BREEDER’S Spotlight
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dvanced Boer Genetics is owned by Aaron and Denise Crabtree of Chillicothe, Ohio. Their mission is to breed, raise and sell high quality fullblood Boer goats without sacrificing their dedication to being good, ethical people – good to buy from, good to sell to and good to be associated with. You can visit www.advancedboergenetics.com to get a sneak peek at their herd. The Crabtrees have a live virtual feed that allows visitors to view their herd for up to 30 seconds – now that’s advanced!
How did you get started in the Boer goat industry? Like many of our fellow breeders, our children were involved in 4-H, and goats were their favorite project. As our children grew, so did our love for Boer goats. When our children graduated, we realized that we also enjoyed working with livestock. So about eight years ago, we start-
I would have never thought that we would be so interested in goats. If someone would have told me 7-8 years ago that I would be in the Boer goat industry, I would have laughed. ed purchasing foundation stock. Our glamorous operation consisted of three goats and a dog box, and we were darn proud of it.
What does you operation look like today? Our herd has grown from 3 to 150+. In 2014, we purchased a small farm of about 40 acres and built a new 10,000 square-foot facility equipped with living quarters and in-house accommodations for embryo transfer. The barn
16 - The Boer Goat
has 24 custom pens with individual exterior runs and indoor arena for the babies to play that serves as an overflow during kidding season. The building has twin hay mounds that handle approximately 2,000 bales of hay, which was a big issue for us in the past. The barn is surrounded by five separate pastures, which allows our herd to exercise and works for pasture rotation to help us avoid issues related to over grazing.
What do you enjoy the most about the Boer goat industry? There are so many things we love about this industry and lifestyle, but a few things stand out in our mind. First, we are not exactly what you would call socialites, but we have made so many genuinely true friends all over the United States, and believe it or not, we spend a considerable
Having kids almost year round is great. There are always babies to raise. They give us a chuckle when we need it, and they lighten the atmosphere when we need it most. amount of time socializing with them in a non-goat environment. We have actually been known to go out to dinner,
