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A goat breed that has not yet become widespread in Our Country. But it causes interest and close attention of breeders and farmers.
History of the breed
The Nubian or Anglo-Nubian breed traces its lineage to African goats from the Nubian desert region. Hence the name of the breed.
British farmers, taking as a basis the genetic material of goats from extremely arid regions of Africa, crossed with local, Swiss and Indian breeds. The merit of English breeders was duly appreciated, so the breed is called Anglo-Nubian, but for brevity, the breed is often called Nubian.
American breeders have worked quite successfully to improve the productive qualities of the breed. It was from America that the first representatives of the Nubian breed were brought to Our Country.
In Our Country, there are very few purebred individuals of the Nubian breed, interest in the breed is constrained by the financial component. Purebred animals are quite expensive, so farmers are quite reserved about the breed.
Description
There is no specific standard for Nubian goats in Our Country. The appearance of Nubia is distinguished, first of all, by long, wide, hanging ears, which are located below the level of the muzzle of the animal. It refers to the standard when the tips of the ears are on the line of the nostrils. The head is small, oval in shape, slightly flattened on the sides. The nose is wide with a hump, which also belongs to the characteristic recognizable standards of the breed. Goats are polled, goats, as a rule, have horns. Although, according to the English standard, the goat must be hornless.
The neck is strong, of medium length, the body is quite massive, muscular, strong, as Nubian goats have a meat and dairy direction. The body is shaped like a rectangle. The legs are thin, slender, proportional. The udder is large, consists of 2 lobes, the nipples are long elongated.
The wool of the Nubian goats is short, shiny, in a wide variety of colors. Goats are black, white, all shades of brown, brown and white, black and white, golden.
Breed standard: black skin, possibly grey, tan skin is not acceptable.
Disadvantages: The size of the animal, very different from the standard, twisted tail, horns.
Animals are different in nature. There are calm individuals who make good contact with a person, respond to nicknames. But mostly Nubians are fidgety and behave quite noisily. The temperament of animals as a whole depends on the conditions of keeping and feeding.
Productivity characteristic
The Nubian goat breed has a meat and dairy direction. Although, it is not at all in the tradition to use goats as a source of meat. An adult animal can weigh from 80 to 100 kg, at the withers an adult male can reach more than 80 cm. The meat has high taste characteristics.
Perhaps the main value of Nubian goats is milk, white gold, which has a high nutritional value due to the high content of calcium, phosphorus, vitamins A, B, C and D. Milk contains 8,5% fat and 19,7 % dry matter. In terms of fat content, it surpasses buffalo milk, but is inferior to deer milk.
According to the composition of amino acids, the milk of Nubian goats is compared with women’s. Fat globules in goat’s milk are 10 times smaller than in cow’s. Therefore, they are better absorbed. Milk does not contain allergens, therefore it is recommended to use it for children and adults with poor health, with gastrointestinal diseases, with metabolic disorders. Those who drink goat’s milk regularly do not get sick and are not at risk of anemia.
Nubian goats give 3 liters of milk daily. The lactation period lasts about 300 days. Milk yield increases with each subsequent lambing. In terms of milk yield, they are second only to the Saanen goat breed.
Goats bring up to 3 kids per lamb, pregnancy occurs twice a year. Watch a video about Nubian goats:
Content
In order to keep the productive characteristics of the breed at a high level, the animals should be properly fed and well cared for.
Nubian goats do not tolerate cold winters, so the room for their maintenance should be heated, in winter there should be a positive temperature inside. The owners note that in the 2nd-3rd generation, the Nubians acclimatize.
The room should be bright and dry, with good ventilation, but without drafts. The presence of condensate on the walls is unacceptable, which indicates high humidity, and this, in turn, leads to pneumonia in animals.
For Nubias, cleanliness in the room is important, they will not lie down in the dirt, they will behave restlessly, as a result, milk production will decrease. Change your bedding frequently. You can use straw or sawdust, which absorb liquid well.
For goats, special wooden beds are made. Animals do not sleep on the floor.
Diet
Animals need to be well fed so that they give a lot of quality milk. The diet should be varied and balanced. Sample menu for winter:
- Hay 3-5 kg should be of good quality, not dried out and it is better if the hay has not been soaked by rains;
- Straw can replace hay by 25%, but it requires preliminary preparation. Most often, the straw is crushed;
- Grain concentrates 2 kg, should not be used in large volumes, since with insufficient doses of roughage (hay, straw), goats are disturbed by digestion;
- Vegetables 3 kg (pumpkin, zucchini, fodder beets, carrots), branches or leaves. Root vegetables are a good milk extractor in winter.
The basis of the diet is hay, goats are very fond of prepared brooms from pine, willow, willow, hazel, mountain ash. Barley and oats increase milk yield, it is best to steam them.
Vitamin and mineral supplements must be present in the diet of Nubian goats. Vitamins include ready-made preparations for meat and dairy breeds, mineral ones: salt and chalk.
In summer, meadow grasses form the basis of the diet. In the evening, you can give some hay, vegetables, oats.
Each breeder determines the diet for himself, a violation of the nutrition schedule leads to a decrease in the productivity of animals and stress. Dairy goats should be fed at least 3 times. Clean water must always be freely available.
Breeding
The Nubian goat brings 2-3 kids, high rates of offspring production make the breed profitable in terms of breeding. Nubiek can be crossed with other breeds of goats to increase productive characteristics.
Pregnancy of Nubian goats lasts 150 days. Kids are born large viable. In the first minutes of life, they must receive maternal colostrum, which triggers the immune system.
Conclusion
Breeding Nubian goats can be a profitable business. The demand for thoroughbred animals, despite the high price, is growing every year. Products from goats are of high quality, milk is especially valued, which does not cause allergic reactions.
