Dairy goats herds have expanded faster than any other major livestock group in the U.S. over the past decade. They’ve grown 61 percent between 2007 and 2017, according to the USDA’s latest Census of Agriculture, a once-every-five-years inventory of the nation’s farms. For context, broiler hens and beef cattle were relatively flat and numbers for specialty animals such as llamas, ostriches and emus fell off a cliff.

The surge comes as goats have permeated pop culture. We’ve seen them frolicking and doing parkour while sporting adorable onesies on YouTube. We’ve maybe hoisted a 20-pound Nigerian Dwarf aloft in everybody’s favorite novelty yoga practice. And rent-a-goats are running amok in Boise and helping clear brush and prevent wildfires in California.

Dairy-goat herds grew in all 48 states for which we have data. But the greatest increases came in the nation’s three biggest goat-dairy states: Wisconsin (up 47,000), Iowa (up 18,000) and Texas (up 20,000). While the number of cow dairies has declined.

Aside from large commercial dairies, small farmers are also increasing the goat population. The growing popularity of non-consumable goats milk products such as soaps and lotions is undoubtedly playing a role in this increase, along with increased awareness of the health benefits of goats milk and cheese.

Photo courtesy of Naissance Natural Goat”s Milk Soap & Lotion