ABOMASUM: The fourth or true stomach of a ruminant where enzymatic digestion occurs.

ABSCESS: Boil; a localized collection of pus.

ACIDOSIS (Grain Overload): A condition in which the pH of the rumen is abnormally low (<5.5).

ACUTE: Any process occurring over a short period of time.

AFTERBIRTH: The placenta and associated membranes expelled from the uterus after parturition.

ANEMIA: An inadequate number of red blood cells in the body.

ANESTROUS PERIOD: The time when the female does not exhibit estrus (heat); the non-breeding season.

ANTHELMINTIC: A drug that expels or kills internal parasites.

ANTIBODY: A protein produced by the body's immune system that recognizes and helps fight infections and other foreign substances in the body.

ANTIBOTIC: A pharmaceutical product injected or fed to the animal that helps it fight off a bacterial infection.

ARTIFICAL INSEMINATION: The injection of semen into the female reproductive tract through the use of an instrument (example: French gun) in order for the animal to become pregnant.

B

BALANCED RATION: A ration containing nutrients in the correct proportion to meet the nutritional needs of the animal.

BALANCE/SYMMETRY: Describes how the parts of the body blend together and result in good eye appeal and proper confirmation.

BLIND TEAT: A non functional teat on the udder of the goat. It can be an additional teat that is not connected to a milk duct or one that is nonfunctional due to mastitis.

BLOAT: An excessive accumulation of gas in the rumen and reticulum, resulting in distension of the abdomen.

BOLUS: A rounded mass of medicine used in cattle, goats and sheep.

BREED: A group of animals with similar characteristics (color, markings, size, etc.) that distinguishes it from other animals. The characteristics are passed from the parents to the offspring.

BUCK: A sexually mature intact male goat used for breeding.

BUCKLING: A sexually immature young male.

BUCK RAG: A cloth rubbed on a buck and imbued with his odor. The rag is kept in a closed container and can be used to assist in stimulating estrus (heat) in does.

BROWSE: Bushy or woody plants that goats consume.

BURDIZZO: A tool used to castrate goats, sheep or cattle that crush the spermatic cords to render the male sterile. This leaves the scrotum intact; however, the testicles will shrink away.

BUTTING: A method of fighting by which one animal strikes the head and horns of its opponent.

C

CAPRINE: The scientific name for the goat species.

CAPRINE ARTHRITIS ENCEPHALITIS (CAE): An infectious disease that causes arthritis and progressive inflammation in one or more organs or tissue systems such as the joints, bursae, brain, spinal cord, lungs and udder. This disease affects goats and is currently incurable.

CASTRATION: Removal of the testicles.

CISTERN: The final temporary storage area of milk in the udder.

CLEATS (Clays, Claws, Clees): The two halves of the goat’s hoof.

CLOSED HERD: No new animals are introduced into the herd.

CLOSTRIDIAL INFECTION: A bacterial infection that can occur in sheep and goats. Some goat diseases that are caused by this infection are: Blackleg, Enterotoxaemia (Overeating disease) and Tetanus.

COCCIDIOSIS: A disease that is commonly exhibited in younger animals caused by a protozoa parasite infection. It is characterized by diarrhea, dehydration, weight loss, lack of thriftiness, and weakness.

COLOSTRUM: The first milk the doe or ewe produces after given birth to their offspring. The milk is thick and golden yellow in color and contains rich antibodies. If the newborn does not consume the milk within the first 24 hours of life, there is very little chance the animal will survive.

CONFORMATION: The combination of structural correctness and muscling of the animal including the frame and shape of the animal.

CREEP FEEDER: An enclosed feeder meant to keep larger (older) animals out for supplementing the ration of young animals.

CROSS BREED: An animal whose parents are of two different breeds.

CRYPTORCHID: A condition where one or both testicles fail to descend into the scrotum sac.

CULL: To remove a substandard animal from the herd.

D

DOE: A sexually-mature female goat.

DOELING: A young female that is not yet sexually mature.

DRENCHING: To administer an oral dose of liquid.

DRY PERIOD: The time when the female is not producing milk.

DRYLOT: An area with no vegetation generally an outside pen area.

DYSTOCIA: Difficulty in delivering the fetuses.

E

EMBRYO: Unborn offspring that does not yet have developed organ systems and is in the very early stages of development in the uterus.

ENVIRONMENT: The sum of all the conditions the animal is exposed to including: climate, housing, feed sources, disease, etc.

ESTROGEN: The hormone that primarily causes behavioral estrus.

ESTROUS (adjective): An adjective describing anything having to do with the female reproductive cycle, including estrus.

ESTROUS CYCLE: The beginning of one estrus (heat) to the beginning of the next estrus (heat).

ESTRUS (noun, a.k.a “Heat”): The period in which the female is receptive to breeding.

EXTERNAL PARASITE. These parasites feed on body tissue such as blood, skin, and hair. The wounds and skin irritation produced by these parasites result in discomfort and irritation to the animal. Some examples of external parasites are: fleas, keds, lice, mites, nose-blot flies, and ticks.

F

FECAL EGG COUNT (FEC): Using a fecal flotation method to determine the level of parasite load in goats based on the number and type of parasite eggs found in the feces.

FECAL FLOTATION: A microscopic procedure used to identify various parasite eggs in a fecal sample.

FECES: The manure or excrement produced by an animal.

FEED ADDITIVE: Anything added to a feed, including preservatives, growth promoters and medications.

FETUS: Unborn offspring that has developed organ systems. This term applies to the baby after embryonic development and until birth.

FIBER (in diet): The portion of a feed that is indigestible or slowly digested by ruminants. It may be expressed as crude fiber, neutral detergent fiber, acid fiber or effective fiber.

FINISH/CONDITION: Refers to the amount of external fat that covers the body.

FLUSHING: The process of increasing the quality of the diet of the doe before breeding season starts. The practice is used to increase the number of ovulations to try to increase the number of offspring. It is generally achieved by increasing the energy in the diet by either using high quality forage or increasing or starting feeding a concentrate.

FORAGE: The hay and/or grassy portion of the diet of goats, sheep and cattle.

FOREQUARTERS: The area on the animal’s body that includes the withers, front legs, feet, shoulder, chest and brisket area.

FREE CHOICE (Ad Libitum): Feed made available to an animal at all times so that the animal can eat whenever and as much as it chooses.

FRESHEN: When a does gives birth (kid) and starts to produce milk.

G

GESTATION: The period in which the doe is pregnant (average 145-155 days).

H

HAND BREEDING: A breeding scheme in which a female and male are isolated by the producer in a confined area for individual breeding.

HEAT (Estrus): The period in which the doe is receptive to mating.

HERMAPHRODITE: A sterile animal with reproductive organs of both sexes.

HORMONE: A chemical secreted into the bloodstream by an endocrine gland, bringing about a physiological response in another part of the body.

HYPOTHERMIA: When body temperature drops below that required for normal metabolism and body functions. Inability to keep warm often caused by cold or wet weather.

I

IMMUNITY: Protection from disease that comes as a result of the body’s normal immune system response.

INBREEDING: The mating of closely related individuals.

INTERNAL PARASITES: Parasites located in the gastrointestinal system in animals.

INTRADERMAL: Within the dermis, this is the layer of skin below the epidermis (outermost layer).

INTRAMUSCULAR (IM): The route of administering medications by inserting the needle straight into the skin and deep into the muscle. The recommended site for this injection is usually given in the neck of the animal.

INTRANASAL (IN): The spraying or administering of a solution into the nostrils.

INTRAVENOUS (IV): Medication injected into the vein, usually the jugular vein.

J

JOHNE’S DISEASE (Mycobacterium paratuberculosis): A bacterial disease causing severe weight loss and some diarrhea. Not currently curable.

K

KEDS: They are large, flattened, usually wingless parasitic flies.

KETONE: Compounds found in the blood of pregnant does suffering from pregnancy toxemia.

KETOSIS: The accumulation of ketones in the body, responsible for pregnancy diseases, acetonemia, twin lambing disease and others that occur at the end of pregnancy or within a month of kidding.

KID: A goat less than one year old.

L

LACTATION: The period in which a doe produces milk; the secretion or formation of milk.

LARVAE: The immature stage of an adult parasite. The term applies to insects, ticks and worms.

LEGUMES: A family of plants that has nodules on the roots to enable them to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere. Legumes are high in protein and bear their seeds in a pod (i.e., clover, alfalfa, cowpea).

LETHARGY: An animal that is slow to react lacks energy and is often sick.

LIBIDO: Sex drive.

LINE BREEDING: A form of inbreeding that attempts to concentrate the genetic makeup of some ancestor.

LIVER FLUKES: A small leaf-shaped organism that rolls up like a scroll in the bile ducts or liver tissue.

LUNGWORMS: Roundworms found in the respiratory tract and lung tissue.

LUTALYSE (Prostaglandin): A hormone used for synchronizing estrus.

M

MASCULINITY: Term used to describe the secondary male characteristics which are exhibited in the head, neck shoulders and chest.

MASTITIS: Inflammation of the udder usually caused by a bacterial infection.

MATERNAL: Pertaining to the mother or dam.

METABOLIC DISEASE: Those diseases that involve the lack of or unusual breakdown of physical and chemical processes in the body. Often associated with nutrition and feeding.

METRITIS: Inflammation of the uterus.

MILLILITTER (ml): A metric volume measurement that is identical to cubic centimeter (cc).

MICROCHIPPED: Permanent identification of animals produced by placing a microchip, generally in the tailweb, using a single use disposable syringe.

MICROORGANISM: Any living creature of microscopic size, especially bacteria and protozoa.

MUMMIFIED FETUS: a dead, shrunken fetus usually carried to term or later by the doe. The fetus usually died at an early stage of development, but after was too large to be reabsorbed by the doe.

N

NECROPSY: To examine an animal after death to determine the cause of death.

O

OMASUM: The omasum is the third compartment of a ruminant’s stomach located between the reticulum and the abomasum.

OPEN: A female that is not pregnant.

OVER-CONDITIONED: An animal that is excessively fat often due to over feeding.

P

PALATABLE or PALATABILITY: The taste and texture of forage and feed. A forage that is highly palatable has a pleasant taste and texture to livestock.

PARASITE: An organism which lives on or in another living organism (host) at the expense of the latter.

PARTURITION: The process of giving birth.

PASSIVE IMMUNITY: Acquiring the protection against infectious disease from another animal. This commonly occurs when a newborn consumes antibody-rich colostrum from its mother. Failure to consume sufficient colostrum increases the animal’s risk of contracting a disease.

PATERNAL: Pertaining to the father or sire.

PEDIGREE: A listing of the ancestors of an animal that generally goes back 4 to 8 generations. It is often used to prove parentage for registration in a breed association. A shorter list can be used by producers to trace parentage of animals on their farm.

PERITONITIS: Inflammation of the internal surface of the abdomen. This condition is often the result of infections and certain diseases.

pH: How much acid or how much base is in a sample. The lower the pH of a substance, the more acidic the sample. Conversely, the higher the pH, the more basic the sample. A pH of 7 is considered neutral. Normal rumen pH should be around 6-7, depending on the ration being fed.

PHENOTYPE: The visible or measurable result of genotype and environment. The phenotype includes an animal's external appearance, measures of its productivity and its physiological characteristics.

PLACENTA: the membranes that surround the fetus while it is in the uterus. This is also referred to as the afterbirth at parturition.

PLACENTITIS: Abnormal inflammation of the placenta, usually due to infectious disease.

POLLED: Naturally hornless.

POSTPARTUM: Occurring after birth.

ppm: Parts per million.

PREPARTUM: Occurring before birth.

PROGENY: Offspring.

PROLAPSE: An interior organ pushing outside of the body cavity.

PROGNOSIS: The chances of an animal having a normal quality of life following a disease or problem. This is reported using the words poor, fair, good, or excellent.

PROLIFIC: Tendency to produce many offspring.

PROTEIN: A nutrient required for growth and the repair of body tissue.

PROTEIN SUPPLEMENT: A feed that contains a high density of protein and is used to supply additional protein in the ration.

PUREBRED: An individual whose parents are of the same breed and can be traced back to the establishment of that particular breed through the records of a registry association.

PURULENT: A term describing pus-like discharge or infection.

Q

QUARANTINE: To confine and keep an animal away from the rest of the herd or flock to prevent the spread of disease.

R

RACK (meat term): refers to the rib section of the carcass along the back. This is one of the highest value cuts on a goat and is often used as a roast.

RATION: The total feed given to an animal during a 24-hour period.

RECESSIVE GENE: A gene which must be present on both chromosomes in a pair to show outward signs of a certain characteristic.

RECTAL PROLAPSE: When a portion of the rectum protrudes from the anus.

REGISTERED: A goat whose birth and ancestry has been recorded by a registry association.

RETICULUM: The second compartment of the ruminant’s stomach. The reticulum has a honey-combed appearance and is the receptacle for metal foreign objects that are swallowed.

ROTATIONAL GRAZING: A system by which livestock are allotted to a certain grazing or browsing area for a certain period of time before they are moved to another area.

ROUGHAGE: A high fiber, low total digestible nutrient feed consisting of coarse bulky plants or plant parts; dry or green feed with over 18% crude fiber.

RUMP: The area between the hip bones and the tail head.

RUMEN: The large first compartment of a ruminant's stomach containing a microbial population that is capable of breaking down forages and roughages.

RUMINANT: Animals that have a four-compartment stomach (rumen or paunch, reticulum or honeycomb, omasum or manyplies, and abomasum or true stomach).

RUMINATION: The process of regurgitating food to be re-chewed.

S

SCALE: A device used to weigh animals, feed etc.

SCOURS: Diarrhea.

SCRAPIE: Scrapie is a fatal, degenerative disease affecting the central nervous system, one of the class of diseases known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs).

SCROTUM: The skin sac or bag containing the testicles of a male animal.

SCURS: A rudimentary horn. A small rounded portion of horn tissue attached to the skin of the horn pit of a polled animal.

SEPTICAEMIA: A serious infection in which the bloodstream is invaded by large numbers of causal bacteria which multiply there.

SERVICE: Mating.

SETTLED: A female that is pregnant.

SIRE: Male parent.

SKIN TENT: When the skin of an animal is gently pinched and pulled outward. A dehydrated animal's skin will not rapidly return to its normal position or shape.

SOUNDNESS: When an animal is free from disease and lacks structural defects that affect its usefulness.

SOREMOUTH: A highly contagious, (also to humans), viral infection that causes scabs around the mouth, nostrils, and eyes and may affect the udders of lactating does.

STANCHION: A device for restraining a goat by the neck for the purpose of feeding, milking, hoof trimming or artificial insemination.

STANDING HEAT: The period in which the doe or ewe will stand still and accept the male for breeding.

STILLBIRTH: A fetus born dead. There can be many possible causes some related to disease others due to nutrition or conditions in the uterus at or before the birth process starts.

STRUCTURALLY CORRECT: Free from any conformational abnormalities which includes the skeleton, feet, and legs of the animal.

SUBCUTANEOUS (SQ) INJECTIONS: Insertion of the needle just under the skin and not into the muscle. This is important because SQ injectables are designed for a slower rate of absorption.

T

TAPEWORMS: Long, ribbon-like segmented flatworms that can inhabit the gastrointestinal tract of animals.

TATTOO: Permanent identification of animals produced by placing ink under the skin, generally in the ear, using a tattoo gun with digital (sharp needle-like) numbers.

TEASER (wether): A male that has been castrated and is used to indicate which females are in estrus.

TETANUS: Also called Lock Jaw is a condition caused by poisons produced by Clostridium tetani which is a bacterium found in the soil. Symptoms usually appear within 7 to 14 days of exposure and include stiffness and soreness that progresses through the body until the whole body is paralyzed within 48 hrs of first appearance.

TOXEMIA: Generalized poisoning, due to soluble (usually bacterial) toxins entering the bloodstream.

TOXIN: Any poisonous substance of biological origin.

TOXOID: An immunizing agent against toxins produced by bacteria. Most often form of immunity to tetanus.

TRACE MINERALS(TM): Minerals that are required in very small amounts.

U

UDDER: The mammary gland of sheep and goats that secretes-milk.

UMBILICUS: The area where the umbilical cord was attached during gestation. This is commonly known as the "belly button."

URINARY CALCULI: A metabolic disease of males characterized by the formation of stones within the urinary tract. It is caused primarily by an imbalance of dietary calcium and phosphorus.

UROLITHS or UROLITHIASIS: Describing a variety of stones that are found in the urinary system. These include kidney and bladder stones.

V

VACCINE: A biological product that is injected into an animal to stimulate an immunity to a particular disease.

VAGINAL PROLAPSE: The protrusion of the vagina in ewes or does during late pregnancy.

VEIN: Blood vessels in the body that carry blood towards the heart.

VIRULENCE: The ability a microorganism has to cause an infection or disease. Microorganisms which have the ability to cause more severe disease are said to be highly virulent.

W

WATTLE: A small fleshy appendage attached on or near the throat area of the goat and which serves no known function.

WEAN: To separate nursing offspring from their mothers so that they no longer receive milk.

WEANLING: An animal that has been weaned from its mother or has stopped suckling its mother.

WETHER: A male goat that has been castrated.

WHITE MUSCLE DISEASE: Problem in young goats caused by a deficiency of selenium and/or vitamin E. It causes kids to be weak at birth and shortly after birth. The condition impairs the animals ability to transport oxygen properly and if not treated can result in death within 48 hrs of birth.

Y

YEARLING: A male or female goat that is between 1 and 2 years of age.

Z

ZOONOSIS or ZOONOTIC: Any animal disease that can be spread to humans.