More goats: Elegant and Erica

So as I was saying, Judy had several goats. I didn't know it yet, but goats sort of accumulate. Goat people know other goat people, and they fall in love with their goats. And then of course mamma goats are having baby goats every spring. So Judy had quite a few, and to balance things out at home, which was pretty close to civilization in suburban Massachusetts, she was selling some. Such as Monique.

And Elegant. Elegant was a tiny goat of a rich brown color. She was a Nubian, and she had been neglected before she got to Judy's, so that when we met her she was probably half the size she should have been. We fell in love. Judy sold her to us for just $60.

Erica was another goat of Judy's and we eventually (two months later or so) bought her.

But it was Elegant we truly slurped over. She was responsive to every touch and learned her name quickly. We wanted to take her home!

Except that home still meant Wellesley. We hadn't moved to the farm yet.

But hey, we had a basement! And a door that was only a step or two down to it from outside. And a grassy backyard that even needed mowing! Why not take her home?

WARNING: This was not a good plan!

First, goats don't do well on grass. It's too succulent for them. Their guts are great with browse such as the bark and twigs of trees, or dry leaves, or hay. But not grass. So we couldn't let her graze.

Second, goats are a real curiosity to dogs. Apparently dogs can smell them for a huge distance, because dogs we didn't even know came to see the new thing in the neighborhood. So we couldn't let Elegant out of the basement.

Third, goats have no respect for boundaries even small children respect, such as piles of laundry, which are easily walked over by goats, or drywall, which they eat, for that matter. We couldn't let Elegant stay in our basement.

Soooo, for the last few days before our move to the farm, we had to take Elegant back to Judy's. She was very understanding. They both were.

The move was coming up. But when we got to the farm, we still had a few barriers before we were able to house the goats.