Even though Spanish Goats are an organized breed, many people mistakenly use the term 'spanish' to describe anything that doesn't have a well-defined breeding ancestry, whether it is actually a Spanish Goat or just a "mutt." But this misconception is quite understandable. This term has been used for many years and has really stuck.
But here's the REAL story. As the Spanish Goat Association webpage explains, in the 1500's,
"The Spanish colonized the Americas from both sides. They left a goat trail. Some goats were brought from Spain to the Caribbean, through Florida, and onto Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. In the west, the goat trail runs from Mexico to California and Texas. So we have a mix of origins and possibly a little interbreeding in the middle. Remember that goats never received much documented attention, so the history is hard to verify, but Spanish goats in this country show their DNA to be of Iberian origin.
For the next couple of centuries the goats were used for milk, meat, hair, and hides. The goats survived well with minimal management, and those that became feral survived with no human management at all. They adapted well to their regions, and natural selection was the norm, producing a breed of goat that was an exceptionally well-adapted survivor."
Well that's what a Spanish Goat really is! Not a simple crossbreed, but an elite animal that has genetics that have survived - at times without any human involvement - for around 500 years!
Comments