The Flock

The Alamo and Cudal flocks

A hundred early kids on the ground (5/8/08)

Just getting on with the job and kidding at Cudal is well underway. Just about 100 kids tattooed by 5th August and the season looks good.

Now

The Alamo and Cudal flocks are run together. Really there is little difference between them. Alamo (CTX) was started when we imported Texan Angoras in 1984 and was supposed to hold the pure imported animals. Cudal (CUD), the original stud, was started in 1971 when there were less than 1000 “pure” Angora goats in Australia. We have come a long way since then. Now the flocks have some 700 animals developed from Imports of Texan and African animals. Each year we cull the hoggets on paddock production characters so that only positive index animals (see below) remain to breed the next drop.

Here is a graph of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd fleece weights recorded over the last 31 years at Cudal. This shows how selection and introductions have resulted in a continuous increase in fleece weights. There are drought effects and the brown line over the last 7 years reflects an almost continuous run of poor autumn/winter seasons. The big jumps in the middle of the graph were the result on importations of Texan and African material but both before, and after, the effect of selection is still visible. This is real data.

Farming Angoras

When we started Angoas were a fad (and very lucrative too) but from the start we set out to farm Angora goats, not to run them as individual pets. There is nothing more commercial than a true stud and we make our living out of mohair. We farm animals for production. It’s taken a long time to work out how to do it and we are happy to share our ideas. (See the “Australian Handbook of Angora Goats and Mohair Production”) Don’t be fooled by enthusiastic pet owners or enthusiastic large scale punters.

Breeding

Unlike any other Angora breeding flock in Australia, the Alamo Cudal animals are subjected to constant performance recording. Under the fundamental genetic principle of selection under the actual farm conditions and, only comparing animals under the same conditions, all animals are run on paddock grazing and selected or culled based on measured performance.

Each year we introduce a new buck or two to complement the efforts of our own sires. These are chosen only from the most reliable flocks and where, at least, some measurements are available. Single sire mating groups ensure we can track each sire’s progeny and we are able to produce Sire Summaries (see below) which help us to evaluate the effects of all sires.

In recent years we have introduced sires from Topbok and Phezulu, and in 2006 we purchased the top priced buck of the year from Mallee Park. Mallee Park Ned was imported as an embryo from South Africa and resulted from a mating of De Hannes Rust (Timmark) and a Deneys Hobson doe. As a yearling he was assessed as having the best fleece of all the available imports.

 (At Left: Mallee Park Ned introduced in 2006)

   (At left: Phezulu Fritz introduced in 2007)

Introductions to the breeding programs represent something of a punt. Obviously selections are made from respected studs and production evidence is of interest. However, it is wise to try to account for special preparation which might confuse or overshaddow innate qualities. The 50: 30 rule (see pp 124 of the Australian Handbook of Angora Goats and Mohair Production) is something of a help. Bucks should go close to the 50kg live weight and 30um in fibre diameter at the  third shearing.

Animal Assessment

At the centre of Alamo / Cudal's breeding program is the objective assessment of all animals. Body weight, Fleece weight, Staple length, Fibre Diameter, and CV(D) as well as style, pigmentation and conformational factors are all recorded at each shearing. What is more important is that these observations are reduced to a Fineness index (based on body weight, fleece weight and fibre diameter ) which is used to cull and select animals for breeding. The South African Fineness Index (based on the work of Dr Gretha Snyman - see The Book,  Australian Handbook of Angora Goats and Mohair Production by Stapleton and Cunningham p133) is used to provide an index value for all animals at their second shearing. Buck kids are only retained from positive index does and stud bucks for sale have to have a positive index. We sell or cull all does with a negative index. Indeed, even does with an index of less than+20 are sold and not used for breeding. The Excel program (Microsoft) listed here is a  tool which could be used by any breeder to calculate indexes in the same way as we do. You can down load this Indexer program and use it to calculate indexes for a single husbandry group of animals.

Sire summaries

Our unique performance recording system enables us to evaluate our breeding in measurable terms. We are now in a position to publish some of this information. The Sire summary section sets out each years results from 1998. Obviously it takes time to collect and display such performance information but fortunately we can follow what has happened and make some observations as to the real issues in animal breeding. It would appear that most sires produce progeny with similar measurable characteristics. This is something of a shock though perhaps not surprising since, a) the sires were selected by one person and, b) if differences were as great as generally believed in the stud industry, gains would be greater than the heritability suggest.

History

It is dangerous to look backwards. You either dwell on past glories or are forced to report your mistakes. However, it does not hurt to summarise the major issues and events of the past to demonstrate a dogmatic and consistent involvement in out industry.

There are a number of key events in the history of Alamo / Cudal. My father Max, and I purchased two does and a buck from a breeder at Moree in 1971 for a total of $1000. Luckily I had just finished a degree in Rural Science and was at least able to identify animals with all white fibre but I found very little literature available on Angoras and was in a position to begin a PhD on the subject in 1973 while a tutor in Animal Science at the University of New England. This study eventually established a fleece measurement base line for the breed in Australia and I was able to identify a seasonal growth rhythm in fleece growth and skin follicle activity.

(At right: A group of 18 month old Cudal African : Texan cross bucks on rangeland pasture )

Politics was important in a rapidly growing industry based on the back-to-nature / hobby farming ethic of the time. Angoras offered the ideal animal for small acreages and the boom was on. A somewhat grudging Goat Breed Society finally consented to the formation of the Angora Breed Society. This was in contrast to the independent establishment of the Angora Mohair Association of Australia based in Victoria. This latter organisation was ideologically aimed at farming but could not withstand the pressure from small breeders who wanted to have a few expensive registered animals to play with. It might be of interest to compare the current interest in Alpaca with the situation with Angoras in the early 1970’s.

The Cudal flock rapidly expanded to nearly 1000 animals with the aid of the purchase of first cross Angora/milk and Angora/feral animals. My father (Max) became the first president and then CEO of the ABS. In 1976 we started the pooling system for mohair selling and sent about 100kg of fibre to Bradford. This was organised under the ABS and was paralleled by a relatively unsuccessful attempt to auction individual grower’s lots (sometimes down to 3kg) in Melbourne. The ABS pooling system was regionally organised but arguments soon arose and the Riverina Pooling Centre in Narrandera decided to go independent and formed AMMO. Later the remaining ABS Pooling Centres broke away from the then AMBA (the amalgamated AMAA and ABS) to form National Mohair Pool P/L. ( www.nationalmohair.com.au ) This latter break can be attributed to a philosophy within the breed organisation that it should not be involved with marketing. The idea was that the big wool broking firms should pick up the task. Unfortunately this failed to happen leaving us "holding the baby". In 1980 Doug Stapleton moved to Cudal and late in that year Hugh Hopkins from the AWTA organised the first core testing and certification of mohair with National Mohair Pool. NMP has presale tested mohair ever since, a process only recently adopted by its competitor, AMMO.

In 1983 AQIS allowed an importation of Angoras (and some sheep) from Texas. At the same time the breed organisations were amalgamating. New Zealand government policy moved to give 150% tax rebates for investment and many animals were sold to New Zealand. In 1988 the USSR and its textile processing organisation fell apart and the mohair industry all but collapsed. It was not until 1994 that production and stockpiles were resolved and Angora breeding came back together with the release of the Texan angoras and then those from Africa.

Cudal was the head of one of the 17 Texan importing syndicates and is perhaps the only stud left intact from that event. Since then it has been more practical to buy from more recent importers.

(At left: A frightening sight for shearers. Some of the 500 mature Texan bucks in the Kirra Quarantine station in 1991)

In 1999 Doug Stapleton went to Africa with the big Expo delegation and in 2001 carried out a trail using original semen from the Texan imports. In 2003 Cudal with 4 other studs exported Angora bucks to Argentina and in 2004 Doug carried out an evaluation of the Argentinean “Mohair Programa” for the extension organisation INTA. In early 2005 Cudal exported a consignment of 9 stud does to Chubut (Patagonia).

(At right: Cudal bucks in Argentina. A remarkable experience to see your animals on the other side of the world. It should be remembered that these animals have 12 months fleece as animals are only shorn once a year in October. In addition, bellies and necks are shorn out in early winter to prevent snow and ice build up in the harsh climate of Patagonia)

(At left: 127 hogget angoras ready to be exported to Madagascar)

Also in 2005 Doug returned to South Africa to attend the International Goat Association Conference and presented a paper on the effects of the various importations into the Australia mohair flock. In 2007 Cudal was involved with exports to Madagascar sending the largest contingent of 103 Angora does and 24 bucks.

Over this time (1980-2008) Doug has overseen the marketing of mohair under National Mohair Pool and both organised, classed and sold every pool. This amounts to some 60 consecutive auction sales. Also, over this time Doug has edited the Mohair Australia News Letter for 10 years, been a long term delegate to the RIRDC Rare Natural Fibre Advisory Committee, developed the first Mohair Australia web site, developed the first on line registration scheme with ABRI, developed the set of breed and judging standards for Mohair Australia, and finally overseen the development of the current Herd Book Recording system  . This new system is the first to be developed anywhere for 20 years and is now a totally independent and stand alone system requiring virtually no oversight and no running costs.

And also, over this entire period the Alamo/Cudal flocks have been bred, shorn, recorded and marketed without a single break.

(At right: Dr Doug Stapleton in action at kidding time, retrieving a doe and kid in an intensive kidding system.)