Founded
in 1936, the American Goat Society is a democratic, member-run
organization committed to the support and advancement of the U.S. dairy goat
industry.
Although
sometimes perceived as a conservative organization, AGS is no stranger to
forward thinking. In fact, AGS has a long history of pioneering:
AGS
was the first organization to register purebred goats exclusively.
AGS
was the first to supply two generations of pedigrees on the registration
certificate.
AGS
brought the first two national shows.
AGS
was the first to provide training for goat judges.
AGS
was the first to offer classification of dairy goats.
The
American Goat Society Inc. was founded some thirty years after AMGRA (later
ADGA), because hundreds of goat breeders wanted the assurance that their
pedigreed dairy goats would be handled as purebreds, not grades. Arthur H.
Lewis was the founder and first President of AGS. In 1937, AGS merged with
International Dairy Goat Record Association, which had been established in
1925: so some of the pedigree records of AGS go back over 70 years.
In
addition to the standard dairy goat breeds, AGS has been the primary registry
for the Nigerian Dwarf Goat since 1983. This miniature dairy breed
comprises a large and dynamic part of the AGS and continues to grow rapidly.
Over 25,000 purebred Nigerian Dwarf goats have been registered as of summer
2004.
Today
AGS remains committed to serving its members and the dairy goat
industry. The services offered by AGS are intended to help breeders by
providing official classification and sanctioned shows to achieve excellence
in dairy type and conformation as well as official DHIA testing for
recognition of accomplishments in production.
