Kylie Hopkins of Datadoo Nubians in Australia has focused on achieving excellence in her Nubian dairy goat herd for over a decade. She and her partner Leo Thompson have forged a path that combines importing novel genetics, tireless dedication to excellence, and value-added production, strengthening the local economy in their community of Rockhampton, QLD.
How It Started
Working with SMART Reproduction, Kylie has successfully imported semen from three Nubian sires from world-class breeding programs in the United States. This market attracted her as the American Dairy Goat Association offers several unique programs for American breeders to participate in. These elements include genetic testing, DHIA, and Linear Appraisal. Breeders can use the generational information to accelerate improvement through more accurate selection if used judiciously. Before the import projects, she created a herd based on strong maternal genetics, which provided the consistency required for the fastest gains from these novel genetics.
Learn more about these programs here:
https://adga.org/performance-programs
Work Smarter, Not Harder
The initial areas of improvement that she focused on were improving milk production, lactation length, teat size, and definition, as well as improving the length, angle, and width of the rump. The listed focus areas were improved by the first importation, with an unexpected bonus. These kids and those from subsequent breedings had a common denominator: vigor. Previously, the kidding season was stressful due to the amount of human intervention the kids inevitably required and a substantial labor investment into bottle feeding.
Those days are, for the most part, long gone. While the native animals and imported genetics are from the same breed, they are incrementally genetically dissimilar enough to produce a form of hybrid vigor.Another landmark gain realized is the lactation length difference between the two groups. This element is essential when considering the farm’s thriving soap and milk-fed pork operation.
Value-Added Products
The milk produced from the does feed a pig herd, which Leo manages. The meat is then sold to the public by a local butcher in Rockhampton. Any excess animals are butchered as well, providing seasonally available goat meat at the same location. The soaps and bath products produced from the milk are visually appealing artisan goods. By using a variety of local and regional additions, e.g., dried flowers, local honey, and other botanicals, Kylie creates an end product that can only be described as luxury.
Winning in the Ring
Her dedication to quality shines through in the show ring as well! The Royal Queensland Show, or Ekka as it is more commonly known, is the largest annual event in Queensland, with over 10,000 entered into competition. (Fun fact: The breeding bull beef competition is the largest annual show of beef sires in the southern hemisphere.) The picture below is a testament to the powerhouse that is the herd in the ring at this major show in 2022. In 2023, Datadoo Playboy’s Comanche won the Herd Recording Type & Production class, Reserve Senior Champion Anglo Nubian. Check out their Facebook page for more information on day-to-day activities and successes in the show ring.
Final Thoughts
Importing novel genetics and being the leader in an industry can be challenging. Datadoo Nubians’ current herd and production quality is a testament to Kylie’s vision and dedication to excellence. Using the generational data generated from the ADGA’s DHIA and Linear Appraisal programs is cited as the tools Kylie used to create the powerhouse that is this current herd. With this in mind, Kylie and SMART ensured the world would have access to these genetics with a first-of-its-kind caprine semen collection program that ensured multi-country export qualification for these sires. Seeing the improvement in her own herd, she hopes that these sires can do the same for other herds continents away.
Pictured to the right is R108 Datadoo Playboy’s Lesa *Q* winning Grand Champion Doe
If you are interested in learning more about this herd, the fantastic products made from it, and seeing the beautiful results from these improved genetics, please visit the following links: