Other names |
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Country of origin | USSR |
Use | wool |
Traits | |
Weight |
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Coat | black, dark brown, grey |
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The Altai Mountain goat is a breed of domestic goat bred for wool production in the Altai Republic of the Russian Federation. The breed was developed during the years from 1944 to 1982 in the Gorno-Altai Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic region of the Soviet Union, by cross-breeding the Don goat with local goats for a high wool yield.
Females (nanny goats) weigh 41 to 44kg (90 to 97lb) while males (billy goats) weigh 65 to 70kg (143 to 155lb). [1] Altai Mountain goats are black in color at a young age, and change to dark brown or grey as they mature. [2] A distinctive feature of the Altai Mountain goat is the length and volume of the wool they grow, which is three to four times more than the local goats of the region.[ citation needed ]
The breed was first introduced in the Altai Republic region of the Altai Mountains. The breed was slowly developed between 1944 and 1982 by cross-breeding the Don goat with goats local to the region. [2] The goal of developing the breed was to create a goat with a high wool production that could withstand the severe weather conditions of the harsh winters in Siberia. [2]
The Altai Mountain goat was originally bred to increase the amount of wool available per goat. During the project's peak, the population grew almost 30 percent in a year. [1] They are currently bred to increase the population.
Due to their selective breeding for climate tolerance, Altai Mountain goats can be kept on pasture year-round. [1]
In 1997, approximately 500 Altai Mountain goats were released in South Africa by Sentrachem, a South African agricultural chemical company. [3] As a result, owning goat flocks became more profitable by producing a breed that had a high yield of both meat and cashmere. This helped spur agricultural production in South Africa and bolster the fiber and Cashmere wool industry. [3] When cross-bred with the indigenous goats, the goats are expected to have a higher meat and cashmere yield (around 600g of brown cashmere [2] ), increasing profitability of goat herds. [4]
The Angora or Ankara is a Turkish breed of domesticated goat. It produces the lustrous fibre known as mohair. It is widespread in many countries of the world. Many breeds derive from it, among them the Indian Mohair, the Soviet Mohair, the Angora-Don of the Russian Federation and the Pygora in the United States.
A herder is a pastoral worker responsible for the care and management of a herd or flock of domestic animals, usually on open pasture. It is particularly associated with nomadic or transhumant management of stock, or with common land grazing. The work is often done either on foot or mounted.
A goatherd or goatherder is a person who herds goats as a vocational activity. It is similar to a shepherd who herds sheep. Goatherds are most commonly found in regions where goat populations are significant; for instance, in Africa and South Asia. Goats are typically bred as dairy or meat animals, with some breeds being shorn for wool. The top six goat industry groups in the United States include: meat, dairy, fiber or hair, 4-H, industrial, and biotech.
The Boer or Boerbok is a South African breed of meat goat. It was selectively bred in the Eastern Cape from about 1920 for meat qualities and for the ability to survive by grazing on the thorn veldt of that region. It has been exported to many countries, and has been used to improve the meat qualities of other breeds.
The Nigerian Dwarf is a modern American breed of dwarf goat. Like the American Pygmy Goat, it derives from the West African Dwarf group of breeds of West Africa.
A cashmere goat is a type of goat that produces cashmere wool, the goat's fine, soft, downy, winter undercoat, in commercial quality and quantity. This undercoat grows as the days get shorter and is associated with an outer coat of coarse hair, which is present all the year and is called guard hair. Most common goat breeds, including dairy goats, grow this two-coated fleece.
The Border Leicester is a British breed of sheep. It is a polled, long-wool sheep and is considered a dual-purpose breed as it is reared both for meat and for wool. It is known for its distinctive upright ears. The sheep are large but docile. They have been exported to other sheep-producing regions, including Australia and the United States.
The Barbados Black Belly is a breed of domestic sheep from the Caribbean island of Barbados. It is raised primarily for meat. Unlike most tropical sheep, it is highly prolific, with an average litter size of approximately 2.
The Katahdin is a modern American breed of sheep. It is an easy-care sheep: it grows a hair coat with little wool which moults naturally in the spring, and so does not need to be shorn. It is reared for meat only.
The Changthangi or Changpa is a breed of cashmere goat native to the high plateaus of Ladakh in northern India. It is closely associated with the nomadic Changpa people of the Changthang plateau. It may also be known as the Ladakh Pashmina or Kashmiri.
The Blackhead Persian is a fat-tailed breed of domestic sheep from Africa. The sheep is originally from Somalia and a direct descendant of the Somali sheep. The breed is also a type of hair sheep, meaning they do not grow wool and tolerate heat better than wooled breeds and are raised primarily for meat. The Blackhead Persian has a white body and, as their name would suggest, an entirely black head.
The Devon Closewool is a British breed of domestic sheep. It is distributed almost exclusively on Exmoor in North Devon, in south-west England. It is raised primarily for meat.
The Zhongwei (Chung-wei) is a breed of goat from the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region and Gansu Province of China. It lives on arid desert steppes, and is adapted to a diet of salty and sandy plants and shrubs. It is used primarily for the production of kid pelts, and secondarily for cashmere fiber. The breed has low genetic variability, likely due to the historic selection of pelt production traits. It is closely related to the Funiu White, Hexi Cashmere, Luliang Black, and Taihang breeds.
The Zhiwulin Black goat breed from the northern Shaanxi Province of China is used for the production of cashmere fiber and meat.
The Xinjiang goat breed from the mountains of Xinjiang in China is used for the production of milk, cashmere, and meat.
North Country Cheviot is a common breed of sheep raised mainly for meat production. Originated from Scotland.
The British Milksheep is a robust, dual-purpose sheep commonly known for its milking characteristics.
In Sri Lanka many farmers depend on animal husbandry for their livelihood, but not a large proportion. Therefore, many livestock products have to be imported. The main livestock products in Sri Lanka are milk, meat and eggs. Hides, wools and other products are still not produced within the country. Animal power formerly used in the cultivation of rice and vegetables have been replaced by modern technology to farmlands. However animal husbandry plays an important role in the rural economy for improving the living conditions of farmers in the country.
Gromark sheep are a large-framed, plain bodied dual-purpose breed of sheep that were under development in 1965 by Arthur C. Godlee at "Marengo", Tamworth, New South Wales. They were selected for a high growth rate, fertility, wool quality and carcase attributes.
Animal husbandry in Azerbaijan is concerned with animals that are raised for meat, milk, eggs, leather, wool, fur and fibre production for people’s consumption in Azerbaijan.
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: Cite journal requires |journal=
(help)"Breeds of Livestock - Don Goats — Breeds of Livestock, Department of Animal Science". afs.okstate.edu.
"Animal genetic resources of the USSR". www.fao.org.