GOAT-RAISING IN BRITISH COLUMBIA. 



the first issue of Bulletin No. 64, " Angora and Milch Goats," in 

 1915, keen interest in the milk goat has been shown by the general 

 public, particularly by suburban dwellers, small holders and ranchers 

 in outlying districts, and the industry has shown satisfactory develop- 

 ment. People are beginning to realize that there is a place for the 

 milk goat in British Columbia, and that as a provider of cheap and wholesome milk 

 for the family she is hard to beat. 



Unfortunately, the supply is not nearly equal to the demand, and in consequence 

 high prices prevail, and will do so for some time. Prospective buyers should not be 

 deterred, however, by the apparent high cost, because the subsequent expense of feed 

 is only nominal. It is possible that after the war we may be able to import goats 

 from Europe to help supply the undoubted need for them. 



Though there are only about a thousand milk goats in the Province at the present 

 time, the number is rapidly increasing, 'and it may safely be said that they have 

 come to stay. British Columbia is an ideal country for goats, and there is no reason 

 why the milk-goat industry should not rival that of Switzerland and Germany, 

 which before the war produced between them annually nearly $60,000,000 of milk- 

 goat products. 



As an indication of the interest being taken in the goat industry may be 

 mentioned the formation of the British Columbia Goat-breeders' Association early 

 in 1917 ; this association at the end of its first year had a membership of 176. There 

 has also been incorporated the Canadian Goat Society, which, together with the 

 Canadian National Live Stock Records Board at Ottawa, has initiated registration 

 of pedigrees for goats, thus putting them on a par with other classes of live stock 

 in this respect. The office of both of these associations is at Victoria, B.C. 



It has been considered advisable, in reissuing this bulletin to take the oppor- 

 tunity of revising and rearranging it, and we hope that it will prove of service to 

 those interested iu the genus Capi'i. 



BREEDS OF MILK GOATS. 



The principal breeds of milk goats are the Swiss breeds (Toggenburg, Saanen, 

 Alpine, etc.), Anglo-Nubian, and Mediterranean goats. In order to put matters on 

 a simple and satisfactory basis, however, and to avoid confusion by a multiplicity 

 of breeds and types, it was considered advisable to limit the registration of pedigrees 

 in Canada to the three main breeds, Toggenburg, Saanen, and Nubian. These are 

 the breeds most readily available and show enough quality and variation in type to 

 meet all reasonable requirements. 



The Toggenburg goat, which takes its name from the Toggenburg Valley in 

 Switzerland, where it originated, rather resembles a deer in its alert expression and 

 active temperament, but is at the same time most docile ; the colour markings of the 

 Toggenburg have been so long established that they are a dominant characteristic 

 of the breed, and grade Toggenburgs exhibit them in a marked degree, so much so 

 that they may easily be taken for pure-bred. The standard given below will indicate 

 the desired type of the Toggenburg breed. 



Saanen goats likewise took their name from their place of origin, and are some- 

 what similar to the Toggenburg, though possibly larger and with a longer and 

 stronger head. (See standard for further particulars.) 



Both these breeds are consistently heavy milkers, yields of as high as 6 quarts 

 daily when fresh being fairly common. The stock on this continent, however, is of 

 a lower average, but any goat of these breeds giving less than 3 quarts is not worthy 

 of its name. 



