VenettaMahan1 at 20:27, 13 November 2025

2025-11-13T20:27:16Z

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{{short description|Raising and breeding of domestic goats}}
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[[File:Goats in AFrica.jpg|thumb|Domesticated goats in Africa]]

[[File:Boerbok.jpg|thumb|240px|The [[Boer goat]], a widely-farmed meat-breed]]

'''Goat farming''' involves the raising and breeding of domestic [[goat]]s (''Capra aegagrus hircus'') as a branch of [[animal husbandry]]. People farm goats principally for their [[Goat meat|meat]], [[Goat milk|milk]], fiber and [[Goatskin (material)|skin]]s.

Goat farming can be very suited to production alongside other [[livestock]] (such as sheep and cattle) on low-quality grazing land. Goats efficiently convert sub-quality grazing matter that is less desirable for other livestock into quality lean meat. Furthermore, goats can be farmed with a relatively small area of [[pasture]] and with limited resources.<ref name="Qushim" />

==Pasture==
[[File:ArganGoatTreeBelow.jpg|thumb|240px|Goats are remarkably agile and will climb trees to browse.]]
As with other herbivores, the number of animals that a goat farmer can raise and sustain is dependent on the quality of the pasture. However, since goats will eat vegetation that most other domesticated livestock decline, they will subsist even on very poor land. Therefore, goat herds remain an important asset in regions with sparse and low quality vegetation. However, goats also show preference to certain browse and grasses, such as Multiflora Rose, Briar, Ironweed, Ragweed, Spiny Amaranth, and Pigweed among others. They are less fond of grasses such as Tall Fescue, Bermuda Grass, Orchard Grass, and Crab Grass.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-11-20 |title=Grazing Management for Goats |url=https://extension.uga.edu/content/dam/extension-county-offices/harris-county/anr/GrazingManagementforGoats.pdf |access-date=Apr 7, 2025}}</ref>

== Worldwide goat population statistics ==

As of 2022, India is the largest producer of goat's milk. In 2024, the United States of America was the largest importer of goat's milk, and in the same year, New Zealand was the top exporter.

{| class="wikitable sortable" 90%" style="margin:auto;text-align:right"
|+'''World goat production: Selected regions and countries, 2008'''
|-
! Country/Region !! Total animals (millions) !! Goat milk (MT) !! Goat meat (million MT)
|-
| '''World''' || ----- || 15.2 || 4.8
|-
| '''Africa''' || 294.5 || 3.2 || 1.1
|-
| Nigeria || 53.8 || N/A || 0.26
|-
| Sudan || 43.1 || 1.47 || 0.19
|-
| '''Asia''' || 511.3 || 8.89 || 3.4
|-
| Afghanistan || 6.38 || 0.11 || 0.04
|-
| Pakistan || 60.00 || N/A || N/A
|-
| Iran || 16.00 || N/A || N/A
|-
| India || 125.7 || 4.0 || 0.48
|-
| Bangladesh || 56.4 || 2.16 || 0.21
|-
| China || 149.37 || 0.26 || 1.83
|-
| Saudi Arabia || 2.2 || 0.076 || 0.024
|-
| '''Americas''' || 37.3 || 0.54 || 0.15
|-
| Mexico || 8.8 || 0.16 || 0.04
|-
| USA || 3.1 || N/A || 0.022
|-
| '''Europe''' || 17.86 || 2.59 || 0.012
|-
| UK || 0.09 || N/A || N/A
|-
| France || 1.2 || 0.58 || 0.007
|-
| '''Oceania''' || 3.42 || 0.0004 || 0.018
|}

===In the US===
Meat goats are farmed in all US states, although most meat goat production occurs in the Southeast. Texas is the primary producer of meat goats, representing 38% of US production.<ref name="Qushim">{{cite journal |author=Qushim |first=Berdikul |author2=Gillespie |first2=Jeffrey M. |author3=McMillin |first3=Kenneth |year=2016 |title=Analyzing the Costs and Returns of US Meat Goat Farms |journal=Journal of the ASFMRA |pages=41-54}}</ref>

Male goats are generally not required for the dairy-goat industry and are usually slaughtered for meat soon after birth. In the UK, approximately 30,000 billy goats from the dairy industry are slaughtered each year.<ref name="McVeigh">{{Cite report |url=https://ourworldindata.org/meat-production |title=Meat and Dairy Production |last=Ritchie |first=Hannah |last2=Rosado |first2=Pablo |last3=Roser |first3=Max |date=August 1, 2017 |publisher=[[Our World in Data]] |access-date=November 27, 2019}}</ref>

==Gallery==

<gallery mode=packed>
File:Susya goat farm.jpg|Goat farm
File:Goat milking at a goat farm.jpg|Goat milking
File:Pferch - pen - στάνη 20190709 DSC3703.jpg|[[Pen (enclosure)|Pen]] for goats
File:Goat rearing Kaswa Nakaseke District.jpg|Goat farming in Uganda
File:Parchment from goatskin.jpg|Goatskin [[parchment]] on wooden frame
</gallery>

==See also==

* [[List of goat breeds]]
* [[Goats as pets]]
* [[List of goat dishes]]

==Further reading==

* {{cite book |last=Carol A. Amundson |date=2009 |title=How to Raise Goats |publisher=Voyageur Press |isbn=978-0-7603-3157-6}}
* {{cite book |author=Cheryl K. Smith |title=How to Raise Goats |url=http://www.dummies.com/how-to/home-garden/Hobby-Farming/Raising-Goats.html |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |date=2010 |isbn=978-0-470-56899-6}}

==References==

{{Reflist}}

{{Agriculture footer}}

[[Category:Animal breeding]]
[[Category:Goats]]

Goat farming - Revision history

VenettaMahan1 at 20:27, 13 November 2025