FOR ten years, Margaret Thompson has been secretary of the national Pygmy Goat Club and a regular exhibitor in the goat section at the Royal Cornwall Show. Since 2000, when pygmy goat classes were first established at the show, Margaret and her husband Malcolm have seen numbers grow healthily — and they expect them to keep on rising. At their smallholding at Latchley they breed pygmy goats and miniature donkeys, for both of which there is a huge demand to keep as pets. Margaret said: 'We got small classes in the early years but there has always been an upward trend and last year we had 48 individual goats, some in different classes, so there was a total of 75. It was a strong showing and it's getting much, much more so. 'We used to have two and three in a class and now it's up to ten or twelve.' Pygmies classes are not staged at all shows, which makes the Royal Cornwall a popular venue for exhibitors. Malcolm said: 'People like to see pygmies, so our marquee is always busy and I expect it will become even more so because the pygmies have a great following in Cornwall and the south west. 'They are popular at the show but also people can see themselves with a pygmy. You can keep them in a yard or an ordinary garden. You don't need a great deal of land.' The success of pygmy goats in Cornwall has come as something of a surprise to the Thompsons. 'When we first started coming to Cornwall in 1987 most of the goats in the county were kept for their milk. We didn't think there would be a call for pygmies but things have changed.' Today, in terms of overall pygmy numbers, the south west as a whole is second only to Wales. As a respected pygmy goat judge, Margaret travels widely in England and Wales but she has now given up showing herself. For Margaret, last year was her final showing season. But as a judge and breeder she will be kept busy and will be travelling widely throughout England and Wales. The Royal Cornwall Show takes place on June 7, 8 and 9.