Page 65 - World of Animals - Issue #28 Magazine

Goats

Their wool is historic
The wools of the angora and cashmere breeds
of goat are prized for their softness. Angora
goats have been bred and their mohair fleece

harvested since the 14th century BCE. Any
goat can produce a cashmere coat, but those
that produce a downy winter fur in high
quantities are known as cashmere goats.
One goat is not a goat
The mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) is
not a true goat, and is not part of the Capra
genus. Mountain goats fall into a different genus
for many reasons; their mountain homes call for
an extra woollen layer, and a different type of
fur to defend against the cold, and both males
They are really and females are crowned with pointy horns.
not-so-silly billies

Despite their often vacant facial You can tell their age
expressions, goats are intelligent The rings on the horns of some goat breeds can
creatures. They can be trained to give away their age, in much the same way as a
answer to a name and complete an tree trunk. Horns have one ring fewer than the
obstacle course, much like dogs. years of the goat’s life. The rate of feeding can
change horn renewal times, so it is less accurate
for domestic goats.

Baby goats
are called kids
Goats usually breed in the
autumn, and the gestation
period lasts around five

or six months. It is most
common for the nanny
(female) goat to give birth
to one or two baby goats,
known as kids. Newborn
kids weigh around 3.6
kilograms (eight pounds)
and learn to walk within a
day or two of birth. Goats can climb trees
Goats in Morocco o en climb

the native argan tree to
snack on its nuts and leaves.
They are popular with argan
farmers as they help fertilise
the ground underneath.
They’re some of our Egyptian Pharaoh
oldest friends Cephranes was
Goats were one of the first animals buried with 2,234

to be domesticated. Archaeological goats, evidence
evidence shows the first domestic

goats were kept 10,000 years ago. of our ancient
Neolithic farmers in ancient Turkey and relationship with
Iran kept goats not just for milk and
meat, but also used their dung as fuel. the animals
Boer is the biggest

The largest breed of goat is the Boer. There are over
This breed, often characterised by its 300 breeds of
red and white neck, gains weight at an
Goats dig their homes alarming rate to reach its fully-grown domestic goat in
Goats graze across a ‘home’ size of 135 kilograms (300 pounds) for existence and an
area of some 23 square a male and 90 kilograms (200 pounds)
kilometres (14 square miles), estimated 920 © Thinkstock; Dreamstime; Alamy
and will dig an inch into the for a female. The Boer is most often
ground to make a space for bred for its lean meat and is desirable million goats on
dust baths and rest. to farmers because of its docility, high © Thinkstock
fertility rate and fast growth. the planet

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