Fouchè Blignaut (67), a well-known and dedicated Boer goat breeder, died of a heart attack on Sunday, 31 Augustus 2025.
By Vida Booysen, Senior Journalist at African Farming and Landbouweekblad
He collapsed at O.R. Tambo International Airport while preparing to board a flight to Namibia with fellow breeders Stephanus Malan and Joubert Fourie of the South African Boer Goat Breeders’ Association (SABGBA). The three had been invited to serve as judges at the Stampriet Show.
“Fouchè was a true gentleman and an ambassador for the Boer goat breed, and a great friend to everyone in the industry,” says Kobus Lötter, president of SABGBA. “In a relatively short time, he made significant progress in the industry and already bred a world champion ram. His passing leaves a void that no one can fill, but his name will live on in the Boer goat community.”
Blignaut, who farmed on Goedgedacht near Groblersdal, Limpopo, established the Shongololo Boer goat stud in 2014. According to Franscois Bouwer, his farm and herd manager since 2016, the stud grew from 150 animals in 2019 to its current 850 herd and stud animals. In 2023, Blignaut and Bouwer also established a Kalahari Red stud, introduced Saanen dairy goats and started a Persian sheep stud.
Shongololo Stud has achieved several notable successes in recent years. In 2022, Blignaut acquired the ram Alfa, bred by Hermien Burger Burke. A year later, Alfa was named Grand Champion Ram at the Boer Goat World Show in Bloemfontein. In 2024, the stud placed second in the Bosveld Boerbokklub Regional Championship Show. In 2023, it also recorded a milestone by conducting the first successful in vitro fertilisation of Boer goats in South Africa in collaboration with Embryo Plus in Brits.
Bouwer describes Blignaut as a deeply respected figure in the industry. “Oom Fouchè always made time for both new and established breeders. He especially supported newcomers with honest and sincere advice. I will remember him as an honourable and fair, yet straightforward person, who never hesitated to correct you if it could make you better. One of his favourite sayings was: ‘We know that we do not know, and that makes us better breeders.’”
Blignaut is survived by his wife, Louise, his four children, Fouché, Bertus, Rene and Leani, and seven grandchildren. His memorial service will be held on Friday, 5 September 2025, at 12:00 on the family farm Goedgedacht, Groblersdal.
The Shongololo Stud auction will go ahead as planned on 25 October 2025 at the Fire and Wine Arena in Pretoria, starting at 11:00.
