Preface to the First Edition
The writing of this book was undertaken in recognition of the need for a comprehensive veterinary text addressing health and disease issues of goats raised under varying conditions around the world.
The authors' primary experiences are with intensively managed dairy and fiber goats in temperate zones. However, because most of the world's goats live in tropical and subtropical regions, serious effort has been made to fully cover disease entities and production constraints in those areas. Much of the material presented on tropical diseases is derived from the published literature. The authors invite readers whose personal and clinical experience with these dis - eases in goats varies from our presentation to share their knowledge with us for the purpose of improving later editions.We intend this book for veterinary practitioners dealing with diagnosis and treatment of individual goats as well as for those striving to improve the health and productivity of commercial herds and flocks throughout the world. Veterinarians involved in formulation of animal health policy, regulatory medicine, and livestock development should also find this information valuable.
We expect this book to be useful also for academic clinicians, researchers, and veterinary students with a special interest in goats. Others who might find this book a useful reference are animal scientists, extension agents, herd managers, and hobbyists.
David M. Sherman Mary C. Smith