What Is ADGA Genetics, and Why Should Every Serious Dairy Goat Breeder Be Using It?
If you are breeding registered dairy goats and you are not using ADGA Genetics, you are essentially making major herd decisions with only half the information available.
Let’s fix that.
What Is ADGA Genetics?
ADGA Genetics is the official genetic evaluation and pedigree analysis tool developed for the American Dairy Goat Association.
It was created and is maintained by Gene Dershewitz, and it pulls together performance data from DHI milk testing, Linear Appraisal, and pedigree records into one powerful, searchable system.
The website lives at:
It is free to use.
Accounts are free.
And it is one of the most underused tools in the dairy goat world.
What Does ADGA Genetics Actually Do?
At its core, ADGA Genetics answers one question: What is this goat likely to transmit to its offspring?
Not what she looks like.
Not what ribbons she won.
Not what her sales ad says.
What she will pass on genetically.
To do that, the system runs complex statistical models, called an “animal model,” that use:
DHI production records
Linear Appraisal scores
Pedigree relationships
Progeny performance
Herd and year adjustments
This produces standardized genetic values you can compare across herds and states.
As explained in Gene Dershewitz’s conference materials , these evaluations generate:
PTA (Predicted Transmitting Ability)
PTI (Production Type Index)
ETA (Estimated Transmitting Ability)
Reliability percentages
Percentile rankings
This is not guesswork.
It is statistical prediction based on data.
What You Can Find on ADGA Genetics
Let’s break this down into the practical tools you actually use.
Production Evaluations
You can look up bucks and does to see:
Milk PTA
Fat PTA
Protein PTA
Fat % and Protein % PTA
Reliability
Percentile ranking
Elite status
PTA is the average genetic value an animal is expected to pass to offspring .
A Milk PTA of +200 does not mean the buck made 200 more pounds.
It means daughters are predicted to average 200 pounds more than breed average.
That is powerful.
Reliability tells you how confident that estimate is. Higher reliability means more data behind it. Lower reliability means more risk and more opportunity.
Type Evaluations (Linear Appraisal Genetics)
ADGA evaluates 13 linear traits plus Final Score genetically.
These include traits like:
Stature
Strength
Rump width
Rear udder height
Medial suspensory ligament
Udder depth
Teat placement
These traits are scored biologically from one extreme to the other, not “good to bad.”
As outlined in the genetic evaluation training materials:
Traits must have sufficient heritability to select for.
Linear Appraisal feeds directly into genetic type evaluations.
PTAs predict structural transmission, not just appearance.
The show ring evaluates the moment.
Type PTA evaluates transmission.
Those are not the same thing.
PTI – Production Type Index
PTI rolls production and type into one number.
There are two versions:
PTI 2:1 – Production weighted twice as much as type
PTI 1:2 – Type weighted twice as much as production
This lets you match the index to your goals.
Milk supplier? Production matters more.
Seed stock breeder? Type may matter more.
The system does not choose your goals for you.
It gives you tools to match your goals.
Planned Breedings (Pedigree Planning Tool)
This is one of the most valuable features.
The Planning page allows you to:
Select a sire and dam
Generate a projected pedigree
View calculated inbreeding percentage
See top contributors to inbreeding
Compare production and type side by side
Print results
Save to MyGenetics
The system displays inbreeding details, ETA values, and the planned pedigree together .
This means you can evaluate:
Are we stacking the same ancestor too tightly?
Will this cross likely improve milk?
Are we reinforcing strengths or doubling weaknesses?
Before you breed.
That is responsible breeding.
MyGenetics
If you create a free account, you can:
Save goats
Group goats
Save planned breedings
Use “Sire Compare” tools
MyGenetics streamlines comparison by letting you build custom buck groups and analyze them side by side.
Instead of flipping through notebooks, you have organized digital genetic planning.
Why This Matters
Let’s be honest.
Phenotype-only breeding works sometimes, but it is inconsistent.
Without genetic evaluation:
You cannot fairly compare goats across herds.
You cannot measure transmission.
You cannot quantify improvement.
You cannot control inbreeding intelligently.
Educated breeding versus hopeful breeding.
What ADGA Genetics Allows You to Do
When you learn to use it, you can:
Identify production-improving sires
Correct specific linear weaknesses
Balance milk and type intentionally
Monitor reliability and risk
Manage inbreeding strategically
Track evaluation history over time
Compare elite sires by percentile
Build a herd based on measurable progress
You stop breeding for hype and guessing.
You start breeding for direction.
It Is Not a Magic Wand
Important reality check:
PTAs can change as more data comes in.
Low reliability means wider confidence intervals.
Mating two high-PTA animals does not guarantee elite offspring.
Management still matters.
Genetics sets potential.
Management unlocks it.
But ignoring genetics limits your ceiling from the start.
Who Should Be Using ADGA Genetics?
Commercial dairies focused on components
Seed stock breeders selling breeding animals
AI users choosing semen strategically
Show herds wanting durability behind flash
Youth breeders learning to think long-term
Anyone serious about generational improvement
If you are registered and milk testing or appraising, you are already feeding the system.
You might as well use it.
The Bigger Picture
ADGA Genetics moves you from, “I like how she looks” to “Her daughters are predicted to improve rear udder height by +1.2 with 68% reliability.”
That shift changes everything.
It changes how you:
Buy bucks
Market animals
Plan matings
Evaluate progress
Talk about your herd
It replaces opinion with real data.
Final Thought
ADGA Genetics is not just a website.
It is the foundation of modern dairy goat genetic improvement in the United States.
It was built so breeders could make informed, measurable decisions instead of chasing trends.
And if you are not using it, you are leaving progress on the table.
In upcoming posts, we are going to break down exactly how to use each section step by step, in plain English, so you can start making breeding decisions with intention and understand the data to make informed decisions.
Because serious breeders do not guess.
They measure.