Goats are members of the cattle family. Since the olden time goats have been domesticated. From thousands of years ago, they have been used basically for milk, meat, hair, and skin throughout the world. They belong to the family of sheep.
Here are 25 facts about Goats.
1. Goats are domestic animals
Goats were one of the first animals to be domesticated by humans and were being rounded up to 9000 years ago.
2. Meat consumption
Goats meat is the most consumed meat per capita worldwide.
3. Lifespan of a goat
The lifespan of a Goat is about that of a dog. This can last about 10 to 13 years.
4. Reproduction of a goat
Goats have a pregnancy period of five months and the average rate is 2.2 kids annually.
5. History of domestication
The goat domestication took place about nearly 11,000 years ago in the east. The event was a vital moment in human history that represented a key shift of mankind to agricultural based activities.
6. Goat giving birth to a baby is called “kidding”
We all know that a baby goat is called a kid, but what you might not know is that because of this the goat giving birth to a baby is said to be “kidding”.
7. Goats don’t have teeth on their upper Jaw
They have the strong dental alveolar, also a wonderful mobile upper lip that helps them to sort through spiny, thorny, twigs to find tender delicacies.
8. Goats have rectangular pupils
The unusual shape shared by the sheep gives them a full range of vision that human and other animals with round pupils can’t have. They have the ability to look 320 to 340 degrees in their periphery. One of the drawbacks to this kind of pupil is that goats are unable to look up or down without moving their heads.
9. Goats have four stomachs
The four kinds of goat helps goat digest tough roughage like grass and hay. Food enters the chewing first and passes to the honeycomb where non digestible objects are separated out.
10. Goats milk is the most popular
Even though generally we drink cow’s milk almost exclusively in the states around the globe most people prefer to eat meat and drink milk from goats than any other animal.
11. Good reasons to drink goats milk too
It’s naturally blended, which means it doesn’t separate out into layers from its original state. The milk is also higher in calcium and in vitamin A. And it is easier to digest than cow’s milk even by people who are lactose intolerant.
12. Abraham Lincoln loved goats
Among the many pets that were famous that time, in white house during Abraham Lincoln’s office were two goats: Nanny and Nanko. They both were particularly adored by Lincoln’s sons.
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13. Woolen clothes made from Goats
The incredibly soft and expensive wool which is used during winter as an undercoat is produced by certain goats. The price of the wool is so high which is because the hand process of separating the silky material from the goat’s skin is actually very time consuming.
14. According to Legend, Goats discovered coffee
According to the Ethiopian legend the stimulating properties of coffee were discovered when a man found his flock after consuming the red berries of the coffee shrub. The plant had the same energizing effect of the herder himself. And from that tradition of drinking coffee was born.
15. Goats have incredible deftness and balance
Not only can they survive in dangerous rocky habitats but they can even climb trees.
16. Goats have accents
Just as human voices vary in inflection by Geographical region, a particular kind of goats will sound different from that of a goat in a different country.
17. “Fainting” goats don’t really faint, but they sure look like they do
One of the exceptional species of goats is the myotonic goat better known as the Fainting goat. Because of genetics they get excited, myotonic goats’ muscles freeze up, causing them to topple over. They are not totally fainting, they remain totally conscious and their muscles return to normal within a minute or second.
18. Goats are intelligent and curious
They are extremely intelligent and curious and are very often not given credit for being the smart and loving creature they actually are.
19. Goats use sneeze sound as alarm
They use sneezing as an alarm to warn each other of danger, whether real or imagined.
20. Know their name
These witty creatures can be taught their own name and can even respond to it when called.
21. Habitat
In the rocky mountains of Alaska the Mountain goats can be spotted. They are seen living in an elevations of 3281 to 16404 feet above sea level.
22. Eating habits
With the help of their lips they get hold of the food and then bring it close to their mouth.The upper Jaw is wider than the lower jaw, so they can only use one side of their mouth to grind it. And that is seen when a goat is chewing.
23. Offspring
A male goat is usually termed a buck or a Billy. Female goats are called nannies and those give birth to one or two offspring after a pregnancy period of 150 to 180 days. Baby goats are called kids.
24. Mountain goats
Mountain goats can jump 12 feet in a single bound according to National Geographic.
25. Goats vs sheep
They both are different kind of species and there are several physical and behavioral differences. Goats have 60 chromosomes and sheep have just 54 chromosomes.
Just like they are so fluffy and cute they do need some love and care too. Keeping them as a pet would require some expertise on their behaviour and time to spend with them. If you are ready to give that much effort then you are good to go.
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