Born In A Year Of The Goat

The goat is one of the twelve-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese Zodiac. I was born in a "Year of the Goat" - which is supposed to mean I am: "Shy, introverted, creative and perfectionist." I question the creative trait, but am okay with the other three.
Perhaps being born under the goat sign is one of the reasons I have long admired, and wished at one time, to raise goats. Is there anything cuter than a baby goat? Look at these twins suckling in the background of this picture.

This herd of Boer goats is just west of town on the north side of the highway. Every time we drive past them I 'o-o-h and a-a-h'. I remember the first time I ever saw this breed of goat. We had gone on vacation to San Antonio, but I wanted also to see the Texas Hill Country. (I had been reading the China Bayles herbal mysteries.) As we headed toward Fredericksburg, I began seeing herd after herd of these strange white goats with the red heads. When I asked a local about them, they said, "They're Boer goats." Of course I heard boar goats. You can't fool me, I was born on a farm - boars are male hogs; bucks are male goats.

We didn't have the magic of the internet in those days, so it was some time before I learned this breed of goats originated with Dutch settlers in South Africa where Boer is a Dutch word meaning  farmer. The first full-blood Boers were brought to America in 1993. They are noted for their fast growth and high fertility - two traits that make them prized in the rapidly growing goat meat industry.

As with any new exotic (think llamas and ostriches), prices were high. I remember hearing of a local couple starting a herd. They went to Texas and bought a registered buck for several thousand dollars. On the way home, they stopped for dinner. When they went back out to their rig, someone had stolen their Boer buck right out of their stock trailer. (This is the way I remember the story - it may, or may not be entirely true.)
The highest price paid for a full-blood Boer buck was reportedly $80,000 in 1994. By late 1995, prices were declining and male Boer's sold for around $2,000.

I would never want to raise goats for their meat. The idea of slaughtering young kids is abhorrent to me. My interest was in having goats for milking and making cheese - and for the pleasure of watching them. I used to go to the State Fair just to walk through the Avenue of Breeds to see all the different goats. One of the breeds I liked was the Nubian. It was developed in Great Britain. Recognized by its floppy ears and Roman nose, Nubians are highly intelligent and affectionate. Their milk has a higher butterfat percentage than other breeds. Aren't these little kids precious? I love the tans, browns, blacks and rusts of their coats.

The Toggenburg was another breed that caught my fancy. The oldest registered breed, they are named for their area of origin - Toggenburg Valley in Switzerland. Toggenburgs are generally friendly, quiet and gentle. They make good pets. You've probably seen this breed at petting zoos.

The largest of the dairy goats, is the white or cream colored Saanen. It also produces the most milk - an average of a gallon per day. Saanens have a calm, mild-mannered temperament. Goat milk has long been used to feed babies and small children when they can't tolerate cow's milk.

The Saanen breed is named for their area of origin - the Saanen Valley of Switzerland. When I traced my Great-Great-Grandmother Maria Romang (Mauderly) back to her birth in Saanen, Switzerland, I made the remark, "Maybe that is why I always liked the Saanen goat breed."

When we were at the Nodaway Cemetery yesterday, I found another gravestone I'd never seen before. Jacob Romang was Maria's brother, one of the ones who accompanied her to America. My Great-Great-Great Uncle's epitaph reads: "Gone Home". I can imagine his essence back in the beautiful Saanen Valley of Switzerland.




"What was he doing, the great god Pan,
Down in the reeds by the river?
Spreading ruin and scattering ban,
Splashing and paddling with hoofs of a goat,
And breaking the golden lilies afloat,
With the dragon-fly on the river."
               Elizabeth Barrett Browning