Tool Description
Pedigree Search This tool will allow you to find a pedigree even if the animal has no evaluation data. Also makes it easier to search by name or registration #.
Planned Pedigree Want to see what a breeding decision looks like before actually doing the deed? You can do this easily by supplying sire and dam registration numbers. Output includes complete pedigrees, predicted ETA of offspring and coefficient of inbreeding along with inbreeding detail.
USDA Buck Yield PTA Data Viewer Trying to decide what buck to use to increase milk, fat and/or protein? The USDA takes DHI records for goats and does an annual run to calculate the Predicted Transmission Ability (PTA) for bucks with daughters recently completing lactations the previous year. This tool allows you to view the fruits of this effort and will help you make informed breeding decisions based on years of performance data. The definitive article on the science behind this can be viewed at the AIPL site. Last update 7/2004.
USDA Buck Type PTA Data Viewer Need to make an informed decision on what buck has the highest probability of providing improvement in a specific linear trait? USDA has been collecting and analyzing ADGA Linear Appraisal data since the inception of the the program. Here is a tool that allows you to look at USDA Buck Type data from various angles. Graphical view of PTA values. Last Update 1/2004.
PTI/ETA Index Search Here is a tool that will allow you to sort and search the indexes calculated from USDA evaluation data. The PTI (Production Type Index) combines yield and type evaluations into a single value. There are 2 flavors: PTI 2:1, weighted 2 to 1 production over type and PTI 1:2, weighted 2 to 1 type over production. Also included are the ETA (Estimated Transmitting Ability) indexes. These give us an indication of how likely an animal is on passing on improvement to progeny. This a calculated from the PTIs of sire and dam. Again, there are the same two flavors as PTI. See the presentation below for more info.
Improving Dairy Goats Presentation Here is a Powerpoint presentation I put together to help you understand and use the data the USDA puts out and that my tools display. You will need either Powerpoint installed on you computer or the Powerpoint Viewer which is available via free download from Microsoft.
Dairy Goat tools FAQ Everything you've always wanted to know about using the tools on this site.