms BAP.II, BAP.II-A) documents carcass data. It is recommended that each year, a small number of slaughter goats from selected breedings be butchered and that the hanging carcass and deboned meat weights be recorded. Tracking these data will help the breeder identify which genetic lines in his/her herd are producing the best meat to bone ratios. Participation in Level II requires the breeder to pay the processing costs of a professional butcher. Form BAP.II-A (filled out and signed by the butcher) collects key processing information and the weights taken by the butcher.

 Level III (Forms BAP.III, BAP.III-A) reports a breeder’s participation in independent university performance testing. The test site is selected by the breeder and the breeder pays the associated university fees for testing. A copy of the data from the performance study should be available to the breeder and copied directly to the IKGA Office by the performance test facility to be accepted into Level III of the BAP.

 Participation in the Breed Advancement Program™ is voluntary, and open to all Association members. Forms and basic instructions are available on the IKGA website or copies may be requested from the IKGA office by mail (P. O. Box 328, Williamsburg, KY 40769). IKGA breeders can participate at will in some or all of the BAP levels. The IKGA website will highlight each farm’s participation in the breeder member listings. Participation in the BAP is also worth points in the IKGA Farm Certification Program for those farms seeking certification. The data collected in the IKGA Breed Advancement Program may be freely used by participating breeders to advertise and market their herd genetics. The IKGA reserves the right to use the data collected for trend analysis and promotional marketing for the Association. The IKGA Breed Advancement Program™ will help all interested breeder members collect and organize the quantitative data necessary to guide their Kiko breeding programs to realize greater productivity and performance.

Jeanne Dietz-Band

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