Our judge this year is Wes Ackley from Buckfield, Maine. Wes, along with his wife, Marilyn, are long-time members of Eastern Cashmere Association joining...

Wes raises and shows cashmere goats. He is also an approved judge for Cashmeres. In addition, Wes participated in the first card grading event at the Southeast Animal and Fiber Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina along with Joe David Ross, our 2006 Rhinebeck judge.

We are very pleased to welcome Wes Ackley to Rhinebeck as our judge for Card Grading at the Eastern Cashmere Associations goat show.

When Napoleon returned to France from his exploits in Asia, he returned with a gift for his wife, Josephine: a cashmere shawl. The introduction of cashmere to Europe resulted in a demand by ladies of the court to provide them with similar shawls. These shawls were luxurious in design, soft, light and warm.

The fine, soft fibers we associate with expensive sweaters and scarves are the down under coat of cashmere producing goats. The fleece begins growing near the summer solstice and continues till some time after winter solstice when it can be harvested by combing or shearing for an average yield of four ounces.

Cashmere producing goats have traditionally been found in Asian countries, however in the 1970s Australians realized their feral goats produced cashmere down, as well. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived in America they brought with them their Spanish meat goats, which have subsequently been bred in America with the imported Australian goats. The Spanish and Australian goats, in combination or separately, have resulted in high quality cashmere along with excellent meat production.

The Cashmere Goat Show at the NY Sheep and Wool Festival showcases goats from the Northeast and Central Atlantic states. Wes Ackley is an expert in breeding, raising, evaluating and showing cashmeres, and will judge our card grading show Sunday, October 21^st at 10 AM. He will evaluate the cashmere goats on a list of characteristics related to fiber and conformation, with the information on each goats qualities recorded on a card for the owner. At the conclusion of each evaluation, the card will be designated as a blue, red, or white card. A blue card indicates that the animal is an excellent representation of most or all of the critical qualities. A good animal demonstrating many appropriate characteristics and qualities would be likely to receive a red card, and a white card would indicate the goat exhibited only some of the desired qualities or demonstrated insufficient quality on multiple elements. Wes will invite owners and audience to ask questions or make comments as this is essentially a classroom and the dynamic changes with the participants.

The festival offers you a unique opportunity to speak with cashmere breeders and see the many different cashmere goats in a central location.

2007 Eastern Cashmere Association

Goat Show

To download Cashmere Entry Form

Click here

RULES OF THE SHOW

1. All animals being presented for show must be in good health.

2. To that end the following are necessary:

a. Certificate of health filled out and signed by veterinarian including,

TB and Brucellosis test results, within 30 days of the show.

Proof of Rabies vac. within 1 year of show date. (TB and

Brucellosis for out of state goats only, although rabies recommended).

b. Scrapie tags MUST be in place for all animals attending this show.

This includes animals within NY State. Any questions please

check with your vet. Last year the NY State Vet was at this show

checking animals for proper ID.

c. Herd code plus number must be entered on entry form. The herd code is that of the farm where goat was born.

d. Good goat grooming for a show includes hoof trimming and the

removal of stained hair. REMEMBER to bring your goats fleeces, if available.

e. People showing goats for the first time, sometimes have questions

pertaining to proper handling of the animal while being presented

to the judge. Please feel free to contact us with questions.

802-684-2293, shirley0525@verizon.net

3. All animals shall be inspected upon penning or as soon thereafter as possible.

For your convenience the fairgrounds are open until very late (10pm) on Friday

Oct. 19th. For the comfort and safety of your animals, you may unload your animals into the pens designated for your farm when you arrive. If it is after 6PM on Friday, review of health records will be deferred to Saturday AM. If animals are arriving Saturday, they MUST be unloaded and all vehicles removed from the goat barn area by 9:30 AM. Please make every effort to meet this deadline.

4. We request that animals remain in the pens, on display, until the close of the show on Sunday at 4:00PM. This will provide for a full barn on both days, and a better presentation overall. Most shows have this time frame requirement.

5. Straw bedding will be provided for the pens. If you wish to purchase hay, please remember to include this on the application.

6. Please try and plan to spend some time in the goat barn to answer questions the general public may have about Cashmere goats.

7. PLEASE DISASSEMBLE PENS AND STACK ON INSIDE OF BUILDING ONCE ANIMALS ARE REMOVED FROM PENS AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE FESTIVAL. THANK YOU.

OTHER THINGS TO KNOW

There is the availability of both tent camping and camper hook up at the fairgrounds. There is a charge for RV hook-ups, and NEW RULES.

To view Camping Regulations click here

Camping will be by pre-paid permit only. If you wish to obtain a permit, please contact festival manager, Bob Davis, as soon as possible at festivalinfo@sheepandwool.com

An important item is to secure lodging reservations early as the autumn is a very popular time in the Northeast for "leaf peepers". Hotels and motels book up early.

Mail or email entry form to Shirley at addresses below.

Please make check payable to Eastern Cashmere Association and send to:

Shirley Richardson

173 Crystal Ave.

Danville, VT 05828

802-684-2293

shirley0525@verizon.net