The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1904-06-01
ST
Value of the Angora Goat.


The owner realizes that the goat is
good destroyer of brush and where
conditions are favorable he is disposed
to get few goats. The Angora is
preferable to the common kind, as
the profits from such animals are larg-
err than from common goats. The his
tory of the Angora goat in this coun-
try dates back less than fifty-fve years,
the first importation having been made
about the year 1S49 by one DR.. James
B. Davis, of Columbia, South Carolina,
who was at the time in the employ of
the Turkish government in the culture
of cotton in Turkey. DR.. Davis work
was so satisfactory to the Sultan that,
upon it's completion, he presented the
American with nine of the finest goats
in the country Eight of these were
true Angoras and one was Cashmere,
but the doctor supposed all of them
were Cashmeres and the error was not
known until several years later. These
goats later passed into the ownership
of Col. Richard Peters, who exhibited
them at various agricultural fairs, and
they attracted much attention. 1t was
early apparent that the ease with
which they are kept, living as they
do on weeds, briars and other coarse
heritage. fits them for various portions
of our country, where sheep cannot be
sustained to advantage, while their
ability to defend themselves against
dogs evidences value peculiar to
these animals.
In his book "Angora Goat Raising
Geo. F. Thompson says: 1.-THE An
CORA goat is smaller than the ordin-
airy common goat. 1t weighs from
60 to 100 pounds, although some are
frequently found that weigh consid-
erably more, especially if fat. The
back should be straight, with should
ers and hips of equal height. A slopy
ing rump is very Objectionable. The
chest should be broad, indicating good
constitution, and the body round, legs
short and strong. The head should
not droop, but be clean cut, with
bright eye and brown muzzle; avoid
a pinched nostril. The horns are gray
ish-never black; in the buck they are
heavy, with an inward twist, inclin-
ing backward and to the outside. The
does horns rise Immediately upward
and backward, slightly outward, with
very little inclination to twist. In
most animals the ears are pendant and
from to inches long, with an aver
age width of about two inches, and
well pointed. In some animals the
ears are fox-like-short, pointed and
pricked. There appears to be no other
differences between the goats having
the different kinds of ears.
The fleece of the animal should be
pure white, although there are colored
Angoras. No colored spots on the skin
should be tolerated. The fleece should
cover the entire body-as dense on
the belly and neck as on the back and
sides; should extend to the ears and
jaw. While some are breeding for
the top-knot and for mohair on the
face and lower legs, this is not an evil
dence that the animal is better than
another that may not have the head
and face covered. The mohair should
grow to the length of about ten inches
during a year, and hang in tight ring
lets or wavy curls. The curl should
extend entirely up to the skin. slip
ey" mohair, or that which has lost it's
curl and is dry, fluffy, and with but
little luster, is an indication of poor
goat or one in poor health. Poor feed
tends to bring about such condi-
ton in the fleece"
By nature the goat is browser, and
he prefers no vegetation better than
the leaves of twigs and bushes. This
foo acta hliSheS them at once as an