Nathan was walking Snowflake to school one day which wasn’t in the rules. His Alpine goat made the children laugh and play to see a 180-pound horned critter at school.

Nathan’s 4-legged buddy originated in the Swiss Alps, and was brought to the U.S. from France. French-Alpine goats have curling horns. The males can grow to four feet tall and weigh more than 170 pounds! Did you ever drink goat’s milk? The females are also called Alpine Dairy because they produce milk like a cow.

Alpines are usually two-toned in color, with cool names like:

Cou Blanc (pronounced coo blanc) – who has a white neck and black hindquarters with black or gray markings on his/her head.

Cou Noir – (pronounced coo nwah) has a black neck with black front, and white hindquarters.

Sundgau (pronounced sundgow) – is black with white markings.

Pied – is spotted.

Snowflake plays in a pasture with his friend, Tinkerbell, a white Nubian goat.

Anglo-Nubians were bred before 1895 in England by crossing British goats with males of African and Indian origin. The Anglo-Nubian was named after the country Nubia, in northeastern Africa.

Tinkerbell, a Nubian, is shy and smaller then Snowflake. She’s less then three feet tall and weighs 120 pounds. Her horns are pointed, and her ears are floppy like a Basset hound.

If Alpine and Nubian goats are too big for your backyard then Nigerian Dwarf might work. These cute miniature goats stand less than two feet tall, and weigh around 75 pounds.

The Nigerian Dwarf came from West Africa. They are playful critters who like to climb. Nigerian Dwarf’s coat is soft to touch and the color of their hair ranges from solid black to calico.

No matter which kind of goat you like, it’s important to buy the goat as a baby, so it can get used to being handled by you. Goats make great playful companion animals. They’ll also mow your grass and trim your trees without being asked.

Next time you see a kid walking a four-legged critter take a closer look, it might just be a goat!