Chapter III. 



Varieties of Goats* 



THERE is, probably, no animal (the dog excepted) that 

 has a greater variety of range than the goat. It is met 

 with in most parts of the world, and appears as much 

 at home in the cold regions of Norway and Sweden' as in 

 the hot countries of Asia and Africa. These varieties 

 differ in the length, colour, and texture of the coat, the 

 shape and size of the ears, the contour of the face, and 

 the configuration of the horns ; some having a strong 

 resemblance to the ^Egagrus or wild goat, whilst others 

 approximate more in appearance to the sheep. Benion, a 

 French writer, on the authority of an " Encyclopaedia of 

 Natural History," classifies the varieties into four distinct 

 groups : (i) Goats with short prick ears, as the common 

 goat, the hornless goat,* and the dwarf goat of Guinea. 

 (2) Goats with long, wide, pendulous ears, as the Syrian, 

 Nubian, or Egyptian. (3) Goats with drooping ears and 

 curly woolly coat, as the Angora ; and, lastly, those 

 having semi-pendulous ears and a downy undergrowth of 

 wool, as the Cashmere. Huart du Plessis, another 

 French writer, without grouping them exactly in this 

 manner, simply recognises four distinct breeds, which he 



* It is generally admitted by writers of the present day that 

 there is no such breed. 



