Prior to the gold rushes flocks of grazing animals, goats and sheep were controlled by shepherds. Most abandoned their charges in favour of making their fortune on the gold fields. The landowners then had to make some attempt at fencing their runs. Rudimentary fences could be erected to control sheep, who on large runs without fences would keep to the open plains. The goats were not controlled by fences and actively sought the rougher country as their grazing environment. Thus forming the large herds of wild (or feral) goats that became well established in much of inland Australia. Eventually the spread of settlement pushed these herds back into the semi arid sparsely settled areas of the country.

Cashmere was effectively rediscovered on Australian goats in l972 when two CSIRO researchers Dr. Ian Smith and Mr. Wal Clarke identified cashmere on some feral goats under inspection at the property of The Australian Mohair Company at Brewarrina. For a number of years the CSIRO maintained a small research herd of selected animals at their Prospect laboratory until budget restraints forced their dispersal.

By the late l970’s a number of breeders were toying with the concept of developing and breeding an Australian cashmere goat.

The ‘Karakan Cashmere Herd’ was established early in 1979 with 50 selected feral females from the Ivanhoe area in New South Wales. The foundation bucks were a brown feral and a "Cashmere Type" from the "Midnight Family".

Over the next two years, a further 360 females, from a wide variety of backgrounds, were introduced. These animals were selected by screening over 10,000 goats from all parts of New South Wales and Southern Australia. A fortunate find was a small herd of 40 animals that dated back to the original 1972 CSIRO Selection. All animals were selected for ‘fleece growing potential’, frame size, and conformation of feet, mouth and udder.

Cashmere bucks from other bloodlines were introduced at various intervals between 1979 and 1986. Karakan also participated in a Group Breeding Scheme with Cashco and Woodstock herds, (before they were both sold to New Zealand), using two common reference sires.

The Breeding Program.  From 1979 to 1989 all females were single sire mated and the progeny recorded against both sire and dam. Extensive progeny testing was carried out using objective measurement. All fleece testing was done by the AWTA using ‘Shirley Analyser’ and LaserScan technology.

Over the decade every breeding technique available was used, including ‘inbreeding’ of certain superior Sires. The massive amount of information generated was originally recorded on Punch Cards. This was converted to computer in 1984.

A spin-off from data analysis was the eventual development of the CashStud IBM computer program. This program with its sophisticated analysis tools, including an EBV (Estimated Breeding Value) option became the recording system of choice for major breeding projects in Australia, New Zealand, USA and UK.

Table 1. Average Clean Down Production/Head in the Karakan Herd.

Individual down weights show something of the potential. Karakan R662 won the ACGA National Fleece Competition in 1987 with 509 gm. Down at 15.79 um. 69.4% yield.  The buck Karakan R5251 winning its class in 1987 with 780 gm. at 18.74 um. 60.7% yield.   Over the years of the ACGA National Fleece competition Karakan and other herds have produced many animals in the range of 500 to 850 gms of down. At today’s prices these figures equate to $50 - $70 annual fleece production per head.

In 1991 the Cashmere industry world wide entered a period of severely depressed pricing. Syndicate mating of the herd was commenced and tagging of offspring at birth discontinued.

A system of selection at shearing time was developed based on total fleece weight and a visual scoring system. Emphasis was placed on down length, style, and fibre diameter. The aim being to hold the herd at an average around 16.8 um while increasing down production.

Within two years this classing program had eliminated all ‘off’ types and low producers. Classing was done to a standard not to a number. The stud herd was reduced from about 1500 animals to about 650. Numbers were held at 650 from 1993 to 1997.

This change in program seems to have had some unexpected benefits. In 1993 it was noted that the animals were holding their fleece without shedding, longer than expected. The 1993 shearing was delayed for 2 weeks. It was delayed for a further 2 weeks in 1995 and again in 1996. In 4 years, the onset of shedding in the flock had moved from the end of July to the second week in September. In 1997 the animals were shorn for other reasons at the end of August with no sign of a shedding.

Yield % also seems to be visually on the increase culminating in the appearance of two animals, which as yearlings, were growing an almost pure down fleece.