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These charming at first sight, cute creatures appeared in Russia not so long ago, only at the beginning of this century, but they have already become quite widely known, especially among goat breeders. Perhaps the even greater prevalence of the Anglo breednubian goats only the financial side of the issue interferes - the price of purebred Nubians is clearly overstated and starts from 100 - 150 thousand rubles.
Therefore, these goats are often crossed with other, no less interesting breeds: Alpine and Zaanen, and as a result, very highly productive animals are also obtained, but at a lower price. Due to the fact that true pedigree breeding of dairy goat breeds is still poorly developed in Russia, such half-breeds are still in high demand and allow those who do not have enough funds to buy a purebred goat to enjoy communication with the Anglo-Nubian breed.
History of the breed
The Anglo-Nubian goat breed gained recognition as an English breed only in the 1960s. Before that, its history was very diverse. In the second half of the 19th century, many goats and goats were imported to England from India, the Eastern Mediterranean and North Africa. All of them were often called oriental, although they originated from different places. They actively crossed with the local sharp-eared old English goats, and special representatives began to appear with very long legs, a kind of Roman nose and long, drooping ears.
Nubia was the name of a large territory in North Africa. In 1893, hybrids of goats with such characteristics were officially named Anglo-Nubian. After 1910, the influx of new "blood" from the southeast stopped, and there was some addition of goats from Switzerland for better acclimatization to the cool and rainy climate of England. At the beginning of the 20th century, the breed finally took shape in England and was exported to the United States. In America, it has taken root remarkably and has even been improved by local breeders. At least, the main specimens of the Anglo-Nubian breed came to Russia at the beginning of the XXI century already from the USA.
Description of the breed, main characteristics
Anglo-Nubian goats look rather unusual and differ from most dairy goats.
- They have a long and slender body of a characteristic milky type.
- The neck is also thin and long. The legs are long enough and always in proportion to the body.
- The head is medium in size, the muzzle is distinguished by a noticeable convex profile (the so-called Roman nose).
- Brushes on the face are absent altogether, the eyes are particularly expressive, very lively, the shape of the eyes is almond-shaped.
- And, of course, the hallmark of the Anglo-Nubian breed of goats, by which it can be distinguished from others at first glance, is its wide and long ears, hanging even below the muzzle by a few centimeters.
- The coat is smooth, short and glossy, and comes in different shades of brown, black and white, sometimes monochromatic, sometimes spotted.
- The udder is close to the body, round in shape, rather large in size with well-developed elongated nipples.
Animals of the Anglo-Nubian breed are very powerful, strong and graceful at the same time. The height at the withers for goats is not less than 76 cm, and for a goat - not less than 82 cm.Adult goats weigh from 60 to 70 kg, the average weight of goats is about 80 kg, but can go up to 100-120 kg.
The breed is meat and dairy, although it is not customary in Russia to keep goats for meat, especially as expensive as Anglo-Nubian ones.
Milk production of Anglo-Nubian goats
Anglo-Nubian goat milk is famous for its delicious creamy taste, as it has a fat content of 5 to 9%, as well as a high protein content. Thanks to these characteristics, it is from the milk of Anglo-Nubian goats that the largest yield of cheese and cottage cheese is obtained. Well, about the usefulness of goat milk, there are so many legends. It is indeed the closest in composition to mother's breast milk, has anti-allergenic properties and is ideal for baby food.
In addition, milk does not have any foreign smell or aroma. Interestingly, the quality characteristics of milk from Anglo-Nubian goats do not change depending on the conditions of keeping, but the amount of milk may decrease if the goat lacks any essential nutrients and vitamins.
An interesting feature is that the Anglo-Nubian goats do not have a characteristic odor, therefore, it is possible that they be kept in the same room with milking goats.
The average milk yield of a goat - first-flowing Anglo-Nubian breed is about 3 liters per day. In the future, with each new lamb, milk yield increases and can reach 6-7 liters per day. But these figures are only valid if the goats are well fed. The lactation period lasts on average about 300 days, but this does not mean that the milk yield of the goat remains the same throughout the entire period. The peak of milk yield usually occurs in the next few months after lambing, then the amount of milk decreases and by the start-up period (when the goat is not milked) milk yield can be halved, or even three times.
Lambing theoretically can occur twice a year, but this adversely affects the health of the goat, so usually goats bring offspring once a year, the kids can be from two to five.
Keeping goats
Initially, Anglo-Nubian goats were famous for being quite capricious in keeping. This was primarily related to the organization of warm wintering at temperatures not lower than + 16 ° C. But according to breeders, goats adapt well to ordinary Russian conditions after one or two generations. True, a relatively warm room in winter, and, most importantly, with moderate humidity and without drafts, they still need.
Otherwise, Anglo-Nubian goats are not picky about keeping conditions. They need a walk in any weather, except for outright bad weather, such as frost below -15 ° C, stormy winds or torrential rain. The stalls must be equipped with special raised loungers for the goats to rest, and a layer of straw or sawdust bedding is desirable on the floor.
Feeding goats
Despite the importance of feeding in the care of Anglo-Nubian goats, there is nothing difficult in the preparation of the feed itself and half of it can be prepared on your own if you live in the countryside.
So, in the summer, the main food for the Anglo-Nubian goats is grass and branches growing in the grazing area of shrubs and trees. In the evening, additional feeding from 0.5 to 3 kg of grain or concentrates is possible during the period of active lactation. It is advisable to give cereals in a milled form for better assimilation. Bran is very valuable for goats, which is usually brewed with certain milk-producing herbs, such as flax seed, dill, fennel and others. During the period of dispensing, it is imperative to give steamed soybean and sunflower cake and meal, but their total share in the grain feed should not exceed 30%.
In winter, the main food for goats is hay, which must be stocked at the rate of about 5 kg per goat per day. Straw is also eaten with pleasure by goats, but in smaller quantities.
An important part of a goat's diet is a variety of vegetables that are easy to grow on your own plot. These are, first of all, a variety of pumpkins and zucchini, also goats with great pleasure eat fodder beets, carrots and cabbage. Potatoes can be given in small quantities and preferably cooked. And of course, goats love fruits - especially apples, pears, plums, etc.
Many goat breeders overlook such valuable forages as brooms from a variety of trees and shrubs (willow is especially valuable), especially since they can be harvested throughout the summer on their own. Nettle brooms are a storehouse of vitamins in winter, especially for kids. You can also collect bags of fallen leaves from trees in the fall and gradually feed them to the goats.
You also need additives in the form of chalk and salt, you can use ready-made vitamin-mineral mixtures.
The approximate rates of average daily feeding of goats with grain or concentrates are as follows:
For the lactation period - 250-300 g for each liter of milk given.
For the start and end of lactation period - 300 -500 g per goat per day.
Thus, there is nothing particularly difficult in caring for Anglo-Nubian goats, and if it were not for the ultra-high price, many farmers would be happy to start breeding these cute and unusual animals.
