Feeling a Little Faint

This weeks neuroscience lectures have brought up some interesting topics, but this one is a little strange!

There is a breed of goat called 'fainting goats' that just run along as normal, but then if they get a fright, they just fall over, or 'faint'. Sounds a little crazy? What's even more crazy is the 'International Fainting Goat Association', which actually breed goats with this brain defect, as they want to preserve this breed of goat.

What the goats actually have is mytonia. This is means that the ion channels in their muscles are not working correctly, so that when they are startled for example, their muscles contract too much and they 'faint'. Once they fall over stiffened, they get back up after about 10-15 seconds and walk away with slightly stiff legs. All very strange. If you want to know more, the website for the international association is: www.faintinggoat.com and there's a wee clip here: http://www.rfaintingfarm.com/goat.mpeg