What are these?
The Damascus is a type of goat breeds generally raised in countries like Syria, Cyprus, and Lebanon. They have a unique shaped head and a mouth, which makes them different from other breeds of goats and one-of-a-kind. They go by different names in different localities like Aleppo, Halep, Baladi, Damascene, Shami, or Chami. They are mostly used for milk production but serve good as meat & leather too. The Damascus is well known for being the world’s ‘ugliest’ animal breed, but only a few of us know that it is not the complete truth and we know just a little about these beautiful animals.
What makes them so unique?
Apart
from the head & the mouth, Damascus has other physical characteristics,
which show its uniqueness to the viewer at his first glance. A distinctive
protruding nose, improper head to body ratio, eyes, body and ears are most of
them. Although, it’s not only their physical looks what makes them so unique,
but also the history they carry with them. Yes, history has witnessed the
crucial role they played in the traditional Arab nomadic lifestyle and economy.
It makes them as respectful as the renowned Arabian horses in Saudi Arab, as
they have seen organizing trading festivals and auctions for these beautiful
animals, where bidders & auctioneers participate on a large scale. In
places like Riyadh, these festivals are organized once in a month in which,
beauty contest of Damascenes along with the auctions takes place. The Arabians
name the festival as “beauty is in the eye if the goat watcher (translated)”.
These kinds of events show us that only being ugly & weird from the outer
physical appearance doesn’t make it the ugliest; as they are so precious for
the people who breed them & for the thousands of men who come to witness
their beauty. Damascus is one of the most respectful animals in the countries
they are raised and fed.
Growth phase & changes
As
we came to know about its ugliness as a fully-grown adult goat, there’s more to
the story. Damascus is considered as the most beautiful & the cutest of the
goats in their baby forms. An extremely cute, long & wavy eared and
extremely normal faced baby goat nurses from its mother. Normal shape and size
of their heads& face parts make it easier to get fed by their mothers and
they eventually grow healthy. However, in their afterlife, they grow up to look
monstrous & frightening to some people, whereas some find them
exceptionally beautiful.