A Damascus goat transferred to Egypt has been nicknamed the “demon goat” because of its unusual facial features.
The Egyptian Goat Association shared the image of a dinosaur-like goat with a massive head, large forehead and wrinkled skin under its mouth, drawing 754,000 shares on Facebook, Sun reported on March 22. In the video, the goat stands on its hind legs and clings to the railing, looking around the barn. Its size makes other goats in the same barn small.
Florin Feneru, an identity agent and consultant to the British Museum of Natural History, said the animal was a Damascus goat, a species of indoor goat. “Damascus goats are raised in Syria, Cyprus and Lebanon. They are generally bred for milk. The goat faces the camera and protrudes above the fence, which is affected by a mutation that affects several individuals that makes them appear curious. His ears were cropped instead of being very long as usual. The other goats in the video also had cropped ears and had similar, but less prominent facial features, ”Feneru said.
Famous for their milk, good fortune (capable of giving birth to 3-4 children per litter) and delicious meat, the Damascus goats also known as Shami, Aleppo, Halep, Baladi and Damascene are beloved by the shepherds of the Middle East. shape. A typical Damascus goat has a short round nose and a raised nose bridge. They are also tall, with a shoulder height of 78cm and have long, drooping ears (27-32cm), sometimes curved into a long tubular shape.
As Damascus goats become favorite exotic pets, some rather rare traits in the herd are intentionally bred by overkill. Damascus goat herders often boast about showing off the most beautiful individuals, even entering them in many local and national competitions.
An ideal goat for display needs a short nose so that the head looks more square when viewed from the side. However, the mutant goat in the video makes a standard Damascus goat look poor. With an inordinately massive head, an arched skull, an odd long neck, wrinkled skin, and fleshy teeth, this male is quite possibly the result of the cross-mating of many individuals and possesses the most impressive characteristics.
According to Newsweek, the goat can be kept by the owner to mate with standard females to produce offspring of not too different shapes. Persian Gulf goat connoisseurs are willing to pay $ 67,000 for the best specimens of Damascus goats.
