Globally, goats are referred to as the ‘poor man’s cow’. Goats are affectionately called the “Swiss baby’s foster mother’ in Switzerland. The goat is a multipurpose animal that significantly contributes to the economies of marginal, small and landless farmers in the nation. In India, goats are one of the primary meat-producing animals and their domestic demand is enormous. The goat is recognized as amongst the most versatile and high-performing small ruminants worldwide (Mussman, 1982). Goats’ minimum feeding requirements, ease of management, adaptability and ability to live independently, along with greater tolerance to varying climatic conditions and efficient utilization of limited resources to produce meat, milk and hides, make the goat a preferred livestock species for small-scale and marginal farmers (Balicka-Ramisz, 1999; Harper and Penzhorn, 1999).
       
Goats serve as an immediate economic resource for small and marginal farmers during the time of crisis (Lebbie, 2004), providing milk, meat, hides, manure and wool. It has been noted that goats are more cost-effective than sheep when grazing or browsing naturally (Sharma and Jindal, 2008). According to the 20^th Indian Livestock Census 2019, India’s goat population stands at 148.88 million, reflecting a 10.1% increase compared to the previous census. According to the 20^th Indian Livestock Census (2019), the total goat population in Punjab has been recorded at 3.48 lakh, compared with 3.27 lakh in the last census (Singh et al., 2020). This clearly demonstrates that the number of goats in Punjab, as well as in India, has increased.
       
Blood is a special type of fluid connective tissue that contains plasma (colourless watery part of blood) and the various formed elements like erythrocytes (red blood cells) and the two types of leukocytes (white blood cells) i.e. granulocytes (neutrophils, eosinophils and basophils) and agranulocytes (monocytes and lymphocytes) and thrombocytes (platelets) (Atkins et al., 2017; Choudhary et al., 2021; Doley et al., 2023, 2024; Moitrayee et al., 2025; Shitikova et al., 2025) as shown in the Fig 1. The study of blood cells is crucial for assessing morphology, physiology, clinical pathology and therapy. Blood examination is crucial for assessing the overall health and diagnosing various diseases (Choudhary et al., 2021).


       
According to the Merck Veterinary Manual (2021), the goat blood contains approximately 8-18 million red blood cells (RBCs or erythrocytes) per microliter, around 4,000-13000 white blood cells (WBCs or leukocytes) per microliter and nearly 100,000-800,000 platelets (thrombocytes) per microliter. Among these, red blood cells are the most abundant, constituting about 97%, whereas white blood cells represent only about 0.06% and platelets approximately 3% of the total cellular component of blood.
       
RBCs play a significant role in transporting carbon dioxide from the tissues to the lungs and delivering oxygen from the lungs to the tissues. White blood cells, though fewer in number, are essential for the immune response, helping to defend against infections and inflammation. Platelets are the irregularly shaped pieces of the megakaryocyte’s cells, which play a significant role in clotting of blood and wound healing.
       
The blood profile of animals plays a significant role in confirming clinical diagnoses and estimating disease severity (Anwar et al., 2023; Jaramillo et al., 2024). Therefore, the cytomorphological studies specific to goats are essential because of the unique haematological characteristics of goats as compared to other domestic animals. Goats have unique immunological and cellular morphology, which can affect how blood smears are interpreted and how diseases are diagnosed. Using generic reference values can lead to incorrect diagnosis or postponement of treatment (Banga et al., 2020). Veterinarians can more precisely detect haematological, viral and parasitic disorders by focusing on species-specific cellular characteristics, such as variations in the leukocyte and erythrocyte morphology. These studies are crucial for improving disease control, increasing productivity and safeguarding the health of goats, which play a crucial role in dairy and meat production and in the livelihoods of many rural and agricultural communities across numerous geographical regions.
       
Artificial Intelligence has significantly transformed the veterinary anatomical and morphological sciences by facilitating advancements in diagnostics, research methodologies and treatment strategies (Choudhary, 2025; Choudhary, 2026a, b; Choudhary et al., 2025a; Vickram et al., 2025). Many scientists have utilized AI tools to demonstrate various blood cells, as the application of AI for the cytomorphological classification of blood cells minimizes interobserver variability and subjective human error (Hu et al., 2022; Xing et al., 2023; Campos-Medina  et al., 2024); however, the need for traditional methods for the preparation of blood films in cytomorphology remains unchanged.
       
Cytomorphological studies on blood cells have been conducted in various species, including camels (Singh et al., 1997), buffalo calves (Singh, 2000), goats (Menaka and Singh, 2006), black bears (Salakij et al., 2005), sheep (Kumar et al., 2010), mules (Mrigesh et al., 2017), Zobawng cattle  (Sarkar et al., 2022; 2023) and pigs (Choudhary et al., 2023), have been reported. There is limited literature available on the cytomorphology of peripheral blood cells in goats under local conditions. Given the potential variations arising from breed and environmental factors, it is essential to re-evaluate the blood samples in the goat species.

Peripheral blood collection
 
A total of 12 Beetal goats aged 18-24 months were included in this study. Animals of either sex and in normal physiological status were selected for blood sampling. The selected animals were clinically healthy based on a detailed physical examination, which included a normal temperature, pulse and respiration and the absence of any observable clinical abnormalities.
       
A total of 12 blood samples were collected from healthy adult goats, irrespective of sex, to assess the cytomorphology of blood cells from June 2025 to March 2026. A peripheral blood sample from the goat was obtained at the Teaching Veterinary Clinical Complex (TVCC) of the College of Veterinary Science, Rampura Phul, Punjab. The 4 mL peripheral blood samples from the goat were collected in sterile, siliconized tubes coated with an artificial anticoagulant, such as Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), to prevent clotting. The samples were obtained from the TVCC of the college. Since the blood samples were collected directly from the college’s TVCC, separate Institutional Animal Ethics Committee (IAEC) approval was not needed conduction of this research.
 
Peripheral blood smear preparation
 
A total of twenty-four slides were used to prepare two smears from each blood sample, allowing comparison of the May-Grunwald Giemsa (MGG) and Giemsa stain techniques. Each slide was marked with a glass pencil with the case number of the animal from which the blood was collected. For the smear preparation, one blood drop was placed just next to the label. Another clean glass slide was taken as a slider with smooth edges and positioned at an angle of 45° from the slide, approximately 1 mm above the blood drop. The slider was pulled back over the drop of blood that remained and the blood spread across the edge of the slide until the entire drop was gone. Subsequently, the slider was moved to the opposite end to create a uniform smear, like a tongue. Any excess blood from the sides of the slide was removed by using clean tissue paper. After that, the slide was allowed to air dry, then kept for two to three minutes in a methanol-filled Coplin jar for fixation of the smear, followed by drying the slide for staining.
 
Staining
 
May-grunwald giemsa staining
 
The labelled air-dried slide should be facing up on the staining rack. A few drops of May-Grunwald Giemsa stain (Bover, 1964) were poured on the slide to cover the whole blood smear completely and left for 5 minutes. After five minutes, the slides was carefully rinsed with distilled water, ensuring the smear remained undisturbed, The slide was then allowed to air dry.
 
Giemsa staining
 
The labelled air-dried slide was immersed in a freshly prepared commercially available BTL working Giemsa stain (Frink, 1965) solution (typically 1:10 dilution) for about 20 minutes at room temperature, after this the slide was carefully rinsed with distilled water to eliminate extra stain, without disturbing the smear and allowed the slide to air dry.
       
One drop of cedar wood oil was placed on stained slides for demonstration using an Olympus CX33RTFS2 microscope (Japan) equipped with an oil-immersion objective (1000X magnification). The magnification used to capture goat blood cells was 1000X. Adobe Photoshop version 24.0 and Microsoft Publisher (Microsoft 365) were used to accurately label the captured image. For cytomorphological evaluation of the blood samples, approximately 10-15 cells per sample were examined and observations were recorded accordingly. The cytomorphological data on goat blood were analyzed statistically using the methods of Snedecor and Cochran (1994).

Blood smears stained with MGG and Giemsa were carefully examined under a light microscope with oil immersion at 1000X magnification. Fig 3A-E and 4A-G show various blood cells of the goat that were examined in the present study’s cytomorphological investigation. The cytomorphometric data for goat blood cells were displayed in Table 1 as mean±SE, along with a comparison with blood cells from other ruminant animals, such as cattle, buffalo and sheep, based on the available scientific literature.


       
Goat blood cells were divided into RBCs, WBCs and platelets according to their size, shape, cytoplasmic properties and nuclear traits (Fig 2). The goat blood RBCs were observed to be non-nucleated, round and disk-like in appearance.  In this study, the mean diameter of goat blood erythrocytes was 5.28±0.18 μm. The center part of the erythrocytes appeared lighter, while the peripheral area stained darkly (Fig 3C and 4A), when stained with both MGG and Giemsa stains. The average platelet diameter was determined to be 2.42±0.20 ìm (Fig 3C and 4A).


       
The peripheral blood of goat leukocytes was classified into granulocytes and agranulocytes based on the presence or absence of granules in the cytoplasm, respectively. In the present study, neutrophils, eosinophils and basophils were considered among the granulocytic leukocytes. The neutrophils measured 13.57±0.95 μm in diameter and were spherical. A few numbers of neutrophils in the peripheral blood of the goat were larger, with a 17 ìm diameter, than other neutrophils.  The nucleus of the goat neutrophil was distinctly lobulated, with 3 to 6 lobes of varying size and configuration, often resembling letters such as C, O, P, S and U (Fig 3B and 4D). The chromatin was arranged in a pattern of light and dark spots. The cytoplasm contained fine granules that stained light pinkish purple with MGG and bluish purple with Giemsa stain (Fig 3B and 4D). The eosinophils were measured at 12.14± 0.18 μm in size and had a round, bilobed nucleus. The cytoplasm contained large acidophilic granules that stained light pinkish purple with MGG Giemsa stain and were evenly dispersed throughout the cytoplasm (Fig 3E and 4B). Basophils were spherical in shape, with a diameter of 13.43±0.37 μm and the nucleus was placed eccentrically and indented. The cytoplasm had numerous large basophilic granules that obscured the nucleus. The cytoplasmic granules of basophils exhibited metachromatic properties and appeared violet to purple (Fig 3D and 4F).
       
The lymphocytes were spherical and categorized into three distinct sizes: small, medium and large. The small lymphocytes measured 9±0.31 μm and had a large nucleus, surrounded by a thin cytoplasmic ring. The nuclear chromatin appeared relatively dense (Fig 3D and 4G). The medium-sized lymphocytes measured 11.85±0.26 μm and contained a greater volume of light bluish cytoplasm (Fig 3D and 4E). The large lymphocytes, which were 15.14±0.34 μm in size, had a significant amount of bluish cytoplasm and their number was low (Fig 3A and 4C). The monocytes were spherical and measured 12.33±0.49 μm in diameter. The nucleus was eccentrically positioned and had relatively abundant cytoplasm.

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The present study categorized goat peripheral blood cells into RBCs (erythrocytes), WBCs (leukocytes) and platelets (thrombocytes) based on their morphology, size, nuclear characteristics and cytoplasmic features. The cytomorphological features observed were generally consistent with those reported in earlier studies concerning domestic animals (Parveen et al., 2023). In this study, goat RBCs were circular, non-nucleated and measured 5.28±0.18 μm in diameter. The central part is lighter, while the peripheral area is darker, when stained with both MGG and Giemsa, a typical characteristic of mammalian erythrocytes. These findings align with previous studies (Menaka and Singh, 2006; Choudhary et al., 2023b). The minor variation in erythrocyte size noted in the present study may be attributed to breed, environmental factors and physiological differences among the animals. The goat peripheral blood platelets were noted to be irregular to rounded, reddish-pink cells interspersed among the erythrocytes. The platelet dimensions ranged from 2 to 3 μm, with an average diameter of 2.42±0.20 μm. This finding aligns with previous studies (Kumar et al., 2010; Sarkar et al., 2022).
       
The neutrophils were spherical, with a diameter of 13.57±0.95 μm. However, a few larger cells measuring up to 17 μm, minor variation in size was also observed. The goat’s neutrophil nucleus was clearly lobulated, featuring 3 to 6 lobes that varied in size and shape, frequently resembling letters such as C, O, S, U and Z, as previously noted with earlier studies. The chromatin material revealed both light and dark spots in the nuclear lobes of neutrophil. The dark-stained areas were generally situated on the periphery, while the light-stained regions were recorded in the middle portion of the neutrophil, as also documented (Sarkar et al., 2022; Mrigesh, 2011). The eosinophils had two to three nuclear lobes and were spherical, with a diameter of 12.14±0.18 μm. The eosinophil cytoplasm was rich with granules that were uniformly distributed. Dark-stained chromatin areas were mainly observed at the periphery in this study. These granules are associated with eosinophils’ function in combating parasites and mediating allergic responses. The morphology observed aligns with previous studies (Singh, 2000; Choudhary et al., 2025b). Basophils were spherical, with a diameter of 13.43±0.37 μm. The nucleus was eccentrically located and the cytoplasm was filled with different types of granules. These granules exhibited basophilic staining and appeared violet to purple. This structural characteristic is associated with their role in inflammatory and hypersensitivity reactions (Kumar et al., 2010; Sarkar et al., 2022).
       
The lymphocytes displayed size variation and were categorized into three categories: small, medium and large. Small lymphocytes were mostly observed, with a diameter of 9±0.31 μm, characterized by a large nucleus and a light-coloured, thin cytoplasmic rim. In contrast, medium and large lymphocytes have greater cytoplasmic volume. This size variation indicates different functional and activation stages of lymphocytes during immune responses (Choudhary et al., 2025b). Monocytes were spherical, with a diameter of 13.48±0.10 μm. The nucleus was indented and positioned eccentrically in the cells. The presence of cytoplasmic vacuoles, which give a foamy appearance, is indicative of their phagocytic function (Singh, 2000; Sarkar et al., 2022).
       
While the study is mainly descriptive, slight differences in cytomorphological characteristics were observed among the samples, potentially due to breed, environmental and physiological factors. However, the study has certain limitations, including a small sample size, a limited number of cells analyzed and a lack of comprehensive variability analysis.

This study provided essential cytomorphological data on goat peripheral blood cells in local settings, examined by light microscopy. The observed morphological characteristics were largely consistent with those documented in other domestic species, with minor differences that could be attributed to breed, environmental and physiological factors. These results may serve as a valuable resource for future comparative and diagnostic research in veterinary hematology. Additionally, the research underscores the importance of cytomorphological assessment for identifying hematological changes and supporting disease diagnosis.

The authors express gratitude to the Dean, College of Veterinary Science, Rampura Phul, Punjab, for providing the necessary facilities to complete this work. Thanks are also extended to Mr. Moti Masih, Laboratory Assistant and Mr. Namdev Singh, DPL, of the Department of Veterinary Anatomy, for assisting in processing and visualizing the blood samples from adult goats for this study.
 
Author’s contribution
 
Rachana Sharma conceived and designed the experiments, performed the experiments, analyzed the data, prepared figures and/or tables and approved the final draft. Jyoti Saini performed the experiments, analyzed the data, prepared figures and/or tables and approved the final draft. Rachana Sharma and Jyoti Saini collected samples and analyzed the data, reviewed drafts of the paper and approved the final draft. Priyanka Choudhary and Om Prakash Choudhary conceived and designed the experiments, authored or reviewed drafts of the paper and approved the final draft. All authors interpreted the data, critically revised the manuscript for important intellectual content and approved the final version.

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this article. No funding or sponsorship influenced the design of the study, data collection, analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.