La Mancha is a unique dairy-looking goat. It is simply impossible to confuse it with any other breed. What is so outstanding in these animals, what are the nuances of their content and the prospects for growing? We will talk about all this in the article.

Origin

There are several versions of the origin of this species: some sources report that the lamanches lived in Ancient Persia, and Spanish entrepreneurs are sure that the discovery of the breed belongs to them. It is authentically known that at the beginning of the 20th century, goats from the Spanish region of La Mancha were brought to the French capital at the International Animal Exposition. Then the species came to the United States (Oregon), where local experts put a lot of work into fixing the special shape of the ears, and here (in January 1958) the species was officially registered, giving it the name - Lamancha.

Important! A kid born with ears exceeding the allowable length (5 cm) cannot be registered as a purebred.

Breed description

The term "earlessness" does not fully characterize the breed, because the animals still have ears. Just their outer part is very small, almost inconspicuous. More detailed about the physique of these amazing goats, read below.

External characteristics

For the first time having seen lavenders, a man looks at their sturdy body, the almost complete absence of ears and at an impressive udder for females. Half of the breed has horns. Breeders emphasize the following exterior features of lavenders:

Torso	Massive, wedge-shaped
Height at the withers	Males can grow up to 75–95 cm; in goats, this parameter is 71–75 cm
The weight	in mature males, the weight ranges from 60 to 70 kg, and sometimes up to 100 kg; the weight of goats is 52–65 kg
Profile	Straight or slightly protruding
Ears	There are two types of ears: the "elf" (or "dwarf") ear is characterized by small cartilages, the tip is lowered or slightly raised, the maximum allowable length is 5 cm; corrugated - the external is very small and seems “wrinkled”, completely devoid of bends and cartilage, the length should not exceed 2.5 cm
Limbs	Strong, well developed.
Udder	Large, fairly well formed
Wool	Short, smooth (glossy)
Wool color	There are a variety of colors or combinations of colors - white, brown, red, black, brown and many others

Productive qualities

The breed is very appreciated for the excellent taste characteristics of milk. In addition, it completely lacks a specific "goat" smell. The average fat content is 4%. Lavender milk is significantly healthier than cow milk. Cattle on grazing consumes only 50 species of grass, while lamancha can eat 500 species. Due to this, much more various organic substances and minerals are concentrated in her milk. From one adult carcass up to 70% of meat comes out, which indicates the universality of the breed (lavenders can also be bred for the purpose of obtaining meat).

Pros and cons of the breed

The nature, appearance, and performance indicators make it possible to confidently call the breed in question unique. These cute short-eared creatures have both positive and negative qualities.

• Pros of breed:
• individuals are unpretentious to food and living conditions;
• tasty milk without a repulsive aroma;
• calm, quiet, good-natured temperament, love affection;
• the ability to lactate for two years without mating;
• multiplicity (on average, 3-4 cubs are born per lamb);
• high survival rate of young animals.

• Cons of the breed:
• due to the small size of the auricles, you cannot use tags or put marks on the ears to identify the animal (for this purpose, you have to use a bare portion of the tail);
• the difficulty of caring for your ears - you often have to check your ears for dirt and water;
• Roman nose is also attributed to defects of this type.

Rules for choosing good individuals

To purchase a productive goat of a lamancha breed, pay attention to external signs and follow the basic rules:

• make sure that the individual looks cheerful;
• inspect the coat - the presence of shine and smoothness is mandatory, the coat should lie evenly and easily extend in the thigh area;
• The ribs of a healthy individual are protruding, the back is straight, the back is wide, the stomach is voluminous without sagging;
• make sure that the limbs are set wide and end with strong hooves;
• inspect the udder - it should be voluminous, elastic, pear-shaped, with slightly convex vessels.

Important! The first mating is desirable to produce at the age of 1.5 years, otherwise the first birth will be painful.

Features of breeding and care

Despite the unpretentiousness of lavenders, in order to obtain high milk yield and increase the number of livestock, the most favorable conditions should be organized.

Content Terms and Conditions

Each individual needs to equip their own home (stall), the optimal height of which is at least 2 meters, and the length is 4.5 meters. Cover the floor with litter (dry hay or straw). In the barn, it is necessary to maintain cleanliness and monitor the dryness of the litter. The temperature in the home should not fall below +5 ° C, and air humidity should not exceed 75%. It is important to supply goats with both natural light and artificial light sources (in winter).

Did you know? According to the tradition of the ancient Jews, on the day of the forgiveness of sins, the high priest laid his hands on the head of a goat. Thus, the sins of the whole people were transferred to an animal, which was then taken to a desert area and set free. It is from here that the expression "scapegoat" came from.

Feeding

The laying of food and water for babies and adult goats is an activity that a farmer must conduct regularly and according to certain rules.

Adult goats

From the lavender menu you need to remove the wrestler, buttercups, euphorbia - these plants are harmful to them. There are no other restrictions on the nutritional composition; they eat almost all succulent and roughage, grass and leaves. It is only necessary to adhere to the recommended dosages.

In the summer months, provide animals with enough space to provide themselves with the herbs they need. In the winter months, hay acts as the main source of energy for lavenches. Short-eared animals prefer to feed on meadow hay containing chamomile, alfalfa and clover. Add hay and oat straw to the hay (no more than 2 kg per day).

Serve washed and chopped vegetables (raw or boiled) up to 3 kg per mature lamancha per day. Concentrated food (cake, oats, barley, any beans) give each adult pet 300-500 grams per day.

This breed may lack vitamins D and A. To correct the situation, feed your pets with specialized vitamin-mineral complexes, and at least one hour a day give them the opportunity to be in direct sunlight.

Goats should be watered, which is necessary for proper digestion and normal productivity. In the heat, be sure to control so that the goats have free access to clean water with a temperature of at least + 10 ° C.

Learn how to properly feed a goat in winter.

Kids

In the early days of life, young animals should be fed exclusively on mother's milk. From the 11th day, the kids must be gradually weaned from the udder, adding liquid cereal to the menu. You can already add small portions of hay to the feeder. After the 20th day, accustom the crumbs to the pasture, and in the menu include apples (pre-ground) and oatmeal.

Young animals of 30 days of age love to feast on bran, food concentrates, root crops, herbs. Periodically add mineral raw materials (chalk, salt, bone meal or ready-to-feed). Two-month-old babies already do without cereals; they willingly eat meal, hay, and feed. It is important to water young animals with clean water at least three times a day. After 6 months, the main menu for the kids should include grass, tree branches and hay.

Did you know? Goats are mentioned in the Bible 200 times.

Diseases and their prevention

The first symptom that small cattle is sick is a decrease or complete lack of food cravings. Milk disappears, the pulse quickens. Non-communicable diseases include mastitis (inflammation of the udder), diseases of the stomach, intestines, respiratory organs, and hooves. Invasive ailments include fascioliasis, echinococcosis and pyroplasmosis (damage to goats by worms and blood-sucking insects).

To prevent these diseases, follow preventative measures:

1. If helminthic infestation is common near your farm , you should be treated with anthelmintic medicines twice a year (in April, before letting goat goats for free grazing, and in October, before moving the goat to closed keeping).
2. Try to fence off the herd from stagnant ponds and poor-quality food. Change your grazing place more often.
3. Periodically inspect the floor and bedding in the goat’s home. The floor must be warm and the litter dry.
4. Make sure that the barn is properly ventilated.
5. Once every two weeks, inspect the hooves and limbs of goats. If you find lame individuals or animals with other flaws, isolate them in a separate room before diagnosis and treatment.
6. Twice a month, goats should take therapeutic baths for the limbs. To do this, fill the trough with a disinfectant (copper sulfate solution). Place the container in front of the entrance to the barn, so that upon exit all individuals are forced to immerse the limbs in the solution.
7. So that the goats do not experience a lack of vitamins, supplement their diet with specialized mineral-based top dressings (the composition should contain table salt, crushed chalk and iron sulfate).
8. In order to prevent mastitis and other diseases of the udder, carefully monitor the condition of this organ, while expressing milk, do not allow injuries or damage to the udder. When identifying females with mastitis, separate them from the general herd, show them to the veterinarian and begin treatment as soon as possible.

Read more about the symptoms of mastitis in goats.

Prospects for breeding in Russia

Short-eared goats absolutely safely withstand the climatic conditions of any region of the Russian Federation. La Mancha are very mobile both in the cold winter and in the hot summer months. Harsh conditions have little effect on their productivity, so from the point of view of weather conditions there are no insurmountable difficulties for the cultivation of a short-eared species.

The advantage of breeding lamanches is that there is almost no competition on the Russian dairy market. And lamanches also give a lot of milk, which guarantees a high income for the au pair.

The main difficulties that you may encounter are related to the backwardness of the goat milk market in the country as a whole. The vast majority of citizens have never tried this product and evaluate it completely biased (despite the fact that goat milk is superior to cow milk in many ways). In addition, the latest equipment for goat farms is simply not manufactured in the Russian Federation, which forces farmers to do manual labor, reducing profitability. Or you have to buy expensive overseas equipment.

In general, entrepreneurs in practice prove that a high milk yield coefficient of lamanches guarantees a good profit. But keep in mind that milk will be difficult to sell, you can not do without a milk processing workshop, where you can cook cheeses and other dairy products. And yet, be prepared for the fact that with all the efforts, the starting investments will not pay off soon.

You will be interested to read about goat farming as a business.

Summing up, we can confidently say that lamancha is a comprehensively gifted breed that can be a good addition to your farm. Follow the general recommendations on the content, then these amazing goats will delight you with high milk yield and tender meat.