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COLLECTION: GOAT HANDBOOK
ORIGIN: UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
DATE INCLUDED: OCTOBER, 1993
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THE DOCUMENT LENGTH IS ABOUT 5 PRINTED PAGES NOT COUNTING IMAGES.

              A SMALL-SCALE AGRICULTURE ALTERNATIVE

                          Angora Goats
             United States Department of Agriculture

     Angora goats may be the most efficient fiber producers on
Earth.  These makers of mohair came from and were named after
Ankara (Angora prior to 1930), the Turkish province where they have
thrived for centuries.  Turkey guarded these goats against
exportation until 1849 when seven does and two bucks were imported
into the United States.  Later, more were imported from Turkey and
South Africa, the two principal mohair producers in the 19th
century.

     But now the United States has become one of the two biggest
producers (along with South Africa) of mohair - the long, lustrous,
wavy hair that goes into fine garments.  The other primary fiber
from goats is cashmere.  (See "A Small-Scale Agriculture
Alternative, Cashmere Goats," December 1992).  Never the twain
should meet!  To cross Angora with cashmere goats results in a
fiber called cashgora, with very limited uses and characteristics
of neither fine fiber.

     The two goat types differ in temperaments, too.  The Angoras
are pretty laid back and docile, while cashmere and/or Spanish meat
goats are often flighty and high strung.  (Incidentally, Angora
goats, which do produce mohair, do not produce Angora hair; only
rabbis can produce that.)

     Although Angora goats are somewhat delicate, they grow their
fleeces year-round.  This puts considerable strain on the animal
and probably contributes to their lack of hardiness.

     About 90 percent of the U.S. mohair clip originates in Texas,
but the goats are raised over wide areas of the United States. 
They adapt well to many conditions, but are particularly suited to
the arid Southwester States.  Central and southwestern Texas have
all the major mohair warehouses.

Shear Twice a Year

     Angora goats are sheared twice a year, before breeding and
before kidding.  The hair grows about 3/4 of an inch a month, and
adult hair should be 4-6 inches long at shearing.  Shearing most
often follows the method developed by the Mexicans, with the goats
lying down with legs tied.  Shearing should be done on a clean-
swept floor or sheet of plywood.

     Care should be give to keep mohair clean and free from
contaminants-weeds, grass seeds, or urine.  Buyers severely
discount unclean hair and hair showing second cuts.  Fleeces should
be bagged separately in 6-foot burlap bags.  Not acceptable are
polyethylene bags or poly twine.

     Each bag should show the grower's name marked with a
permanent-type felt-tip pen, be tagged, and contain only one fleece
type clearly marked: Kid, yearling, young adult, adult, buck and
stained with spring or fall clip.  Special problems, such as burns
or coarse, extra long, or short fleece, should also be listed on
the goat.  Buyers slit the bag's side when inspecting before
buying; sellers must present a uniform product.

     An adult goat usually will produce 8-16 pounds of mohair a
year.  Kid mohair should be 4 inches long, is finer, and may yield
3-5 pounds a year.  Mohair fiber diameter ranges from 20 to 40
microns.

     If kemp fiber (long, straight, hollow and brittle) shows up on
any goats, especially along the backbone and thighs, such "kempy"
animals should be culled, as suggested by the U.S. Mohair Marketing
Board.  Kemp fiber breaks easily and does not readily accept dye.

     The U.S. Government has a direct-payment program for mohair
producers help maintain a viable industry.  The direct payment
through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Agricultural
Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) is based on the
difference between the national average market price and a support
price.  In one recent year, producers received an average of @2.475
for every dollar's worth of mohair marketed.  Details can be found
at ASCS offices in many counties.

Selecting Bucks

     Bucks should be chosen for body conformation and fine hair. 
Preferred are open-faced bucks not blinded by hair.  Bucks should
be left with does for 6 weeks.  Angora goats are seasonally in
estrus.  The normal breeding season is from late September into
December.

     The gestation period for goats is usually 150 days, but it can
vary several days each way.  Kids are usually dropped from late
February through April or early May.  Twins may account for 40
percent of births, with a much lower percentage being triplets.

Fiber Comes First

     Angora goats have high nutrient requirements and give
nutritional advantage to fiber growth at the expense of other
demands.  Meeting nutritional needs should be the producer's main
concern.  Range forage of browse and forbs, protein supplements,
grain and crop residues, and cereal crop pastures can help supply
needed nutrients for growth and reproduction.

     Goats, browsing animals, can be pastured with sheep and
cattle; each species prefers different plants.  Goats prefer brush,
tree leaves, and rough plants.  They can improve pasture, clear
reforestation areas, control leafy spurge and destroy multiflora
roses, red cedars, sand burs, knapweed, hound's tongue, Canadian
thistle, sagebrush, backbrush, giant ragweed, sunflowers, and many
other weeds.

     When growing plants are not available, Angora goats need
supplemental hay and perhaps grain.  While gaining at breeding
time, young does should weigh at least 55 pounds (sheared weight)
and mature does at least 75.  Does need extra feed before and after
breeding so fetuses can develop hair follicles.

     During pregnancy and lactation, does need almost 1/2 pound of
crude protein daily.  Supplement feeding must start as soon as does
begin to lose weight and condition.  Improved nutrition brings more
and better big growthy kids and heavier fleeces.  Poor nutrition is
the leading cause of abortion and poor mothering.  Young or
lighter-weight goats are most subject to abortion.  Stress from
disease, moving long distances, or cold wet weather also cause
abortions.

     Goats should be give adequate nutrition before and after
shearing.  Angora goats must be able to take shelter from wet and
cold; great death loss can occur without shelter for 4 to 6 weeks
after shearing.  Goats to not carry layers of body fat, unlike
sheep.

Kidding on the Range

     Due to lack of labor and facilities, large herds are usually
kidded on the range, while many smaller herds use a more intensive
confinement system.  For open-range kidding, small pastures with
shelter, centrally located watering and supplement feeding areas,
and bedding spots reduce numbers of lost kids.

     Angora does and kids should be undisturbed for several weeks,
since does may abandon their kids.  When goats are moved, pastures
should be rechecked for kids.

     An even more intensive kidding system uses buildings, small
individual stalls, heat lamps, and feeder space.  This "system
kidding" can be done earlier in the year but is much more labor
intensive and therefore more expensive.  But a larger kid crop can
be realized with good management.  Before kidding, does should be
outdoors except in cold or wet weather or at night; this helps keep
bedding cleaned and dry and encourages needed exercise.

     As does kid, they should be moved into stalls and kids' navels
treated with 7 percent iodine.  C and D antitoxin should be given. 
Cold kids will not try to suck and may need a heat lamp.  When
warm, they will usually suck by themselves but may need help to
begin.  Angora kids, very sensitive to cold, can die within a short
time if too chilled.  Immersion in warm water to speed restoration
of body temperature and then thorough drying may save severely
chilled kids.

     After identification with matching paint or ear tags, well fed
does and kids can be moved to group pens or holding areas.  Twins
and triplets should not be grouped with singles since stronger kids
often rob milk from usually smaller multiple-birth kids.  Groups
should contain kids of similar age.

Parasites Trouble Goats

     Among goats, major health problems are internal and external
parasites, coccidiosis (in kids before and after weaning), and
pneumonia.  A good health care program includes vaccination for
most diseases and should be established between a grower and a
veterinarian.

     Goats' hooves may need to be trimmed, depending upon walking
conditions.  Rocky ground may take care of that problem.

     Goats may need special 4-foot-high fencing to keep them in and
predators out.  Goats like to go under or through obstacles.  Five
wire electric fences, with three wires hot and two grounded, make
a good system.  Woven wire fences may be used with the addition of
a 12 inch "outrigger" electric wire about 12 inches above ground. 
Small-mesh fencing also may be used.

     Horns caught in the fence or the crotch of a tree become life-
threatening, not only from predators but also from other goats. 
While most goats are not aggressive toward humans, they are not
always kind to other goats and in seconds can do serious or lethal
damage with their horns.  A goat raiser may find horns useful-as
handles.  For safety, both for the handler and for other animals,
horns' sharp points may be clipped, using a bolt cutter or similar
device.

Following are additional information sources on Angora goat
production:

Mohair Council of America                   Ranch Magazine
P.O. Box 5337                               P.O. Box 2678
San Angelo, TX   76902                      San Angelo, TX  76902
Telephone: 915-655-3161                     Telephone: 915-655-4434

E (Kika) de la Garza Institute              Texas A&M University
for Goat Research                           System
Langston University                         7887 North Hwy 87
P.O. Box 730                                San Angelo, TX  76901
Langston, OK   73050                        915-653-4576
405-466-3836

"Angora Goats the Northern Way"
Susan Black Drummond
Stony Lonesome Farm
1451 Sisson Road
Freeport, MI   49325


%f TITLE;ANGORA GOATS
%f COLLECTION;GOAT HANDBOOK
%f ORIGIN;UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
%f DATE_INCLUDED;OCTOBER, 1993
%t ANGORA GOATS
