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Maidens, potential herdsires and foundation animals...
Maidens are animals that are close to or at breeding age but have not yet been bred (most females of breeding age will be bred!). These animals can range in quality. Since you cannot see any of their offspring you should look at their fiber, conformation and/or blood lines. These animals can be an inexpensive way to acquire a good bloodline. Since there is usually a fertility guarantee with most contracts the risks of buying these animals can be mitigated.

Potential herdsires...
almost every male cria is a potential herdsire! Quite honestly there are very few you can look at when they are born and know that they will be a six figure herdsire. By the time these animals are 6 months old you have a better understanding of what they will turn out like. By the time they have been shorn and their second fleece starts growing in, you will have a better idea of fleece quality. As the animal gets older the consistency and characteristics become established. Unfortunately for the buyer if these characteristics are good and a few ribbons have been acquired the cost can increase quite rapidly. Often you can acquire young males as part of a package and be quite pleasantly surprised by how well some of these little males develop. Bloodlines can play an important part in the value of these animals, but at the end of the day you have to decide if the potential is what you need as part of your breeding program. Do I need a male with density to improve the density of my herd, do I need crimp or color, do I need Accoyo etc etc.

Foundation Animals...
Foundation animals can be quite a broad category. Usually these are females that have a proven record as a breeding female. They produce live cria, provide milk for the cria consistently and are attentive mothers. You will get a variety of qualities including some that may have been shown successfuly before they started their breeding career. When you look at these animals they should have at least one characteristic of fleece or conformation that is very good, preferably more although remember there isn't a perfect animal yet! These characteristics include density, crimp, sheen, fineness, bone density and so on. Remember that you can always improve on the characteristic by "breeding up". You may for example buy a female that has great density and color but lacks good crimp - you use a herdsire that has the crimp you are looking for to produce a cria with density (hopefully color!) and crimp improvements over the mother.