Anything and everything you ever wanted to know about LM oh I mean Goats
FACTS ABOUT GOATS
1. Goats were the first animals domesticated by man in 10,000 B.C
2. The phrase Judas goat is a tern that has been used to describe
a goat that is trained to herd other animals to slaughter while
its own life is spared.
(interesting! Never heard that one)
3. Most goats can be found in Asia and the Mid-East.
4. Goats were the first animals to be used for
milk by humans.
5. There are over 210 breeds of goats in the world.
6. There are approximately 450 million goats around the world.
7. Goats were first brought to America by Columbus in 1493.
8. Goats were regularly imported into America in the early 1900’s.
9. The female goat is called a “doe” or “nanny.”
10. The male goat is called a “buck” or “billy.”
11. A castrated male goat is called a “wether.”
12. A baby goat is called a “kid.”
13. The act of giving birth is called “kidding.”
14. The doe can have 1 to 6 kids per litter, however, 4 to 6 kids are
rare.
15. Goats do not have teeth in their upper front jaw.
16. Goats have 24 molars and 8 incisors.
17. Both male and female goats can have beards.
18. Normally goats have two teats and cows have four.
19. Goats prefer browse over grass and grass to clover.
20. Goats do not eat tin cans, clothing or
garbage, but are selective eaters when
provided with a well-balanced diet.
21. Male goats go through a period called
a “rut” when they are ready to mate. This period coincides with
the start of the breeding season.
22. The “rut” is characterized by a decrease in appetite, obsessive
interest in the does, fighting between bucks
and most notable is a strong foul-smelly
musky odor.
23. Lactating does that are kept in a pen
with a musky buck may produce milk that
taste “goaty” and can be offensive to humans.
24. Goats can be born with or without horns (polled).
25. Goats and sheep are seasonal breeders.
26. Yearlings does should be bred when they have reached 80 pounds
of body weight or when they have reached 60-75% of the adult
weight for their breed. They must also be in good body condition
and health.
27. Chevon is the French word for goat. These are animals that are
slaughtered near or shortly after weaning.
28. Goats are hollow-horned, bearded, ruminant mammals of the genus
Capra and the species Hircus. They are raised for wool, milk, and
meat in the U.S. Goats are also used to make gelatin, the man-
ure is used for fertilizer, they are used for research models in
biological studies, they are used to pull carts and for pack animals.
29. Goats are bovines and are closely related to cows and antelopes.
30. The natural life expectancy for goats is around 8 to 12 years and
in some cases, goats can live over 15 years.
31. Worldwide, more people eat and drink milk from
goats than any other animal.
32. The age of puberty for female goats is between 7-10 months and
4-8 months in male goats.
33. The breeding age for male goats is between 8-10 months
34. A mature, healthy male buck can breed 20 to 40 does.
35. The length of gestation (pregnancy) in does is between 146 to 155
days.
36. The traditional breeding season for goats in the U.S. is between
late August and the early part of January, however some goats
can breed out-of-season.
37. Goats do no like to get wet and prefer to seek shelter when it is
raining.
38. Goats are more susceptible to parasites and other infectious diseases
when they are mismanaged.
(38 is a bit dumb!)
39. Cabrito is the Spanish word for little goat (slaughtered one week
or shortly after birth).
40. Goats deposits less fat externally and more fat internally (around
the organs) compared to sheep and cattle.
41. Estrus (heat) is the period in which does are receptive to mating.
42. The estrous cycle is between 18-22 days in does.
43. The duration of estrus is 12-36 hours.
44. Signs, of heat include tail wagging, mucous discharge, swollen
vulva, bleating, mounting or being mounted by other goats etc.
45. The normal body temperature for goats is between 101.7 to 104.5
degrees.
46. The heart rate of goats is between 70 to 135 beats per minute.
47. The normal respiration rate for goats is 12 to 15 breaths per
minute.
48. Goats are quite agile creatures and in some cases they can jump
over 5 feet.
49. Goats have a four chamber stomach that contains fermenting
bacteria and protozoan that aid in breaking down their food.