Experimental Goats
Purposefully Bred ~Performance Focused
At Goodwin Family Farms, our Experimental dairy goats aren't accidental crosses. They are purposefully planned breedings designed around the qualities we value most in a working dairy goat—production, longevity, structure, and functionality. By combining genetics from established standard dairy breeds, we have the opportunity to bring together complementary strengths while selecting future generations based on how they actually perform.
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What Is an Experimental Dairy Goat?
In the ADGA system, Experimental is a registration designation used for animals that don't meet the requirements for one of the established breed herdbooks. Experimentals may result from crossing registered dairy breeds or from other pedigree situations defined by ADGA registration rules. This allows breeders to maintain pedigrees and performance records while developing animals that may combine characteristics from more than one dairy breed.
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What Does “Purebred Experimental” Mean?
The terminology can be confusing. For our breeding program, you'll see Purebred Experimental used on the registration papers of certain animals. This does not mean they are a new recognized pure breed.
Instead, these animals remain part of the Experimental herdbook while maintaining documented ancestry and registration records.
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Why Do We Breed Experimentals? Because a Good Dairy Goat Has a Job to Do.
Our Experimental program has a very specific purpose. We are working toward long-term, heavy-producing dairy goats for working homesteads and family dairies. Many traditional dairy programs revolve around breeding does every year to begin another lactation. We're particularly interested in identifying and developing does capable of maintaining strong, extended lactations. Our goal is to produce goats that can continue milking well beyond a traditional lactation when properly managed—giving homesteaders the potential for a more consistent milk supply without necessarily needing to breed every doe every single year.
What We're Selecting For
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MILK PRODUCTION
Strong, useful production that earns a doe her place in a working dairy herd.
EXTENDED LACTATION
The ability to maintain production over a longer lactation rather than simply producing heavily immediately after kidding.
STRUCTURE
Sound feet and legs, correct dairy structure, and functional mammary systems that support years of production.
LONGEVITY
We aren't breeding only for the next freshening. We're interested in goats capable of remaining productive members of the herd for years.
HOMESTEAD FUNCTION
Practical dairy goats that can work in real-world family farms and homesteads—not animals bred solely for appearance.
The Best of Both Worlds
For example:
OBERHASLI × SAANEN
Why this cross?
Then explain what you're hoping each breed contributes.
You could eventually have:
OBERHASLI CONTRIBUTES
Temperament • Breed character • Dairy qualities • Components
SAANEN CONTRIBUTES
Production • Size/capacity • Dairy character • Established production genetics
OUR GOAL
A productive, structurally sound dairy animal capable of maintaining a strong lactation for an extended period.
And you can create similar sections for each breed combination you actually use.
Performance Over Labels
We aren't trying to create goats that simply look different. We're trying to create goats that work. Every generation gives us more information.
Milk records, lactation length, butterfat and protein, mammary structure, general conformation, health, temperament, and longevity can all help determine which animals continue in the program. That means not every cross automatically becomes breeding stock. Performance determines the direction of the program.
Backed By Records ~~~ We Don't Want to Guess. We Want Data.
Goodwin Family Farms participates in DHI milk testing, giving us the ability to follow production throughout a doe's lactation. That is especially important to our Experimental program because we're interested not only in how much a doe produces, but also how long she maintains useful production.
Our Long-Term Goal
Building Tomorrow's Working Dairy Goat
Our Experimental program isn't about creating crosses just for the sake of crossing breeds. It's a long-term breeding project centered around a simple question: Can we produce a structurally sound, heavy-producing dairy goat capable of maintaining a useful lactation long enough that a homesteader doesn't have to breed every doe every year?
That's the goat we're working toward