Courtesy of Danielle Langloism, Wikipedia CCLA Goat Primer
Those who raise livestock tend to forget that other people often have no idea what we’re talking about. Here’s a brief primer of terms as they apply to goats and goat tending.
Banding: a form of castration that involves placing a band around the scrotum. They don’t particularly enjoy this.
Bloat: when gas becomes trapped in the rumen and can not be expelled.
Browse: a mix of weeds, grass and other plant material that make up the primary diet of a goat. This does not include tin cans, car tires, or residential siding. That we call, “get away from there!”
Buck: an intact male goat with an ego to match and a stench that will announce his presence for miles around.
Dehorning: removing horns, usually by means of cutting.
Dew Claw: the lump of hoof material above the actual hoof on the back side of the ankle. Similar to a dog only without the teeth.
Disbudding: removing horn buds, usually done by cauterizing.
Doe: a deer, a fe-male…..goat.
Drenching: giving liquid medication and supplements orally. They don’t like this much either.
Freshened: a doe who has begun producing milk has freshened or is freshening.
Horn Bud: the beginning nub of horny material that will develop into horns as the goat ages.
Intact: uncastrated. Also see stinky, rude buck.
Kid: a baby or very young goat. Similar to human kids only with much improved leaping skills.
Polled: born without horn buds/horns.
Rumen: the largest part of the digestive system of a ruminant (goat, sheep, cow) that breaks down food.
Rut: a period, normally in the fall, during which bucks become much more romantic and most kids are created.
Scours: diarrhea.
Teats: the nipples on a doe through which the milk flows. Below the udder.
Udder: the large bags that hold the doe’s milk. And get caught on things.
Wattles: the dangly things on the necks of some breeds of goats. These do not have a function. Consider them goat jewelry.
Wether: a male goat who no longer holds his place in society. Also known as castrated.
Thanks fer the post and loving all y’all do here. As a new goat man, I’m finding it difficult to find out what all the *p EEE, etc. means when you’re trying to buy a registered goat. A full list of these terms and what they mean would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again fer all your hard work on this database of all things goat.