To determine if the hard palate can be used as a means of identification of goats and sheep, the hard palate of ten goats and ten sheep of nondescript breeding were described and compared. The age of the animals ranged from 1.5 to 5 years and weighed 20-30 kg. Gross dissection and collection of samples for histological examination were performed on newly slaughtered animals. Palatine printing using mimeographing ink and paper was also performed. The tissue samples were stained with Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E), periodic acid–Schiff (PAS), alcian blue (AB) (pH 1.0 and 2.5) and mucicarmine, then examined microscopically. The hard palate of sheep was longer (p<0.05), had more palatine ridges (p<0.05) and had wider incisive papillae (P<0.05) than in the goat. The palatine glands at the caudal region appeared more developed in the goat than in sheep. In both species, the glands reacted positively to mucicarmine, PAS and AB pH 2.5 stains. The prints obtained from the hard palate in both species showed clearly the various features of the hard palate. Because no two palatine prints appeared identical, it is recommended that palatine printing be tried in live animals as an alternative method of identification.