HERITAGE BREED PRESERVATION
ARAPAWA GOAT BREEDING
One of our initial works in the area of breed preservation was with Conner Prairie and the Arapawa Goats. According to the Livestock Conservancy, the Arapawa goat derives from the extinct Olde English milch goat that would have been brought to the country by English settlers. Historic records show that goats of that breed were released in 1777 by European colonist Capt. James Cook on Arapawa Island, known today as Arapaoa Island, located off the northern tip of the South Island of New Zealand. They were left on the island as a future, renewable source of meat and milk for the area. Although they eventually went extinct in the U.S., the breed thrived on Arapawa Island.
They were first imported to the U.S. in 1993.
The Arapawa goat is critically close to extinction – it is estimated that there are fewer than 300 in the U.S. and 600 worldwide. The RSG Foundation worked with Conner Prairie to use semen stored at the Smithsonian to perform Laparoscopic Artificial Insemination on 7 female does.
BREED EXPANSION
AMERICAN AUSTRALIAN WHITE SHEEP ASSOCIATION
The RSG Foundation is conducting educational virtual seminars to promote the expansion of a new breed of sheep to the U.S. developed by breeders in Australia. The newly formed American Australian White Sheep Association is promoting the meat value of this breed along with their maternal traits as a valuable option for commercial producers.
To learn more about this breed visit: https://www.aawsba.com/
