Hi everyone, I thought I would dive into some dairy goat manuevering today. I took this segment directly from my dairy goat showmanship book so that you can get some of the great tips there for free. Even if you are a showman interested in master showmanship or round robin. Understanding the show ring is key! Manuevering in dairy goats can really be tricky, so the more you know the more you can stand out as the expert on show day. In this blog, I am going to teach you my first two manuevering rules.

Basic Maneuvering Rules

You may be asked to make U-turns and switch places with other showmen. Doing this will be much easier if you understand the basic rules of show ring maneuvering. 

The first basic rule is that you must always keep your goat between you and the judge. Perhaps as I explain something it may seem like it would be easier to just make a loop around and change direction, but it is taught this way for a reason. The simple U-turn is necessary when you change direction because you must keep the goat between you and the judge.

The second basic rule only applies to a head-to-tail line. This rule is similar to the first. It is that all showmen who are instructed to move to another part of the ring are to move their animal by walking them in front of the line of goats closest to the judge. Under no circumstances should a showman walk their goat along the rail with the head-to-tail line of goats between him and the judge. If you have been asked to move, you have the judge’s solo attention on you. Keep your goat in view as much as possible. 

The tricky thing about this rule is that it does not apply to a side-by-side line. In the case of a side-by-side line, you are allowed to just pull forward in whichever direction you are facing and go to your new place in line.

In a side-by-side line always pull forward whether you are facing towards or away from the judge. For simplicity, in these examples it will be a side-by-side line where the goats are facing away from the judge. In that case, the showman should pull their goat forward away from the judge, go to the place they were instructed to, go through the line of goats, do a simple U-turn and then walk in and set up in place.

That is my first two manuevering rules. There are a few more rules that I will probably come back and write some blog posts on, but if you want the entire chapter, check out the book. This comes directly from my book Show Your Way to the Top at mastershowmanship.com/shop or even grab it on amazon if you prefer!