Guess the Goats Trivia Quiz

Answer:

There are many breeds of goat world wide which have been bred to produce milk, meat, wool or leather or a combination of these. Of the goat breeds in this quiz the angora and Australian cashmere are bred for their wool while the Alpine, Golden Guernsey, Russian white and Toggenburg are used for milking. The fainting goat is kept for meat while the Irish, American pygmy and sirohi breeds are used for both meat and milk.

American pygmy goats are a breed of goat that are quite small in size, standing at only 40-50cm tall. The American pygmy is believed to have been bred from various African dwarf goat breeds and was recognised as a breed in 1975. Because of their small size, pygmy goats are sometimes kept as pets rather than as livestock.

The fainting goat is another American breed that seems to have originated with goats brought to Tennessee in the 1880s. The breed gets its name of fainting goat as they suffer from a hereditary condition that means when the goats are startled or excited their legs stiffen and they often fall over. This condition is called myotonia congenita. The goats have been used in research as it is similar to a condition which affects humans in a similar way.

The Alpine goat comes from the region of the French Alps and is a medium to large breed while the golden Guernsey comes from the island of Guernsey in the Channel Islands and takes its name from the light brown 'golden' colour of its coat. The Russian white was developed in Russia in the early 20th century while the Toogenburg is named for the Toggenburg region of St Gallen in Switzerland where the breed originated.

Angora and Australian cashmere goats are both bred for their wool. The angora is a breed from Turkey which has a long history - the first description of one to appear in the West dates to 1555. The Australian cashmere goat was developed during the 19th century when goats used for cashmere were introduced to the country and eventually inter-bred with other breeds of goat forming semi-wild herds.

The Irish goat is almost extinct with no domestic herds and only a few feral populations still in existence. Finally the Sirohi is a breed of goat originating in the Sirohi district in the State of Rajasthan in India where the goats are still kept in large numbers.