Chat
02-05-2017, 06:39 PM
I'm glad your friend's goat is doing fine. If you use tennis balls, just make sure you also bring vetwrap to keep them in place. Otherwise you'll spend most of your hike chasing the darn things down. 
It does not sound like your guy is aggressive at all. If he's willing to share a shed or the back of an SUV with two little guys, and they aren't scared to share it with him, then he sounds like a good herd leader. Many "boss goats" are not nearly so tolerant. Being aggressive about food is perfectly normal. Just make sure he's never aggressive with YOU about food! You can work him through that skittishness too with time and patience and cookies. Perhaps if your kids feed him treats on a regular basis he'll be less nervous of them. If this is the goat I bred, then he may still remember the tricks I taught him. See if he'll still shake hands. He also learned to "spin" and "repent" (go down on his knees), and "lay down". If he remembers any of those old commands, practicing them is a good way to get him over being nervous around you and the kids.
It does not sound like your guy is aggressive at all. If he's willing to share a shed or the back of an SUV with two little guys, and they aren't scared to share it with him, then he sounds like a good herd leader. Many "boss goats" are not nearly so tolerant. Being aggressive about food is perfectly normal. Just make sure he's never aggressive with YOU about food! You can work him through that skittishness too with time and patience and cookies. Perhaps if your kids feed him treats on a regular basis he'll be less nervous of them. If this is the goat I bred, then he may still remember the tricks I taught him. See if he'll still shake hands. He also learned to "spin" and "repent" (go down on his knees), and "lay down". If he remembers any of those old commands, practicing them is a good way to get him over being nervous around you and the kids.