Having a dairy goat with no horns certainly frees up some space at the feeding trough and saves on fence repairs. We had gorgeous Saanens but kept needing to do a perimeter check (with wire cutters) because they kept getting their heads stuck in the fence. However, my mum insisted we never disbudded the kids for ethical reasons.
Most dairy goats are born with horns, although some might carry a recessive gene that causes them to be polled. Dairy goat breeds with horns include Alpine, Cashmere, Guernsey, LaMancha, Nigerian Dwarf, Nubian, Oberhasli, Saanen, and Toggenburg goats. In some breeds, only the rams have horns.
On many farms, it is common practice to disbud or dehorn goats for practical reasons, i.e., less feeding space and fewer injuries. However, these procedures are painful to the goats and a contentious issue. Goats need their horns for various reasons, especially in warmer climates. Therefore, dehorning should only be done by a vet or qualified person, and only if necessary.
Dairy Goat Breeds With And Without Horns
Many horned dairy goat breeds exist, but not all are farmed in the United States. Additionally, not all goats included in the American Dairy Goat Association's (ADGA) herd book have horns. The top dairy goats recognized by AGDA in the United States are the following:
- Alpine,
- LaMancha,
- Nigerian Dwarf,
- Nubian,
- Oberhasli,
- Saanen,
- Sable and
- Toggenburg.
Since 1999, protected Golden Guernsey goats are also becoming popular as a dairy goat breed in North America. They also have horns, like most other goats. The table below summarizes which dairy goats are horned and which are not.
Types of Dairy Goats | Horns and Details |
|---|---|
Alpine rams and does have large, curved horns. | |
Guernsey Goats | Rams have large, splendid horns. Does are sometimes polled. |
LaMancha Goats | Bucks and does have horns, although buck horns are usually much larger. |
Both rams and does have horns. | |
Nubian Goats | Rams and does grow long black or brown horns that grow along the neck toward the body. A ram's horns can grow up to two feet. |
Oberhasli Goats | Bucks and does can be born with horns or polled. |
Bucks and does can be born with or without horns. | |
Sable Goats | These goats are genetically polled or disbudded. |
Toggenburg Goats | Genetic polling is common. However, if they are horned, the horns grow upward and back. |
Table 1: Dairy goat breeds with and without horns
Nearly all of the world's 300 goat breeds are naturally horned. A goat's horns serve a few functions, one of which is keeping the goat cool in hot weather. Interestingly, breeding two polled goats runs the risk of infertile and hermaphroditic kids.
According to archeological findings, the earliest domesticated goats had horns like the bezoar: scimitar-like, large, and straight. However, through selective breeding, humans have "refined" some goat breeds to exclude or reduce the size of horns for practical husbandry. Additionally, some agricultural shows state that dairy goats must not have horns for show purposes.
Read on to learn more about the dairy goats that will or might have horns. Sable goats will not be discussed, as they are similar to Saanen goats yet are more likely to be genetically polled.
Dairy Goat Breeds With Horns
Most dairy goat breeds carry genes for horns. In some breeds, it is only the bucks that have horns. Many farmers disbud the kids of dairy goats for practical reasons. However, this practice is illegal in some countries, e.g., Germany. The disbudding of kids leads many people to incorrectly assume that some dairy goat breeds are naturally polled.
1. Alpine Dairy Goats
The American Alpine breed dates to 1922, when twenty-one imported French Alpines were crossbred with a moderately larger breed. Alpine goats are excellent dairy producers, producing up to a gallon of milk daily. Even though the gestation period of Alpine goats is 5 months, they can be milked for up to three years between freshening.
It is estimated that there are between 80,000 to 11,000 mature Alpine goats in the world. Furthermore, more than half of the world's population of Alpine goats can be found in British Columbia.
Physical Feature | Characteristics |
|---|---|
Horns | Both sexes have relatively large, curved horns. It is not recommended to dehorn or disbud these goats as they can quickly overheat. |
Facial features | |
Body shape and size | |
Coloration | Many color combinations exist. Each coloration pattern has a name, e.g., pied, cou blanc, cou noir, chamoisée, and broken chamoisée. |
Table 2: Physical characteristics of Alpine goats
2. Golden Guernsey Goats
Guernseys are a rare breed of goat almost eradicated in the Second World War. They originate from the Channel Islands, and their numbers are increasing through successful back-breeding. There is a Guernsey goat breeding program (GGBoA) for British and American Guernsey goat breeders.
Guernsey dairy goats produce four to five pints of milk per day. Their milk is high in butterfat and protein, making it a good source for yogurt and cheese production.
Physical Feature | Characteristics |
|---|---|
Horns | Horns curve backward, although some Guernsey goats are polled. |
Facial features |
|
Body shape and size | Smaller goat with finer features. American Guernsey goats are heavier-boned than British Guernsey goats. |
Coloration | Skin and hair are golden – ranging from pale blond coloration to deep bronze. |
Table 3: Physical characteristics of Golden Guernsey goats
3. LaMancha Goats
American LaManchas are popular dairy goats that yield milk with a high butterfat content. They can produce up to 0.79 gallons of milk daily and be milked for two years before freshening again.
Physical Feature | Characteristics |
|---|---|
Horns | Small, straight horns. Both sexes can be either polled or horned. |
Facial features |
|
Body shape and size |
|
Coloration | LaManchas can be in various colors, including cream, white, brown, gray, or black. They might also have badger stripes or pied markings. |
Table 4: Physical characteristics of LaMancha goats
4. Nigerian Dwarf Goats
Nigerian Dwarfs produce, on average, two to four quarts of milk a day and are known to have the highest level of butterfat in their milk.
Physical Feature | Characteristics |
|---|---|
Horns | Large, curved horns (relative to their dwarf size). |
Facial features |
|
Body shape and size | Average adult weight is between 40 to 60 lbs. |
Coloration | Red, gold, black, or white color patterns. |
Table 5: Physical characteristics of Nigerian Dwarf goats
5. Nubian Goats
Nubian goats are the most popular type of goat in the United States. This is because their milk includes up to 8% butterfat, depending on their diet, which is above the average for other goats their size.
Physical Feature | Characteristics |
|---|---|
Horns | Rams have large, black horns. Does are often polled but can have small horns. |
Facial features |
|
Body shape and size | Large, sleek body |
Coloration | Black, white, chestnut, or tan. |
Table 6: Physical characteristics of Nubian goats
6. Oberhasli Goats
Oberhasli goats are sometimes called Swiss Alpines. Lactating does can produce up to 1.5 gallons of milk per day, and their milk has a fat content of about 3.5%.
Physical Feature | Characteristics |
|---|---|
Horns | Long horns that gently curve backward. |
Facial features |
|
Body shape and size | |
Coloration | Chamoisée |
Table 7: Physical characteristics of Oberhasli goats
7. Saanen Goats
Saanen goats are the most popular milk breed among goats, producing about 3 gallons of milk per head per day. They are often seen as one of the top producers next to French and Swiss Alpine goats.
Physical Feature | Characteristics |
|---|---|
Horns | Sometimes polled. If horned, the horns grow up and curve back. |
Facial features | |
Body shape and size |
|
Coloration | Mostly white or cream, although some black sub-breeds exist (Sable goat). |
Table 8: Physical characteristics of Saanen goats
8. Toggenburg Goats
Toggenburg goat milk is popular for cheesemaking. They produce, on average, 4.4 lbs. of milk daily during lactation, and their milk has up to 3.7% fat content.
Physical Feature | Characteristics |
|---|---|
Horns | Polling is common. Otherwise, horns curve up and backward. |
Facial features |
|
Body shape and size |
|
Coloration | Light fawn, mouse gray, or dark chocolate coloration. |
Table 9: Physical characteristics of Toggenburg goats
Conclusion
Most dairy goats have horns, but some are bred to be polled. Disbudding or dehorning goats is a common yet contentious practice in goat husbandry, but it has benefits for dairy farmers in particular. However, the offspring of two genetically polled goats risk being infertile. Therefore, it is always recommended to have a horned ram to cover dairy goats if you want to grow your herd.