Meat Goat Judging Terminology

General terms:

• Correct bite - bottom jaw must line up with the top dental pad. Some times in kids the teeth are pushed forward - but the dental pads still align. This usually corrects itself by the time their first 2 adult teeth come it. Older goats whose teeth don't align have an incorrect bite.
• Parrot mouthed - bottom jaw is shorter than the top jaw causing an incorrect bite.
• His/her mouth is out - front teeth don't line up with top dental pad - usually the teeth stick out too far. The lower jaw is longer than the upper jaw. The mouth is "undershot".
• Correct on his/her feet & legs - structurally correct.
• Tracks wide in the front/rear - walks straight & wide in the front/rear.
• Tracks well - walks structurally correct.
• Smooth over the shoulders & through the front end - wide and flat through the rack. The shoulders tie in smoothly to the neck & the ribs.
• Broad through his/her chest floor or good spring of rib - this goat will have a desired barrel shape through the ribs, his front legs will be wide apart, his rack wide & smooth, and his ribs round, not flat from the spine to the breastbone.
• Well balanced - the goat is well put together. All the parts match & tie in correctly. Symmetrical - not real wide & powerful in the front, and narrow through the hips.
• Weak/soft over the top - gives behind the shoulders, falls off behind the withers. Isn't smooth through the rack.
• Lacks volume/depth/capacity - is narrow and shallow bodied. Front legs are set close together, and the hips are usually short & steep. This animal lacks room to have a large functioning rumen system, or lungs. Does lack adequate space to carry kids.
• Lacks scale and size - not big enough for its age or sex.
• Clean him/her up on his/her feet and legs - exhibits structure problems with pasterns or hocks - usually not serve.
• Weak/down in the pasterns - pasterns are weak and give when the goat walks or stands. Goat may walk on his/her dewclaws is severe.
• Hocks in - cow hocked. Hocks turn in when the goat stands or walks.
• Splays out in the front - front feet turn out when the goat stands or walks.
• Slab sided or lacks spring of rib - flat ribbed - these animals lack volume/depth/capacity. Narrow bodied.
• Steep rumped - too much angle between the hook and pin bones.
• Short through the rump - lacking adequate distance between the hook and pin bones.
• Short through the hip - not enough distance between the hook & pin bones.
• Pinched through the withers/behind the shoulders or sharp through the rack - the rack narrows behind the withers. Usually this can be seen all the way down the ribs & behind the front legs.
• Deep through the twist - long between the bottom of the anus & where the legs split. Goats that are deep in the twist have more leg muscling.
• Carcass merit - the value of the animal when slaughtered in the carcass evaluated. Overall thickness and volume of muscle as demonstrated on the live animal indicating carcass value.
• Stylish - is well balanced and pretty to look at. Exhibits the characteristics of the type of animal you are judging.
• Eye appeal - nice to look at, flashy.
• Good wide horn set - horns set wide appart so not to catch legs. Look at the pics below to see what can happen with close set horns.

Terms pertaining to does:

• Feminine/femininity - looks like a female. Demonstrates a "feminine wedge": is larger in the rear portion of the body. Having a long feminine neck, and feminine head.
• Lacks femininity - masculine looking - short & thick through the neck & head. Doesn't exhibit wedge shape.
• Feminine wedge - has the feminine wedge shape when profiled.
• Correct mammary system - Udder is functional. Teats are correct size and configuration for kids to suck. Udder shows good attachment. Details will very with different breed standards.
• Capacity - room for growth, support functions including lungs & digestive tract. Also room to carry kids. In dairy goats they also refer to udder capacity.
• In production - in milk or heavy pregnant.

Terms pertaining to bucks:

• Masculine - looks like a male animal.
• Rugged - masculine.
• Clean fronted - free of excess hide & wrinkles.
• Exhibit's lots of breed character - shows the characteristics of that breed.
• Incorrect or immature testicles - testicles are too small for the goat's age. Testicles should be even in size. No lumps are bumps should be palpated when the testicles are examined. No severe split in scrotal sack, depending on the breed standard.

Terms pertaining to Market Goats:

• Finish/cover - amount of fat covering the goat. Goats put fat on two-thirds the way down the rib cage towards the chest floor first. The loin is the last place to finish.
• Correctly finished or correct amount of finish - wether is fed out to have the correct amount of fat covering. Is not too fat or too thin. The goat is smooth.
• Not enough finish or lacking finish - not enough fat & muscling.
• Over finished - too fat!
• Smooth over the rack - the goat is flat & shows good finish over the withers and ribs.
• Stale - past his prime. Starting to put on fat and loose their top. Internal fat causes a belly, and external fat is evident.
• Wastey - stale. Too much fat on carcass, both external and internal.
• Smooth over the rack - feels smooth over the withers and ribs.
• Top - muscling over the rack through the loin & hip.
• Short through the loin - loin (between the 12th rib & hook bones) is too short for his size.
• Short bodied - short from the shoulders through the hip. Lacking in overall body length.