Pack goat

As a pack goat domestic goat used as a pack animal is called. In the mountainous regions of the Balkans pack goats have been used for centuries. The use of pack goats in other regions of Europe and North America was made popular by John Mionczynski from Wyoming in the 1980s and 1990s. Interested goat farmers organize themselves in associations such as the North American Packgoat Association or the British Harness Goat Society.

A well-rested pack goat is to wear in a position up to 30 kg and a maximum of a quarter of their body weight for several miles. The goats are particularly suitable in the mountains as a pack animal for small loads. There they reach an average speed of two to three kilometers per hour on multi-day hikes. As herd animals trained pack goats follow the trek and need not be kept on a leash.

However, preference is given to castrated male goats as pack animals, since they are to a greater than female goats, on the other hand through the Castration both the unpleasant but typical buck odor and the aggressive behavior of intact goats lose. In addition to purebred animals intersections are used for packing of different races, often a cross between dairy and meat goat breeds is preferred. The dairy goat breeds have the großrahmigeren physique, through the cross-breeding of goat meat obtained more muscle and bone strength.