The U.S. Department of Agriculture has fined the University of Wyoming for neglecting a group of kid goats that were being experimented on.

The kid goats were reportedly sick and very weak. The goats were part of a genetic modification experiment to produce fibers as strong as spider silk.

The amount of fine imposed by the USDA on the university is more than $8,500.

The two young goats at a university laboratory were very thin and one of them died of an intestinal parasite, according to a citation and penalty notice from the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

The university has acknowledged that the problems existed and paid the $8,571 fine under a July 25 settlement agreement with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, university spokesman Chad Baldwin said Friday.

"These goats apparently got sick and were being treated by the researchers," he said to The Associated Press. "We should have called in the attending veterinarian to direct that treatment."

According to APHIS, the problems found in its 2010 inspection were in violation of the Animal Welfare act. One violation was for not notifying a veterinarian about the problems with the animals. The other was for failing to remove expired veterinary medication from treatment areas so that the medicines wouldn't be used.

An APHIS inspection report states that out of a flock of 10 goats, two were 'very thin' with visible ribs and protruding hip bones, while at least five kids had dried fecal material on their rear ends. The fecal material indicated the goats had diarrhea, San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Apparently, the goats were born with spider genes intended to make them produce milk containing proteins that go into spider silk.

University spokesman Baldwin emphasized the fact that genetic modification did not play any role in the goats' condition and the research concerning the spider silk is no longer pursued by the University of Wyoming researchers.