Goat
The goat or domestic goat (Capra hircus) is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (C. aegagrus) of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the animal family Bovidae and the tribe Caprini, meaning it is closely related to the sheep. There are over 300 distinct breeds of goat. It is one of the oldest domesticated species of animal, according to archaeological evidence that its earliest domestication occurred in Iran at 10,000 calibrated calendar years ago.
| Domestic goat Temporal range: Neolithic–Recent | |
|---|---|
| A pygmy goat on a tree stump | |
Domesticated | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | Bovidae |
| Subfamily: | Caprinae |
| Tribe: | Caprini |
| Genus: | Capra |
| Species: | C. hircus |
| Binomial name | |
| Capra hircus | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Capra aegagrus hircus Linnaeus, 1758 | |
Goats have been used for milk, meat, fur, and skins across much of the world. Milk from goats is often turned into goat cheese.
In 2011, there were more than 924 million goats living in the world, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.