The Cashmere goat is a great dual purpose animal, which appeals to farming operations looking at optimizing their profit margin.

The Cashmere goat for fibre

Cashmere has been known through out history as “the fibre of kings” and remains today the ultimate fibre of luxury. Cashmere is a highly prized, extremely fine, incredibly soft, light and warm fibre which comes from the under down of these special goats.

The Cashmere goat for meat

Our Canadian Cashmere breeding stock originated from Australia and US stock. In the US, the feral Spanish goats were used in the breeding program which helped provide the hardiness to the Canadian Cashmere goats.

To survive in the wild the feral goat had to develop characteristics which able it to survive without any human interventions. These same characteristics are still present in our Cashmere goats today.

  • Multiple birth and fertility rate: Does usually produce twins and sometime triplets.
  • Easy Kidding: Does do not require any assistance at kidding time.
  • Good mothering and milk production: Kids are up thriving minutes after birth under the supervision of their attentive moms.
  • Care: hoof trimming and treatment of illnesses are reduced to a minimum due to their hardiness
  • Shelter and cold temperatures. These goats thrive under all kinds of weather and require only a three sided shelters for even the coldest temperatures. The cashmere goats are often out feeding when other goats are hiding from the elements
  • Feed requirements: The Cashmere goat will thrive on any type of pasture or browsing area, no additional feed is required.

Because of these qualities the Spanish/Cashmere goat is an asset for any meat operation.

A goat adapted for any size and type of farming operation

Producers are breeding mainly for sale of breeding stock, sale of cashmere or production of cashmere for personal use. The additional income from the sale of goat meat usually comes as the “added bonus which seals the deal”. But if you ask any Cashmere goat producer: “ What made you decide on the Cashmere goats?”, you will get a different reason almost every time!

Cashmere breeders come from all different age groups, different walks of life and have different interest, but once they purchase their first Cashmere goats, they all have one thing in common: a new passion in these amazing goats! Some Cashmere goat owners live on acreages near the large cities, some raise their goats on large farms in the country. Some chose the Cashmere goat to suit their lifestyles: the cashmere goats do not require much hands on, which leaves more time for other activities. For this same reason this goat is also a great asset in a big operation setting. If someone is solely interested in the fibre and do not want do any breeding, a few quality wethers will do the trick.

The Cashmere goat in history

We can trace back the Cashmere goat to Central Asia where they have been bred and raised for hundreds of years. Europeans discovered the fibre notably in the so called Ring Shawl. These soft warm shawls were so fine they could be pulled through a wedding ring, hence the name. “Some reports have the Western world’s demand for this fibre beginning when Napoleon brought back a ring shawl for his wife, Josephine.” (Canadian Cashmere Producers Association). Australia started breeding Cashmere goats using feral goats in their cashmere production in the 1970’s. Other Countries took note of the success achieved by the Australians. Scotland and the United States followed suit in the 1980’s using genetics from Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, as well as other regions. The Us breeding program included feral Spanish animals which where carefully selected for fibre traits. The breeding of Cashmere goats in Canada originated in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s with the use of US and Australian breeding stock.

The Cashmere goat’s appearance

Although the general appearance of the Cashmere goat can be very different from one Country to another due to the diversity of genetic used over the decades there are also some similarities. They often have wide horns, a blocky build and refine facial features. Due to their feral historical background, the Cashmere goat tends to be alert and wary, this trait of character does diminish some as the goat gets used to its owner. Cashmere goats come in an assortment of different colors: white, cream red, brown, grey, black and some have badger style markings. Some animal can also have a second color on their top line, leg or bellies, but as long as the cashmere production area is of one single color, they do qualify as a Cashmere goat. The length of the guard hair varies widely, only the length of the under down is of importance.

The Cashmere goat is a bred truly as a dual purpose animal: they are judge on 50% for fibre and 50% on body size and conformation. A large animal will produce more meat and often more cashmere as well.

Does your goat produce cashmere or soft fluffy fuzz?

Pretty much all goats produces an under down (except for the Angora goats), but only a few will produce cashmere. To be classified as Cashmere, the fibre as to have a maximum diameter of 19.5 microns must be longer than 1.25” have a high level of crimp (style) and have a low luster. An animal can only be called a Cashmere goat if its fleece meets all these requirements. Producers have access to a tool called histograms (which is a laboratory test done on fibre samples collected by the producer) or can also get their fleece graded by an experienced cashmere producer at a classification workshop of fleece competition. The Cashmere goat is a TYPE of goat and not a breed; most of the Canadian Cashmere goats are of Spanish decent (breed), but because of their cashmere production ability, they are a Cashmere goat (type).

Cashmere harvesting and processing

The Cashmere goats grow their under down from the summer solstice until the winter solstice. The goat will then start to slowly release its Cashmere and it is the beginning of harvest season. The goats are brushed, just like you would brush your dog to get rid of his winter hair. Some producers in the US chose to sheer their animals, but this process harvest the guard hairs as well as the Cashmere and proves to be more costly when sent for processing.

Cashmere can be processed as “cloud”: cleaned and de-haired only, “roving or batt”: Cleaned, de-haired and carded , ready to spin. “Skein”: ready to knit or crochet

The common cheap cashmere sweater VS. cashmere produced by Canadian producers.

The large chains of department store often will have for sale items claiming they contain, of even to contain 100% Cashmere. Don’t be fooled, cashmere is extremely valuable, some product being sold as 100% cashmere can be blended with wool or other fibres, some may even not contain any cashmere at all. You can find details regarding fraud and mislabeling of these items at the Cashmere and Camel Hair Manufacturers Institute. The dual purpose of these goats allows the Canadian producers to raise Cashmere goats commercially and profitably as well as keeping the quality of their cashmere high. Any animal with inferior fleece can easily be sold into the thriving chevon (young goat meat) market.

For additional information on the Cashmere goats or to locate a breeder near you, visit our Canadian Association web page at www.canadiancashmere.ca or feel free to contact us at info@sprucehavenfarms.ca