For thousands of years, man has raised goats for a multitude of uses. Goats, as a species, are recognized as one of the first farm animals to be domesticated and used for human consumption. Versatile and hardy, goats can thrive in many different environments and provide food, fiber, and hides for their keepers. In parts of the world, goats are still kept by nomads who use the goats to convert sparse vegetation into milk (which can then be made into cheese or yogurt) and meat. Goat skins make a fine leather (think of kid gloves), and the luxury fibers produced by cashmere and angora goats are made into sumptuous clothes. In fact, it is ironic that goats, animals with an “image problem” in the United States, are the source of many prestigious and expensive products, including goat cheese, cashmere, mohair, and kid leather. And goat meat, while enjoyed by millions in poor countries, is more expensive than many other meats in the U.S.
For this course, we will focus on goats that are raised primarily for meat. Goat meat is a traditional food in many cultures, including Hispanic, Middle Eastern, African, Jewish, and Caribbean peoples. In recent years, the United States has seen an increase in immigration, and many of these new residents have not only a taste for, but a preference for, goat meat. This is the reason that demand for goat meat continues to grow, and strong prices mean a favorable economic outlook for producing meat goats. According to the USDA, goat meat production increased dramatically between 1970 and 2001. In 1970, 1.29 metric tons of goat meat was imported into the United States as compared to 9,500 metric tons in 2004.
Besides producing a highly-sought-after meat, meat goats serve another important function. They can put land to better use by grazing and browsing plants that would otherwise go to waste. In doing so, goats make meat out of previously unused plants and also prevent those plants from taking over the area. For example, if left alone, multiflora rose can soon dominate a field, choking out grasses, legumes, and other forage plants. Goats grazing that area will eventually convert the field back to grasses and clovers, because they will graze the thorny roses and allow the grasses to compete. All over the country, people are using sheep and goats to control invasive, noxious weeds in a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly manner with ample opportunity and need for more. Therefore, producers of meat goats should consider the grazing abilities of their goats as another economic benefit.
goat grazing lespedeza
As you start studying this instructional module you will come across some terms that need definition. Learning such terminology will be helpful to you. Below you will find some terms that are used in this instructional module:
- Buck – A male goat of any age, also called a billy
- Doe – A female goat of any age, also called a nanny
- Kid – A goat less than one year old. Males between six months and one year may be called “bucklings” while females are “doelings”
- Fiber – Fleece taken from goats
- Mohair – Fiber produced by the Angora goat
- Cashmere – Fiber taken from almost any goat with exception of the Angora
- Grazing – A term that applies to how animals eat grasses and legumes
- Browsing – A term that applies to how wildlife, sheep and goats eat vegetation from trees and shrubs
- Multispecies grazing, also known as mixed grazing – Grazing by two or more species of grazing animals such as cattle and goats on the same land unit, either at the same time or sequentially
- Gestation – A period of time for fetus development from conception to birth (5 months)
- Fetus – Unborn young
- Parasite – An organism that lives on or within another animal (host), benefiting at the host’s expense
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