Goat Notes and Donkey Tales #4 Fiber Goats

    There are basically four types of goats, fiber, meat, milk, and pack animals. 
    Fleece-bearing goats have been raised in Asia Minor since the fifth century BC. Some were known for their long white fleece from which brilliantly dyed fabrics were woven. 
          
   These were named Angoras because the best were raised in the province of Angora (now Ankara) on the central Anatolian Plains of Turkey.

                   My angora goat, Precious.
   The first European record of the Angora dates from 1531 when the Dutch Ambassador, stationed at Constantinople, managed to secure a pair.
        
    For the first time, in 1820, the Sultan of Turkey allowed the export of raw mohair from Istanbul to Europe. The United Kingdom rapidly mastered techniques for spinning mohair and soon the demand for raw mohair was greater than Turkey could supply.
                  My raw mohair. Still working on mastering the spinning, lol. 

   Angoras were first imported into the United States in 1849 when seven does and two bucks arrived in South Carolina.
   Found out in my weaving class, mohair is the most difficult to spin, felt, and weave. 

                           

  But I'm excited that the fleece comes from my first animal rescue, and although Precious is gone, I get to work with the hair we cut off each year while listening to the Oldies in the barn. 
                       
She was frightened of any type of electric shears so I used a blunted scissor and the process took quite a while. She was a very patient goat! 
                     
    Angora goats are kept mainly to produce mohair which is used in the upholstery and apparel trades. Its particular characteristics are that it dyes to vibrant shades, retains its shape (memory), sheds dirt and imparts a ‘sheen’ onto finished articles. See the halo on the sweater!

In my new book, Break Heart Canyon, the heroine is a goat farmer harried by local cattlemen, and the hero is an Indiana Jones type searching for artifacts. Throw in a bit of myth and legend, and the story offers an exciting adventure as well as a sweet, sweet romance. 

    Blurb: 

     Unearthing artifacts in Colorado sounded like easy money to Ryker Landry. Then he met the woman who owned the land. 

     Una MacLaren vows no fortune hunter will desecrate the ancient relics of Break Heart Canyon—even if the man is a handsome scoundrel. Fighting to keep her goat farm afloat as local cattlemen hatch deadly schemes to make sure she fails, she has enough to worry about. 

     Captivated by the courageous redhead, Ryker joins forces with Una and her deer hound, MacTavish. But what does he desire most, the woman or the artifacts? 

     When the mythical white cougar again prowls the rocky cliffs, the legend of Break Heart Canyon draws them into a web of danger. Now only daring and blind trust can save them. 

FYI. Please do not buy products with Moreno wool or any wool or fleece from producers who use museling or freeze brand procedures. These practices are horrifically painful to goats and sheep. 

FYI, mohair comes from Angora goats, angora comes from rabbits, mostly from China.  Angora rabbits, gentle, socially complex animals are typically kept inside small, filthy, bare cages and face the ordeal of live plucking up to four times a year.