The goat is an Istrian symbol.
The goat is featured in the coat of arms of Istria from the beginning of the 20th century, and it has also found its place in the coat of arms of the Republic of Croatia. Goats have been associated with Istria since Roman times, and later, the Habsburgs used this image. The first time the goat appears in Roman documents about Istria is in the naming of Koper. The Romans initially called it Capris (Capra is Latin for goat), and later, during the Byzantine Empire, it was known as Insula Capraria (Goat Island). Only the Venetians gave Koper its Italian version of today's name - Koper, or Capo d'Istria.
The goat also symbolizes endurance, hard work, and stubbornness, much like the people of Istria, accustomed to a modest life and fighting for survival in nature.
Koze v Istri, danes in nekoč
Goats are animals that were long underappreciated. In the second half of the 19th century, they were even banned, despite the fact that they had helped humans survive throughout history. Later, Istrian goats almost became extinct, and they are now classified as endangered breeds of domestic animals. There are only 34 Istrian goats left.
Croatia has already registered the autochthonous breed of Istrian goats, while Slovenia has not done so yet. Currently, there is only one goat farm in Istria, the Švab farm, located in the village of Zazid. They offer fresh goat milk and products such as goat cheese, yogurt, whey, and cottage cheese daily. Goat milk products are also used in the ingredients for the "marende" served at the Hiške slovenske Istre.
Koze stojijo na veji in imajo različen naglas
Koze spadajo v skupino parkljarjev in so prežvekovalci. Imajo vodoravno obliko oči in pravokotno obliko zenice. Ta oblika jim omogoča, da si ogledajo okolico, ne da bi prekinile proces prehranjevanja. Namreč pravokotna oblika poveča vidni kot na 340 stopinj, v nasprotju z okroglo zenico, ki omogoča gledanje pod kotom med 170 in 180 stopinj. Koze imajo tudi dobro vidno horizontalno zenico, zato dobro vidijo tudi ponoči. Koze naj bi imele tudi odlično ravnotežje, zato lahko stojijo celo na drevesni veji.
Po ugotovitvah strokovnjakov s Queen Mary University of London naj bi koze imele tudi svoj naglas, ki se spreminja s staranjem in glede na to, kje živijo. Koza povezujejo tudi z začetki kave. Pastir v Etiopiji je namreč opazil, da so bile koze po obiranju in žvečenju kavnih semen bolj energične in aktivne.
Kozje mleko – zdravo mleko
Koze tako kot ovce spadajo med prve udomačene živali. Udomačili so jih zaradi mleka, mesa in kože, kasneje pa, da so ljudem pomagale nositi vodo. Kozje mleko pa je še danes posebej cenjeno, in sicer kot zdrava alternativa kravjemu, saj ga telo hitreje prebavi. Mleko se uporablja za izdelavo mnogo mlečnih izdelkov, ki imajo zelo specifičen, a odličen okus. Uporablja se tudi kot univerzalno mleko, s katerim se hrani veliko mladičih sirot.
Kako to deluje?
Tovrstna avantura vam omogoča, da se na raziskovanje odpravite kar sami, oziroma v spremstvu svojih najdražjih. Mi smo opravili izvidnico, napisali natančna navodila, raziskali lokalne zgodbe, jih za vas zapisali in zabeležili pot na mobilni aplikaciji. Dodali smo tudi manjše izzive, da je pot še bolj zabavna. Vam preostane le, da jo doživite!
Komu je pustolovščina namenjena?
Izleti so namenjeni raziskovanju, zato so primerni za vse radovedneže. Za majhne in velike, ki si želijo spoznati lokalne mite, naravne danosti, legende in vraže. Za tiste, ki želite poležavanje na plaži kombinirati z doživetji. Za tiste, ki sovražite dolgčas in turistične vodiče. Skratka, za koze in ne za ovce :)
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