Various small breeds of goat have taken the world by storm in recent years.
Many of them have been around and indeed popular for a long time, but with the internet age, pictures and videos have been spread far and wide to a new audience.
Nigerian dwarfs do live up to their name, then.
They are very small goats and this has made them very popular as pets.
They’re diminutive enough to be remarkable for it, but not so small that they don’t feel like a real goat anymore.
Let’s find out more.
How big do male Nigerian dwarfs get?
Sexual dimorphism isn’t particularly pronounced in goats in general, and the same is true of Nigerian dwarf goats.
Sexual dimorphism is the phenomenon and degree to which males and females of the same species look different.
Male dwarf goats can get to about 23 inches high, at the absolute maximum.
They will usually weigh somewhere from 50-60 pounds, when fully mature.
They’re usually at least 26-28 inches long.
So, the males certainly are the bigger sex of the breed.
This is almost always true of all goat breeds—they’re all the same species, after all, so we aren’t going to notice much difference in that area.
But the difference is usually only slight.
Let’s look at how big the females get.
How big do female Nigerian dwarfs get?
Simply put, the females are usually a bit smaller and lighter than the males.
They stand at most 20 inches tall and weigh 40-50 pounds.
The other difference between them and males is the horns, which females typically do not have.
This isn’t always the case, though.
This also is not a hard and fast rule.
Many females can indeed grow to the size of the largest males, although this is not very common.
They are typically a bit smaller and don’t weigh as much.
This is largely due to the fact there is a selective advantage in added mass for a male.
Males fight to compete for females, so the heavier they are, the more likely they are to reproduce.
Let’s look at how much they weigh.
How much do Nigerian dwarf goats weigh?
Generally, Nigerian dwarfs don’t weigh more than 60 pounds.
This is not very heavy, and a reasonably strong person could lift even the heaviest Nigerian dwarf goat.
That’s not to say you should do it—goats do not like being lifted!
But Nigerian dwarfs will average out somewhere in the region of 50 pounds, for both males and females.
Females will sit at the lower end, usually 40-45 pounds.
So, they certainly don’t weigh much, and are one of the lightest breeds out there.
They are, most likely, only heavier than pygmy goats and pygmy crossbreeds.
Now let’s look at height.
How tall are Nigerian dwarf goats?
From the bottom of their hoof to the crown of their head, the Nigerian dwarf goat generally measures 16-20 inches tall.
The tallest males are around 23 inches, and anything taller than this would be an extreme outlier.
Again, females can sometimes reach these heights, but they are usually no taller than 20 inches.
16-18 inches is quite a common height for both females and males, as they put most of their bulk into muscle rather than height.
An uncommonly asked question next—how long are they?
How long are Nigerian dwarf goats?
When it comes to body length, this is probably the area with the least sexual dimorphism.
Body length is typically very similar.
Nigerian dwarf goats are usually around 24 to 30 inches long, from the tip of their snout to their rear end.
Again, their growth is usually in weight and then height.
Length isn’t particularly important to a Nigerian dwarf, and this appears to be how they adapted.
It seems that being smaller has a number of selective advantages, such as needing a smaller amount of food.
This likely explains their short length and overall short stature.
Do we know who the biggest Nigerian dwarf ever was?
What is the biggest Nigerian dwarf goat ever?
Unfortunately, we don’t know for sure.
Given our records, the biggest Nigerian dwarf we know of would have been around 23 inches tall, weighing around 60 pounds and being around 30 inches long.
Our best guess is simply the end of the spectrum on all of its dimensions.
There could well have been and most likely have been slightly larger examples who were undocumented.
But this is just speculation, and just the likelihood given the size of the global Nigerian dwarf goat population.
So, the short answer is they are quite small.
Not house pet small, and bigger than a pygmy, but small as far as most goats go.
They are an incredibly popular breed but not only for their small size—they also produce great meat and milk.
If you were wondering about getting a smaller breed of goat, a little herd of Nigerian dwarfs could suit you just fine.