Nearly Extinct “Old Irish Goat” Breed

Nearly Extinct “Old Irish Goat” Breed LIVESTOCK Miscellaneous Modern DNA testing of old museum bones and skins helped define and save an ancient breed - the Old Irish Goat As a result of the study of the relics in 2013 a group of Irish volunteers have made it their mission to do whatever they can to increase the breed’s numbers “We have had a captive breeding program running since 2014 and we now have just over 40 goats ” says Sean Carolan a member of The Old Irish Goat Society Feral goats were caught and tested Those that best matched the old DNA were found around Mulranny Ireland and bred in a leased walled garden “The Old Irish Goat is multi-colored with 12 color patterns A herd looks like a moving patchwork quilt ” he says “Achieving a viable population as well as conserving the 12 color patterns presents a challenging conservation mission not yet accomplished ” Both sexes of the breed typically have horns and beards The Old Irish Goat has a long coarse oily coat with a cashmere undercoat A large rumen helps them digest poor forage and legs are short and strong for their natural hilly environment Small pricked ears resist frostbite while a long muzzle warms cold winter air before it hits the lungs There were an estimated quarter million Old Irish goats until the 1920’s The Old Irish Goat helped people survive during famines providing milk meat fat hide horns and fiber to rural families The purity of the breed was lost when European breeds were crossed with the Old Irish Goat though some still run wild “The feral or wild goats are pretty easy to tame down particularly if bottle fed or well handled ” Carolan says “They are super intelligent and clean and will turn the latch on your door and take up residence ” Carolan notes that there are supporting groups in the U S that provide funding such as the County Mayo Foundation and the Ireland Fund The society hopes to build the herd up to at least 1 000 to save the Old Irish Goat which they consider to be an important part of Ireland’s national heritage Check out the website for more information Contact: FARM SHOW Followup The Old Irish Goat Centre Mulranny Co Mayo Ireland F28 X213 www oldirishgoatsociety com; info@oldirishgoatsociety com

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