ANGORA GOAT

The Angora goat originated in the district of Angora in Asia Minor.  The Angora dates back prior to early biblical history.  The Angora is a very picturesque animal in which both sexes are horned.  The ears are heavy and drooping.  The Angora goat is a small animal as compared to sheep, common goats or milk goats.  The most valuable characteristic of the Angora goat as compared to other goats is the value of the mohair that is clipped.  The average goat in the U.S. shears approximately 5.3 pounds of mohair per shearing and is usually sheared twice a year.  The Angora goat is a browsing animal, which has made it very adaptable to certain agriculture sections.  They have often been able to provide economic returns to land that is unsuitable for usual agriculture pursuits.

BOER GOAT

The Boer goat originated in South Africa and was imported into the U.S. in 1993 by stockmen with a vision to see the Boer goat affect the growing goat meat market in the United States.  The Boer goat is a very hardy animal, has a high resistance to disease, adapts well to various climates and terrains and has outstanding size and rate of growth.  It is a horned breed with lop ears and shows a variety of color patterns.   The predominant color pattern is a white body with a red head and ears.  The Boer goat is primarily being used to cross on the Spanish, Angora and dairy goats to improve meat production.

When the Spanish explorers came to America, they brought goats as a meat source.  Some of these goats either escaped or were released when alternate meat sources were discovered.  These feral goats became known as "Spanish" or "brush goats."  Although not of a specific breed ancestry, they have developed through natural selection.  The term has also been used to describe any goat of unknown ancestry.  Most are wild or at least semi-wild.  Size varies greatly due to climate, terrain and available breeding stock.  Body shape, ear shape, horns, hair and color are non consistent.

The word cashmere is the English derivation of the name of the Himalayan state of Kashmir.  The term has been used to describe the fine, soft-handling down undercoat which is produced from goats of that area.  The term cashmere could be regarded as a textile processing term with little relevance to the animal which produces it.  In the U.S., most breeds of short haired goats such as the Spanish, Boer and dairy breeds produce cashmere in varying amounts.  In the last few years the U.S. has been developing a cashmere growing industry by breeding selected cashmere goats to our short-haired goats.

Dairy goats are hardy, gentle, intelligent animals with a lifespan is 8 to 12 years.  Dairy goats are kept successfully in all climates.  While dairy goats will graze grass pastures, they prefer to browse brush lands and a varied selection of pasture plants, including non-noxious weeks.  On a worldwide basis, more people drink the milk of goats than any other single animal.  Goat milk has a more easily digestible fat and protein content than cow milk.  Many dairy goats, in their prime, average 6 to 8 lbs. of milk daily (roughly 3 to 4 quarts) during a ten-month lactation, giving more soon after freshening and gradually dropping in production toward the end of their lactation.  The milk generally averages 3.5 percent butterfat.

The Fainting (Myotonic) Goat, also known by other names as the Tennessee fainting, wooden leg, stiff, nervous, and scare goats, get their name from a characteristic called myotonia congenita, in which muscle cells cause an exaggerated response to stimulation, the inability of the muscle to quickly relax after voluntary contraction such as when they are startled. This causes them to fall down and appear to faint, yet they are conscious throughout the entire episode which can last up to 15 seconds. Myotonic goats have enlarged muscles due to this "exercise" resulting in a well built body, making them an exceptional meat goat. Their ancestry can be traced back to the 1880's, to a man named John Tinsley who appeared in Marshall Co. TN. He was thought to have brought his herd from Nova Scotia. Being a landrace breed, their size, coat length, and color are variable, yet they all share characteristics such as prominent eyes, straight profiled face, medium horizontal ears, to name a few. They have a gentle nature, are easy to raise, very adaptable, and are a hearty breed.