628 



FARMER'S CYCLOPEDIA OF LIVE STOCK 



as succulent feed, for the does to main- 

 tain a good milk supply. The does 

 should be kept together at kidding time 

 in limited numbers, perhaps not more 

 than 20 in a pen. 



If the kids are dropped on the range 

 or at pasture, they must be carried home 

 and special care given to see that the 

 does own them. After dropping the 

 kid the doe hides it and will go off and 

 feed half a day or more before returning 

 to it. The kid is so weak that it is 

 unable to follow the doe until two or 



Fig. 394 AFRICAN DWARF MILCH GOAT 



three days old, and then makes but little 

 headway. For this reason, in handling 

 Angora goats, the kids are kept at the 

 stables for eight to ten days after they 

 are dropped. Sometimes each kid is tied 

 to a stake in the shed with a string 

 about 14 inches long. The string is 

 shifted from one leg to the other to 

 avoid lameness and should be provided 

 with a swivel to prevent twisting. By 

 another method, a board from 12 to 20 

 inches high is placed across the bottom of 

 the door. When the does go out to feed 

 they easily jump over this, but the kids 

 being weak are retained in the shed 

 until the does come back. A bridge is 

 sometimes used instead of the board. 

 By this method the does jump up onto 

 the bridge and are less likely to injure 

 their udders than by jumning over the 

 board. The kids ordinarily are not al- 

 lowed to run with their mothers, partic- 

 ularly under range conditions, until six 

 to eight weeks old. The kids are weaned 

 when about 4!/2 months old. The bucks 

 should always be weaned as early as five 

 months, as they begin breeding soon 

 after this age. Those not wanted for 

 breeding purposes, should be castrated 

 when about four weeks old. 



Milch goats_The milch goat indus- 



try is entirely in its infancy in this 

 country. So far as the writers know, 

 there are only a few herds kept es- 

 pecially for milk, and these are near the 

 larger cities. In Europe, particlarly 

 in Switzerland, Germany and France, as 

 well as some of the countries of southern 

 Europe, goats are extensively reared for 

 their milk and a large number of milk 

 breeds have been developed. It is claimed 

 that the milk of goats is peculiarly val- 

 uable for invalids. It is richer in sugar 

 and fat than cow's milk, and it more 

 nearly approaches' mother's milk in com- 

 position than that of any other animal. 

 On this account it is especially valuable 

 for nursing infants and also for invalids. 



At Palisades Park, N. J., an Italian 

 colony keep about 500 goats, from which 

 a good revenue is derived from the sale- 

 of milk, butter and kids. 



A good milch doe should yield two 

 quarts of milk a day. The period of 

 lactation varies from six to seven months 

 in the year. With some breeds a yield 

 of 4 to 5 quarts of milk a day is com- 

 mon and 3 quarts may be regarded as 

 the average of the better breeds. The 

 cost of keeping milch goats is very small 

 as compared with that of a cow, since 

 they relish a very much wider range of 

 forage and will eat a large proportion of 

 the waste of the kitchen. For this rea- 

 son it is believed they have an impor- 



Fig. 395 — NUBIAN GOAT 



tant place as a milch animal for the 

 poor man who cannot afford to keep a 

 cow, and especially for poor people who 

 live in the suburbs of large cities, or 

 who work in mining districts. 



For invalids also they have an impor- 

 tant place. On this account it would 

 seem that their numbers might be in- 

 creased at sanitariums, where a hicrh 

 ouality of nutritious milk is especially 

 desired. In this connection goats have 



