The Sirohi is an Indian breed of

domestic 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 a ...

. It is named for its area of origin, the

Sirohi District Sirohi District is a district of Rajasthan state in western India. The city of Sirohi is the district headquarters. As of 2011 it is the third least populous district of Rajasthan (out of 33), after Jaisalmer and Pratapgarh. History In 1948 ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern s ...

, in north-western India. It may be described as a dual-purpose breed, reared for both meat and

milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modula ...

production, or as meat breed. It is well adapted to the dry tropical climate of Rajasthan.

History

The Sirohi is believed to have originated in the

of southern

, its principal area of distribution. Its range extends southward into the neighbouring Palanpur District of

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

. In 1972 a breed census found a total population of 295000, of which more than 200000 were breeding females. The population reported to

DAD-IS DAD-IS is the acronym of the worldwide Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, within the FAO's management of animal genetic resources programme.Domestic Animal Diversity Infor ...

for 2013 was

Description

Body size: Sirohi goats are medium to large sized animals with compact cylindrical to conical body. Generally, cylindrical shaped animals are believed to be better meat producers while animals with conical body are considered good in milk production. Some adult animals may have a depression in the thoracic region, giving a saddle back appearance. The body is covered with fairly dense hair which is short and coarse. Coat colour: Prominent colours are brown and brown with light to dark brown patches (spotted brown). Both, brown and spotted brown types are generally available in three shades of dark, medium and light. Very few animals are completely white. The body coat is generally shiny in nature, but some animals possess hairy coat also. Face: Face of Sirohi goat is generally straight or sometimes slightly raised. Ear: Ears are generally flat and leaf like, medium-sized and drooping type. They are described as pendulous, drooping downwards, leaf-like in shape with slight curvature towards back. Horn: Both males and females have horns which are generally curved upward and backward with pointed tips; but other horn patterns are also seen. Some Sirohi animals without horn (polled) are also found. Tail: Tail is small to medium in length and curved upward. Wattles and beard: Some Sirohi animals have two wattles hanging from the neck and beard under the lower jaw. Indo-Swiss Goat Project (ISGP) study reported that wattles were present in about 30% of animals. True beard are also present in few animals. Udder conformation: Udder is small and round, with small teats placed laterally. Some (6%) of the goats registered under the Indo-Swiss Goat Project (ISGP scheme were reported to have supernumerary teats.

As livestock

Sirohi/Ajmera goats are dual-purpose animals, being reared for both milk and meat. The animals are popular for their weight gain and lactation even under poor quality rearing conditions. The animals are resistant to major diseases and are easily adaptable to different climatic conditions specially in hot places . Though the main breeding tracts of Sirohi/Ajmera goats are situated in the Aravalli hills of Rajasthan, they are also widely distributed in several other Indian states. On average, 90% of all births will result in a single kid with the remaining 10% producing twins. Lactation can last for up to 90 days and average to 0.75–1 kg/day for a good does.

History

Description

As livestock

Meat Production

References

Further reading