Toggenburger

The Toggenburg is a Swiss breed of dairy goat. Its name derives from that of the Toggenburg region of the Canton of St. Gallen, where it is thought to have originated. It is among the most productive breeds of dairy goat and is distributed world-wide, in about fifty countries in all five inhabited continents.

History
The Toggenburg is the traditional goat breed of the Toggenburg and Werdenberg regions of the Canton of St. Gallen in eastern Switzerland. The herd-book was started in 1890. At first, the goats were often dark-coated, sometimes with white markings; there may have been some cross-breeding with Appenzell and Chamois-coloured stock in neighbouring areas. The typical mouse-grey colour with white facial markings was fixed by selective breeding in the twentieth century.

In 2006 there were 850 of the goats in the Toggenburg and the Werdenberg regions, out of a total of $3,000$ in Switzerland; this is much lower than in the 1950s, when there were more than $20,000$. The Verein Ziegenfreunde is an association of owners of the goats within their historic area of origin.

The Toggenburger is distributed world-wide, in about fifty countries in all five inhabited continents, among them most countries of Europe and of Central America, the West Indies and South America. Herd-books have been established in Austria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, South Africa and the United States (where the first imports were in 1904); in Holland and the United Kingdom distinct national breeds have developed. The British Toggenburg was recognised as a breed in 1921; it is somewhat larger and heavier than the original Swiss goat, and has a higher milk yield.

Characteristics
The Toggenburg is of medium size. Coat colour ranges from light brown to mouse grey, with white Swiss markings to the face, lower legs and tail area. Wattles may be present; billies and nannies may be naturally horned or polled (hornless).

Use
It is a highly productive dairy breed. The breed standard calls for minimum milk yield of $740 kg$ per lactation, with a minimum fat content of $3.56 %$ and minimum protein content of $2.9 %$.