The Difference between Cow Leather and Goat Leather

The living nature has always been attractive to human beings and the people have always tried to keep their ties with it. Leather is one of the natural products that has been attractive to human beings since the primitive human beings time, and along with the development in tanning industry, human learned how to use it in a better way. The variety in different types of leather has turned it into a product with many fans. In this article, we plan to discuss the difference between goat and cow leather and beside introducing their differences, we will mention their use in clothing industry.

The Difference between Cow Leather and Goat Leather

In previous EG articles, we have already discussed the importance of natural leather in clothing and fashion industries, and have also explained the process of changing skin to leather. With regard to the fact that leather is a living product, the preparation methods for different animals hide is nearly the same. However, the quality of the final product will be different with regard to the features of each animal’s skin and its specific uses. Cow and goat leather are no exceptions and though they share many common features, they have differences as well. In the following, we will introduce these two leather types.

How Much Do You Know about Cow Leather?

Cow leather is one of the most famous types of leather with higher quality compared to goat leather. As the name is quite saying, cow leather is made from the skin of mature cows and its unique features such as weight, distinguishes it from other types of leather. What distinguishes different types of cow leather from each other is the tanning method of this type of leather.

One of the inexpensive and common tanning methods is «Wet Blue» or chrome tanning. In this method, the skin is tanned using chrome, and is changed to leather. Although this cost-saving method is very popular, it should be also noted that it leaves serious damages to the nature. One of the methods that has been appreciated by environmentalists through recent years is the «Wet White» which is performed using plants and will result in a high quality product without damaging the nature.

The Background of Goat Leather or Moroccan Leather

Goat leather is much cheaper than the cow leather; however, goat leather is one of the most frequently-used types of leather which many people favor due to its smoothness and flexibility. Goat leather is among the oldest types of leather that has its roots in Morocco and as a result it is called the «Moroccan Leather».

The background of this type of leather goes back to the second World War when the horse leather was too expensive to be used for preparing the soldiers clothes, and they used the goat leather instead. However, the important point that had surprised many people was the strength, durability, smoothness and light weight of this material. Leather became better known as time passed and though the difference between the cow and goat leather seems to be critical, many people have approved of the strength and price of this leather type.

Why Does the Difference between the Cow Leather and Goat Leather Matter?

We have already discussed the quality and the difference between the cow leather and goat leather and have said that with regard to the fact that the weight of cow leather is more than the goat leather, it is not surprising for the cow leather to be even more expensive. The final result of the difference between the cow leather and goat leather is producing items, each of which has its own special features. Understanding the difference between the cow leather and goat leather will help you choose the best material with the best use, so that you can buy the best leather gift for someone you love.

The Most Important Features of Cow Leather

Cow leather has the widest use all over the world. This type of leather is categorized among heavy types of leather and its natural for cow leather products to be heavy. Taking care of this leather type is not that hard and due to its resistance against water, heat, abrasion and pollutions it is classified as a useful material. As a result, cow leather is among hard leather types that looks dry in the beginning and may even break.

One of the important points that can’t be disregarded when discussing the difference between cow leather and goat leather is the large, and outstanding grains of the cow leather that can be easily seen with the naked eye.

After the tanning process, with regard to the size of the mature cow, the resulting cow leather will be something between 5.5 to 15 meters which is called one page. Due to the large size of a cow leather page, only a small amount of this leather will be thrown away as waste. As a result, producing items made of cow leather is more cost-effective for the producers as well.

The Most Important Features of Goat Leather

Besides the apparent difference between the cow leather and goat leather, each of these two types have dissimilar features that provide the users with different applications for each type of leather. Goat leather results from tanning the goat leather, and each page of goat leather is usually much smaller compared to cow leather. As a result, while producing goat leather products, there is too much waste that will be thrown away. However, with regard to the difference between the cow leather and goat leather in terms of the price, goat leather is usually categorized as inexpensive.

Goat leather is also grouped among soft and flexible leather types that rarely breaks. One of the most fundamental differences between the two types can be detected at first sight. Cow leather, has bigger grains that give it very high resistance. Goat leather, on the other hand, has small grains, but still has good resistance in the face of water and abrasion. The surface of goat leather usually feels soft which is due to the natural grease in the goat skin and is the main reason for making the goat leather waterproof. Another feature that both goat leather and cow leather share is the breathability of leather. As a result, moisture can easily pass through the leather in the form of moisture.

Some Important Differences between the Cow Leather and Goat Leather

With regard to the brief description which was given on cow and goat leather, the main differences between the two types are as follows:

weight

We have already discussed weight as one of the main differences between the cow and goat leather. As a result, cow leather usually feels heavier than the goat leather, as a result of which, it is more expensive too.

The Page Size

The size of each page of cow leather is way larger than the same amount of goat leather which is due to the larger size of a cow compared to a goat. It can be concluded that to make leather products out of cow leather, there will be a smaller amount of useless waste.

Appearance

Cow leather is made of large grains that sit next to each other in an well-ordered way. However, such a picture is not found in cow leather. Goat leather is made of smaller grains that give it a «vintage look» Furthermore, one of the main differences between the cow leather and goat leather refers to scars resulting from skin injuries and give the leather a natural look.

Flexibility Degree

The most outstanding difference between cow leather and goat leather refers to flexibility and smoothness of goat leather in comparison to the dryness of cow leather. However, the hardness of the cow leather helps its resistance against water, abrasion, and heavy weight.

Use

With regard to the difference between the cow leather and the goat leather, each of the types of leather are used for producing different products. As a result, goat leather is used for producing items such as women’s leather gloves, or bags. Cow leather, on the other hand is used for products that need to look straight such as leather card holders, leather wallets and leather bags.

Price

With regard to the higher strength and durability of cow leather products, products made with the cow leather are usually stronger. However, both products are waterproof and very resistant. In the following, we have briefly mentioned the difference between the cow leatehr and goat leather.

Conclusion

In this article, we discussed the difference between the cow and goat leather and after mentioning the features of each, we focused on different aspects of each. To buy leather products, we suggest you visit EG leather products.