If you thought that beauty pageants are reserved for people only, you might be surprised to find that there are beauty contests for camels, badgers, cats, and even goats. And, if typically the contestants who enter the pageants are absolutely gorgeous, a different kind of beauty is valued in goats.
The goat beauty pageant, held in Saudi Arabia, prizes billies known as the Damascus goat, also known in the internets as the 'World's Ugliest Animals.' And though we do not like calling our four-legged pals ugly, this goat breed has some very unusual characteristics.
The Damascus goat is generally used for milk production but also performs well in leather and meat production. What's shocking about these weird animals is the difference between their looks when they're young and when they grow up. What seems to be incredibly cute goats with very long ears later turns into a monstrosity with bulging noses that could scare many people. Anyways, this rare breed of quite ugly goats has become extremely valuable, and according to goat connoisseurs, their price can go all the way up to 67.000 USD.
Scroll down below for some Damascus goat pictures and decide for yourself whether they deserve to be called cute or ugly animals.
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I wish they all had their ears uncut like this one. I can't understand why people insist on cutting ears and tails off animals, it's horrible. And they look so much better in their natural state, as they're meant to look!
OK, now, I'm sure they cut their ears... why creating a breed with unbelivable long ears, to end up by mutilate these poor animals?
The stubby face is not natural to the breed and is a mutation maintained by some breeders and I think that's irresponsible. The breed has long-flowing ears and the ones you see with stubby tube ears have been cut that way. This is objectionable treatment of the breed at best.
same goes with pugs, bulldogs and so on
No Morgan, that doesn't justify it and no one here is saying it does.
@ Maria Thelin, Yup.
I was thinking the same thing. I work in a vet hospital and we even have a Sx called the "bulldog special" to help correct the soft palate and nasal structure of bulldogs so they can actually breath.
And that justifies it? We claim dogs are mans best friend and we deform them too. It's disgusting.
They cut ears so that they don't get injuries, mites, and infections that can kill them. These animals are bred for meat and milk - they are NOT PETS. While I agree with you that cropping ears and tails on dogs is needless mutilation, there are excellent reasons for doing this with these goats.
Ear cropping and tail docking in dogs is exactly the same thing. It's done to working dogs for practical reasons. As long as it's done for the overall safety of the animal and not purely for aesthetics, then yes, cropping gears and docking tails is EXACTLY the same as doing these things to goats. Also, people do keep goats as pets.
Absolutely ,, its decades of inbreeding unfortunately ...
Why would they cut their ears like that... How cruel :(.
Every time I see a pitbull with its ears and tail cut I cry for it. They were beautiful before they had their appendages cut. If you want a short eared animal, breed it that way.
Some times it's a nessicity to dock the tails and clip the ears, like my cane corso had a docked tail cause she was a work dog and if she had her tail it could have been broken causing injury
Every time I see an animal with their ears or tail cut for "aesthetic" reasons, I feel like kidnapping the owners and doing the same thing to them, you know where. It would kill two birds with a stone: they'd learn something about pain and they wouldn't be able to breed, thus eliminating some idiocy and cruelty from the human genetic pool.
well sort of, It's kinda like getting your ears pierced. you don't remember it and hey now you get to look good :)
people do the same thing for dogs. Dobberman look so much better without their ears cut and so those sheeps
same @ some dogowners/breeders
I really, really loathe the breeders who breed for extreme traits, usually to the detriment of the actual animal. They may be cosseted and well cared for, but often they have a hard time eating, breathing, moving.
If you look up the breeding standards for Shami goats, you will see that the traits you mention usually eliminate the animal in question from the breeding population. They will be used for fiber, leather and meat, not dairy (since milk production requires breeding). Keeping those with exaggerated faces around isn't cruel, it's thrifty.
I think it's fabulous that you are knowledgeable on these breeds, or that you have taken the time to learn about it. My comment, however, stands in that many of those breeding for various differences do not recognize or acknowledge the pain special animals experience.
The stubby face is not natural to the breed and is a mutation maintained by some breeders and I think that's irresponsible. The breed has long-flowing ears and the ones you see with stubby tube ears have been cut that way. This is objectionable treatment of the breed at best.
same goes with pugs, bulldogs and so on
No Morgan, that doesn't justify it and no one here is saying it does.
@ Maria Thelin, Yup.
I was thinking the same thing. I work in a vet hospital and we even have a Sx called the "bulldog special" to help correct the soft palate and nasal structure of bulldogs so they can actually breath.
And that justifies it? We claim dogs are mans best friend and we deform them too. It's disgusting.
They cut ears so that they don't get injuries, mites, and infections that can kill them. These animals are bred for meat and milk - they are NOT PETS. While I agree with you that cropping ears and tails on dogs is needless mutilation, there are excellent reasons for doing this with these goats.
Ear cropping and tail docking in dogs is exactly the same thing. It's done to working dogs for practical reasons. As long as it's done for the overall safety of the animal and not purely for aesthetics, then yes, cropping gears and docking tails is EXACTLY the same as doing these things to goats. Also, people do keep goats as pets.
Absolutely ,, its decades of inbreeding unfortunately ...
Why would they cut their ears like that... How cruel :(.
Every time I see a pitbull with its ears and tail cut I cry for it. They were beautiful before they had their appendages cut. If you want a short eared animal, breed it that way.
Some times it's a nessicity to dock the tails and clip the ears, like my cane corso had a docked tail cause she was a work dog and if she had her tail it could have been broken causing injury
Every time I see an animal with their ears or tail cut for "aesthetic" reasons, I feel like kidnapping the owners and doing the same thing to them, you know where. It would kill two birds with a stone: they'd learn something about pain and they wouldn't be able to breed, thus eliminating some idiocy and cruelty from the human genetic pool.
well sort of, It's kinda like getting your ears pierced. you don't remember it and hey now you get to look good :)
people do the same thing for dogs. Dobberman look so much better without their ears cut and so those sheeps
same @ some dogowners/breeders
I really, really loathe the breeders who breed for extreme traits, usually to the detriment of the actual animal. They may be cosseted and well cared for, but often they have a hard time eating, breathing, moving.
If you look up the breeding standards for Shami goats, you will see that the traits you mention usually eliminate the animal in question from the breeding population. They will be used for fiber, leather and meat, not dairy (since milk production requires breeding). Keeping those with exaggerated faces around isn't cruel, it's thrifty.
I think it's fabulous that you are knowledgeable on these breeds, or that you have taken the time to learn about it. My comment, however, stands in that many of those breeding for various differences do not recognize or acknowledge the pain special animals experience.