Pull the udder one - male goat produces milk

When Khalifa al Nuaimi was inspecting his herd four days ago he was stunned to find one of his prized male goats had developed an udder.

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When Khalifa al Nuaimi went to make a routine inspection of his herd of goats, he was not expecting to be confronted with the shock of his farming life. As one of his prized male goats trotted up for some feed, he noticed the animal had seemingly developed a large udder While he could not quite believe his eyes, the luckless creature proceeded to produce milk on demand, much like his female companions in the pen.

The local farmer made the discovery four days ago at his goat pen in Masakin, a suburb of Al Ain, the government news agency, WAM, reported yesterday. The animal's male organs are said to have been pushed back by the udder, described as "big and bulky". Mr al Nuaimi got a half-litre of good-quality milk from the goat. Dr Martin Wyness, of the British Veterinary Centre in Abu Dhabi, said it was unusual but not unheard of for male mammals to produce milk. "It's absolutely possible," he said.

dbardsley@thenational.ae