CHAPTER XVII 

 MILCH GOATS 



The goat has been one of the faithful servants of man since 

 the dawn of history, and still continues as the efficient converter 

 of weeds, brush and various grasses into nutritious milk for 

 infant or adult, or into strong wool or mohair for garment or rug- 

 making, or into savory flesh for food. Whether goats were 

 domesticated and developed at a period earlier than cattle is not 

 accurately known, but it is highly probable that such was the case 

 because of the fact that they are smaller and milder in disposition. 



Milch goats are nearly, if not quite, as common in most of the 

 countries of Europe as are dairy cows. They have been devel- 

 oped to high points of usefulness in many separate sections of the 

 country, though those best known in America (Fig. 51) are 

 the descendants of one or more of the breeds which originated, or 

 were improved in Switzerland. But in northern Africa, Russia, 

 Norway, Germany, France and Spain, milch goats are to be 

 found. They have likewise been introduced into other sections 

 of the world and now occupy a small but useful place in most of 

 the Spanish-American countries. 



The Goat Maligned. — There is probably no single animal in 

 America which has been the butt of more common jokes than the 

 goat. This is probably due to the fact that most of the goats 

 known in our villages and cities are of the common, scrub sort 

 which are thought to be the inferior descendants of those brought 

 to Mexico by the Spanish in the early days. They are about as 

 much like the modern pure bred milch goats as old Texas range 

 cattle are like Jerseys. The class of animals kept for the pur- 

 pose of cheese making, largely in foreign countries, is scarcely 

 known in America. The fact that the goat is spoken of as the 

 " poor man's cow " certainly does not encourage their being more 

 generally kept, The term is far from apt in America, however, 

 for the reason that a good milch goat costs as much as a fair 

 cow. In view of the general attitude toward this animal they 



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