17 replies to this topic

[ladypanther]

Not a common pet so many will not understand. I found Al dead today. He was a full French Alpine goat.

About 15 years ago, I decide to get a couple of goats to clear some property. When I went to get them...the owner offered me Al, at a reduced rate because he was a steer. (I had to ask what a steer was). I said no and walked away. I heard a noise...a goat bleat..looked and Al was standing on the fence bleating at me. How could I resist?

He has been such a good friend. He was an attention hound....loved to be petted and loved treats....always ran to the gate when I came home. Until this afternoon.

A few weeks ago, I lost another goat, Debbiegoat, a French Alpine who Al had been raised with and was his best friend. Al seemed sick....and I worked to get him through it. I thought I had won that battle...he seemed to be doing well. I did know that both of them had already outlived their life expectancy.

I did my shopping and errands today. Last stop was my usual, at a salvage grocery..where I got a case of overripe banana (40 lbs) for my goats. No creature on this earth loved bananas more than Al did. He apparently died just a short time before my last stop.

Goats are cool. They are smart and have wonderful personalities. Al was one of the best. We loved each other. He lived longer than most....I am grateful for that, but am still sad to lose him.

Losing animal friends sucks....as I know many of you here understand.

[Happy Panther]

Rip Al

How about a pic in remembrance?

[Mr. Scot]

Sorry to hear it LP

[jasonluckydog]

RIP Big Al.

[cookinbrak]

Goats are cool, and show a ton of affection. Just know that you made each other's life better.

[mav1234]

I am sorry to hear that!

Never had a goat as a pet... they always struck me as neat animals. When I was younger I visited a fair amount of petting zoos and it always seemed goats were very nice, but I never really spent much time around them.

[ladypanther]

This is Al last winter.

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[YourMomsLover]

RIP Al!

My fiance had a goat when she was young. It was raised with dogs, and acted exactly like one...barked and all.

My thoughts are with you.

[PowerlessDan]

Wow that is sad LP sorry to hear that.

I have a little sad goat story too. When I was a kid we had goats for their milk and they were treated like pets. At the time we had a grandma goat (the best milker we ever had), a mother goat and two youngsters. One night we experienced a bad thunderstorm. The next morning we went to do the morning feeding and milking, but the goats didn't meet us at the fence gate like normal. We discovered they were all in the barn huddled in the corner as far from the barn door and the storm as they could manage to get. A tree near the barn had been struck by lighting in the night. The lighting followed a path down the side of the barn and had killed all four huddled in the same corner at once. We never got anymore goats after that.

[EMSMedic79]

Dislike.

[5158Poundin]

Sorry to hear this LP...sad for you...

[LifeisaGarden]

Sorry to hear about Al. I love goats, they do make great pets.

[chknwing]

Dont have any kids.

[sunbunny]

I'm sorry, lp. (((hugs)))

[ladypanther]

Thanks all.

I could not get in touch with the person close by who has a backhoe [sp?] Got a neighbor to help me carry Al to a good spot. Dug the grave myself. Prolly appropriate since Al was the goat all along that was the best friend. I love them all, but Al was such a character. I will miss him.

Grave digging is hard work (especially for a big animal) but it is also a bit cathartic. I am sure many here know that...have had to bury a beloved pet. Last thing you can do for them.