Part 5

When does are bred once a year the kid should be weaned before the doe is rebred. This allows the doe time to recuperate before her maternal powers are again brought into active service. Then, too, a doe nursing a kid through the winter, enters the spring with a depleted system and produces a poor quality and small quantity of mohair. The kids should be weaned when they are about five months old, as this allows the mother at least two months rest before she is rebred.

MARKING.

There are various reasons for marking goats, and the methods employed vary as widely as the reasons therefor. The object in view is to put some mark of identification either permanent or temporary upon the animal. The ears may be cropped in certain ways, a brand may be placed upon the nose, or tags or buttons placed in the ears, or characters tattooed into the ears. Probably the most permanent mark is the tattoo, and if it be placed on the inner hairless surface of the ear, it is as lasting as the tattoo so often seen in a man's arm.

DISEASES.

Some of the older breeders supposed that the Angora was not subject to any disease, but as goats have been introduced into new territory, they have become affected by some of the same troubles which bother sheep, but usually to a less degree. Some of the worst sheep diseases, such as scab, do not bother goats, but the goat has some special complaints which do not affect sheep. Very few carcasses are condemned by the government meat inspectors at the large packing centers. Tuberculosis is almost unknown.

LICE.

Nearly all goats are infested with lice, a small reddish louse, a goat louse. Lice rarely kills the animal infested, but they do annoy the goat greatly. Goats will not fatten readily, and the mohair is usually dead (lusterless), if the animals are badly infested. It is an easy matter to discover the lice. The goats scratch their bodies with their horns and make the fleece appear a little ragged. On separating the mohair the lice can easily be seen with the naked eye. The best means of ridding the goats of this annoyance is with almost any of the sheep dips. A dip which does not stain the mohair should be selected. The goats should be dipped after shearing, as it does not take much dip then to penetrate to the skin. One dipping will usually kill the lice, but the albuminous coat covering the nits (eggs of the louse), are not easily penetrated, and it is usually necessary to dip again within ten days, so that the nits, which have hatched since the first dipping, will not have a chance to mature and deposit more eggs. Goats can be dipped at almost any time, but if in full fleece they will require a larger quantity of liquid, and if the weather is very cold, there is some danger.

STOMACH WORMS.

Stomach worms affect goats, and in some instances their ravages prove fatal. There are a variety of these worms, but the general effect on the animal is about the same. They are usually worse in wet years. The goats affected become thin and weak. They usually scour. Sometimes the worm, or part of the worm, can be found in the feces. These same symptoms are caused by starvation, so the two should not be confounded. There are many drenches in use for the treatment of this trouble, and some of the proprietary remedies have given some relief. Goats running on dry, high land are rarely affected.

Verminous pneumonia of sheep may also occur in goats.

FOOT ROT.

Foot rot is a disease which affects both goats and sheep, if they are kept on low wet land. It rarely proves fatal, and can be cured if the cause is removed, but it sometimes causes a good deal of trouble. The goats' feet swell between the toes and become so sore that the animals are compelled to walk on their knees. It can be cured by carefully trimming the feet and using solutions of blue stone. Goats should not be put on wet land.

Sometimes the glands of the neck enlarge, a condition known as goitre. This is sometimes fatal with kids, but usually cures itself. There is no known remedy for it, but it is comparatively rare.

Anthrax, tuberculosis, pleuro-pneumonia and meningitis, will affect goats, but these diseases are very rare. Some of the southern goats have swollen ears, but what the cause of this trouble is no one has yet determined.

POISONS.

There are several plants which will poison goats, but very little is known about them. Some of the laurel family are responsible for the death of a good many goats yearly, and some milk-weeds will kill if taken in sufficient amount at certain times of the year. These plants should be avoided as much as possible. Treatment has been rather unsatisfactory. If the poisoned animal is treated at once, an active purgative may rid the system of the irritant. Epsom salts and crotin oil have given relief.

Mr. Schreiner describes an epidemic of pleuro-pneumonia which destroyed many flocks of Angora goats in South Africa. The disease was effectually stamped out in that country, and it has never appeared in American flocks. Mr. Thompson has described a disease called Takosis, which was supposed to have caused the death of many goats in the Eastern States, and along the Missouri River Valley. Some claimed that this trouble was caused by change of climate, others thought that it was starvation or lack of proper care. There is very little evidence of it now in the United States. All in all, the Angora goat is the healthiest of domestic animals.

Our Own Flocks.

In 1865, Mr. C. P. Bailey started in the Angora goat industry. There were then very few Angora goats in the United States, and those in California had originated from two thoroughbred bucks secured from Col. Peters of Atlanta, Georgia.

In 1866, Mr. Bailey secured a pair of Angoras from W. W. Chenery of Boston, Mass. There were two other pairs secured at this time for other parties, and these three does were the _first thoroughbred does_ brought to California. The first two goats cost Mr. Bailey $1000. _The first thoroughbred Angora kid_ dropped in California was by Mr. Bailey's doe.

In 1869, Mr. Bailey furnished money to bring the Brown & Diehl importation to California, with the understanding that he was to have first choice. The Angoras secured from this lot were _the best goats_ which had been brought to California up to that time.

In 1876, Mr. Bailey selected the best buck of the Hall & Harris importation, and paid seventy-five dollars service fee for three of his Brown & Diehl does. Later he purchased forty-one head from Hall & Harris. Some of these were the Brown & Diehl goats, and some from the Hall & Harris importation of 1876.

Twelve years after Mr. Bailey commenced breeding Angoras, he moved his entire grade-flock, consisting of about 1000 animals, to Nevada, and maintained his thoroughbred flocks in California. By careful selection, rigid culling, and strict attention given his flocks, Mr. Bailey had brought them by 1892, to an excellence beyond any of the imported stock.

In 1893, Mr. Bailey imported two fine bucks from South Africa. An account of the buck Pasha will be found in this book.

In 1899, another direct importation from South Africa was made, and the great sire Capetown was secured.

In 1901, Dr. W. C. Bailey secured four of the best Angoras obtainable in Asia Minor, by personal selection, and added them to the Bailey flocks. This was the first importation made in America from Asia Minor for twenty-five years.

During all these years, since 1865, Mr. Bailey had been constantly at work with his Angora flocks. There were many hardships to overcome, and most of the original Angora breeders gave up the struggle. We honestly believe that if it had not been for his perseverance the Angora industry would not be in its present prosperous condition.

Register.

We have been keeping a register of our stock, and this register is the oldest in the United States, or the world. Animals registered in the Bailey Angora Goat Record have a universal standing.

Manufacturers of Gloves, Robes and Trimmings.

The Angora Robe and Glove Company was established in 1875, with C. P. Bailey as president. Later Mr. Bailey secured sole control of this company. We have been using goat skins and mohair in large quantities for the last thirty years, and to-day

WE PAY THE HIGHEST CASH PRICES FOR GOAT SKINS AND MOHAIR.

Buck Selections.

From the above history it will be seen that we have several different strains of bucks to offer, and the fact that we have taken the Grand Prizes and highest awards at the New Orleans World's Fair, 1885, Chicago World's Fair, 1893, St. Louis World's Fair, 1904, and sweep stakes at State Fairs and National Meetings for the last thirty years, should put these bucks on the top. We have sold thousands in United States, and they have given almost universal satisfaction.

Does.

Our thoroughbred does trace their ancestry to the best stock obtainable. We always have a good many grade Angora does on the range, and we are prepared to quote prices on carloads, or small lots. We gladly furnish information.

C. P. BAILEY & SONS CO., San Jose, California.

End of Project Gutenberg's Practical Angora Goat Raising, by C. P. Bailey