The Steps of Goat Aggression

[Erikthviking]

I've heard that cattle prods can work in some cases, but I've never used one (yet). I wouldn't rule it out for a a truly dangerous animal, but I feel like it might cause more resentment and fear than actual respect, but I don't know. Another thing I've heard that some people have used with good success is an air horn. How old is your buck? If he's a big guy set in his ways you're going to have a lot more trouble than if he's just a young whippersnapper trying on his "king of the world" hat. I'm also glad to know that your goats are on pasture and your buck is with them. Many bucks develope terrible attitudes because they are confined away from the herd with only one companion or no companions at all. If that were the case for your buck I would be able to sympathize with his aggression, but if he's out with the herd with room to roam then he has no excuse. It's time to lay down the law!   

The best way to keep your goat from escalating the violence is to make sure you lay down the law so completely that he is hesitant to start something a second time. He may be afraid of you for a while, but if you never provoke him or punish him unfairly he'll quickly realize he doesn't need to be afraid of you. He only needs to be afraid of what will happen if he challenges you (or any other people). If you're fair and consistent with him he'll learn not to fear people but to fear consequences. You need to make sure you're not accidentally inviting him into your space with your body language. This is what creates inconsistency, which results in mistrust, disrespect, or fear. If you shimmy around him, avoid his space, move out of the way when he comes toward you, etc. it's an open invitation for him to bully you. But then when you turn and punish him for it you've sent a very confusing message. He doesn't know whether he should fight you or fear you. Depending on his personality, a goat could fall into either one of those categories. Own your space. Walk a straight path from the gate to the feeder. Never sidestep your goat because he's in the way and you don't want to deal with him. Walk straight through him like he's not there, and when he doesn't move, lay down the law and MAKE him move. Immediately. As soon as he moves, continue on your way like he's the least important thing in the world to you. If he follows you too close, tips his head at you, brushes you as you pass by, or nips at your clothing, whack his nose and chase him out of your space. Lack of thoroughness and consistency is most people's downfall when they fail at reforming an aggressive goat. It encourages a goat to escalate the fight because he's getting mixed signals and he's not convinced of your resolve. The other thing we do wrong is we try to be friends when it's not appropriate. Friendship only blossoms after respect has been earned. If your goat does not respect you he will never be your friend. He has to respect that you are in charge and that when you tell him to move away, you mean it! We made that mistake with our first goat, Cuzco. We were so intent on being friends with him that we let him get away with a lot of bullying behavior that we didn't even see until it was too late to truly correct it. He was never dangerous to the point where we could not manage him, but we always had to manage him. He was never safe or trustworthy.

Another tool to have on hand is a halter. I like to halter my goats because when I control the head I control the rest of him, but most important I control the horns. I had to trim my borrowed buck's hooves a couple of times because they were quite overgrown. Because of the length of his horns, there was no way I could do this safely with him tied by a collar. I haltered him and snubbed him up as short as possible so I could work with his feet without getting slammed or hooked. He managed to hook me anyway, so I put a rope around his horns and I tied them to the fence as well. Usually I don't handle a goat's horns. It is highly disrespectful toward them and goats often take deep offense at it, but this goat had no respect for me and was intentionally using his horns against me. Tying his horns up made him angry, but it also drove home the point that he was not in charge of the situation and I could do what I liked with him. Obviously I handled him gently while he was tied so he had no real grievance against me other than injured pride. When the buck wasn't wearing a halter and I needed to move him (like back from the gate), I grabbed him by the beard and dragged him where I wanted him. You buck needs to know you're in charge and you call the shots. The buck went from having to be haltered and dragged for every encounter to being docile enough to be led around safely by the collar. He stopped trying to hook me with his horns or butt me out of his way or drag me around on the lead. The transformation happened very quickly once he realized he was not going to get the upper hand in any dispute. It's amazing how quickly he stopped disputing! We became friends shortly after that and he would come up to me looking for scratches and treats instead of looking for a fight. I still maintained my "professional distance" like I do with all bucks, but we were on friendly terms.

Long term, you shouldn't have to deal with issues like these too often. Once you understand how to interact with goats so they never get any aggressive ideas in the first place, these problems don't usually arise (unless you borrow someone else's headache like I did!). Keeping goats gentle is easier than correcting them after they've developed aggressive tendencies. As you become more familiar with goat body language and social interactions you'll find that challenges don't come up too often. My main problem is reminding other people not to get too friendly with Pest. He is always the first goat to trot up and greet visitors, and it's very sweet until it's not. They don't understand the sexual current that underscores every encounter with a buck in rut, so when they tell me they don't mind the stink, that's not enough to convince me that they should be hugging him and letting him rub his face all over them.

Another thing that will hold you in good stead for long-term goat management is learning when to throw in the towel on a beast that isn't manageable. There are many good bucks in the world. Returning, rehoming, or wethering this buck are not bad options. With more experience under your belt you can start fresh with a different buck next season and raise him correctly. You may find that a goat that is a holy terror for you is quite tractable in a different situation with different herd dynamics. I'd say if you can't get him to change his attitude within the next week or two, it might be time to admit that this particular buck isn't going to work out. When you've had goats for a few years you'll realize that some of them aren't worth the time and effort of keeping when there are so many easier ones out there. You also have to ask yourself if this attitude is one you want to see propagated in your herd. Attitudes often pass down the generations, so keeping an aggressive buck could come back to haunt you in a few years if his offspring have the same tendency. How does your buck behave toward the other goats? Is he gentle or rough? If he's rough with his subordinates I'd say he's definitely not worth keeping another season. A good buck should look after the herd, not terrorize them. Every buck I've kept for multiple seasons was a sweetheart to the other herd members, and especially toward younger goats on the bottom of the pecking order. A good buck makes sure the little one has a warm spot to sleep and a place at the feeder. He loves up your does and asks if they're in heat instead of hitting them and lunging at them and demanding affection when they're not interested.

Finally, in regard to your knees, don't let your buck stalk you. If he's walking close behind with his hair standing on end, he's being dangerous and aggressive. If you have that riding crop in your hand, hold it behind you and wave it back and forth as a warning (like a tail). If he gets within range, smack his face with it. He must learn to stay off your back. If he ever manages to hook you with a horn, turn and rain holy terror down on him. He should feel in that moment as if you are a grizzly bear about to tear him limb from limb and eat him. It's a psychological battle more than a physical one. Physically, he can take you out, but you can't let him know that. Make yourself big, your emotion big, your voice big, everything BIG; then scare the pants off him. Make him turn tail and run for his life. Whack him as hard as you can with that crop. You can't injure him with it, but it should hurt! If you can, aim for vulnerable spots like the nose, side of the face, and ears – not for the head or horns because he won't feel much there. He shouldn't feel like he's in a fair fight. In that moment, he should feel like he's being attacked by a predator and his best option is to get out of there as fast as possible. It shouldn't take more than one or two encounters like that to permanently change your goat's mind about attacking you, provided you are also minding your own space and making sure you're not inadvertently inviting him back in by allowing him to move you around. If you can own your body language, then laying down the law with your goat should leave a proper, long-lasting impression.

Thank you so much again for your time. I haven't had to interact with the goats yet today other than to look in on them. The wife is coming with the riding crop in a bit, so when I go feed I will have voice, water bottle, riding crop, and last resort board. The buck is about 3 years old, and he wasn't like this when we got him 5 months ago. It was my improper handling (including touching his horns) that set him up poorly to go into rut. He does handle the herd somewhat roughly now. He didn't before. Now that I see all theses signs, it is very clear how we got here. I feel I owe it to him and the rest of the herd to do everything I can to fix this. I know now that I need to own my space. Like you said, there can be no friendship without respect. I will update here as things move along.

[Nanno]

Sorry, I didn't realize what a huge post I'd written there! Sometimes I get a bit carried away.

If the buck is 3 years old and was gentle before you got him I can see why you want to make the effort to correct his behavior. Since the buck came from a different herd, it's very possible he was with other goats that were dominant and he's now in a position of leadership for the first time. This change in power dynamics can certainly go to some goats' heads! This is why changing the herd structure (sending the buck back to his original herd for example) can sometimes be a very good solution. We often don't realize just how much herd social dynamics affect our goats' general attitude and interactions with humans. Many of us have had fully bonded, bottle-raised goats that became shy and timid of people because they were being bullied by other goats in the herd every time people entered the pen. It wasn't the human-goat interactions that ruined the relationship. It was the goat-goat interactions that ruined it. Right now you're having to establish yourself as boss of the herd in the absence of any other bosses telling this buck what to do, which makes your position a lot trickier. Some personalities aren't cut out to be good herd leaders. I've started paying attention to that when I sell goats to people. A goat with a mean personality should go with a dominant goat that is a firm but gentle leader. If the mean goat is dominant it makes herd life miserable for everyone and creates headaches for the new owner. A mean goat can learn to be gentle if he has good examples to follow from a good herd leader. That's one thing I love about having big pack wethers on my place. They've established a herd hierarchy in which aggressive young bucks are repeatedly put in their place and required to behave, but the wethers aren't mean or antagonistic toward the upstarts. They simply require (and enforce) a certain type of behavior, and when that behavior pattern is followed they all get along great and can be good buddies. The bucks raised by my wethers eventually become gentle leaders themselves. It's fascinating to watch how goats interact in a herd. I try to take lessons from them.

[Erikthviking]

So far so good with the riding crop. I have gotten pretty good at targeting his nose, and he has gotten much better at staying out of my bubble. I do have a cattle prod in case he starts fighting through the riding crop, but so far that has not happened. The last time I was in there with him, I had to move toward him and he stood his ground. I wacked my boot with the crop and he moved out. He keeps himself on the opposite side of the does from me now, instead of staying between me and them. I am getting better at recognizing when he is looking for a stand off, and when he is just minding his own business. Also, his walk is much less stiff legged when I am around now.

[Nanno]

Good for him staying out of your bubble! I hope you continue to see progress. I doubt he'll fight through the riding crop, especially if you're good at getting his nose with it. Those things can deliver a pretty good sting, and the noise really makes them think they've been hit a lot harder than they have. Seeing your buck take a more relaxed posture is great! Keep him far away from you until you're sure he's not interested in hassling you. Also, if you see him abusing your does or your other wether when you're there, feel free to go after him. In a herd, the dominant buck (or wether) enforces good manners among his subordinates. He doesn't allow another male herd member to abuse females or babies. When you step into that position of herd leader, you want to enforce good manners when you are in there, not only for your own safety (getting caught in the middle of a goat fight is dangerous!), but also to show the goats that you are the ringleader. No one bullies anyone in your presence. If a goat is acting rudely toward me or other goats, I'll sometimes chase them away from the feeder and make them stay away for five minutes or so while the others eat. I've watched my herd leader, Finn, do that at the feeder. If one goat is causing trouble and chasing others away from the hay, Finn drives away the troublemaker and won't let him come near the feeder for a few minutes. If one little goat is getting picked on by everybody, I'll sometimes stand next to that one while they eat and I'll prevent all the others from picking on him for a few minutes. This shows all the goats that you are the herd boss and that herd bosses take care of the little guys. It's not just a personal spat between you and the buck. When you are in the pen, you are the leader of everybody. Even the little guys are important to you, and no lower-tier peon is going to stoke is own ego by keeping the runt below him from eating.

[Erikthviking]

Good for him staying out of your bubble! I hope you continue to see progress. I doubt he'll fight through the riding crop, especially if you're good at getting his nose with it. Those things can deliver a pretty good sting, and the noise really makes them think they've been hit a lot harder than they have. Seeing your buck take a more relaxed posture is great! Keep him far away from you until you're sure he's not interested in hassling you. Also, if you see him abusing your does or your other wether when you're there, feel free to go after him. In a herd, the dominant buck (or wether) enforces good manners among his subordinates. He doesn't allow another male herd member to abuse females or babies. When you step into that position of herd leader, you want to enforce good manners when you are in there, not only for your own safety (getting caught in the middle of a goat fight is dangerous!), but also to show the goats that you are the ringleader. No one bullies anyone in your presence. If a goat is acting rudely toward me or other goats, I'll sometimes chase them away from the feeder and make them stay away for five minutes or so while the others eat. I've watched my herd leader, Finn, do that at the feeder. If one goat is causing trouble and chasing others away from the hay, Finn drives away the troublemaker and won't let him come near the feeder for a few minutes. If one little goat is getting picked on by everybody, I'll sometimes stand next to that one while they eat and I'll prevent all the others from picking on him for a few minutes. This shows all the goats that you are the herd boss and that herd bosses take care of the little guys. It's not just a personal spat between you and the buck. When you are in the pen, you are the leader of everybody. Even the little guys are important to you, and no lower-tier peon is going to stoke is own ego by keeping the runt below him from eating.

Unfortunately at feeding time last night he did decide to fight through the crop. We fought for about 5 minutes until my wife could get the cattle prod to me. He started running after a pop or two with the prod. Then he started going after the does. Not necessarily in an aggressive way, but intensely pushing them away from me. I separated him from the herd, and closed the rest of the herd in the barn for about an hour. When I went back out to open the barn so he could rejoin the herd, he skirted around me practically on his tippy toes. Haven't had much interaction with him yet today. Sadly we are going to stay on cattle prod level until he shows that he will not move towards me.

[Nanno]

That's too bad. You have to do whatever's necessary to keep yourself safe. Right now he thinks you're a horribly dangerous person and that he needs to protect his herd from you. Hopefully the cattle prod will drive the point home without plain turning him mean and fearful. Electric shocks can work wonders if applied judiciously. I think if you don't go after him with it but let him run into it on his own you're more likely to have success. Our naughty loaner buck was ferociously attacking the gate until I festooned it with hot wire. He slammed into it once or twice and then after that he stood well back from the gate until it was wide open. I had to coax him through it a few times until he learned that it wasn't going to attack him, but he'd be in a world of hurt if he attacked it. I wish you all the best with this buck. It sounds like he's become a real handful. Goats can have a pretty steep learning curve already, and when you throw a buck into the mix you've really dived into the deep end. I generally recommend avoiding bucks until you've had does and wethers for a few years.

[Erikthviking]

Just using the cattle prod to keep him from coming into me. Once I can keep him out of my space I think I lower the intensity and go back to the riding crop. That I can chase him down with. I need to find the point that I can beat him in his own language. In the mean time, he will have to stay away by any means.

[Nanno]

Well darn! I wish he'd backed down from the riding crop. That usually works. By all means keep yourself safe! If it were me I'd have a halter on that beast with a catch strap attached to the bottom so I could grab him easily and lead him around or tie him up whenever I needed to. Some people might protest the risk of him getting hung up, but right now the biggest issue is managing this buck somehow so you can keep yourself safe. Make a point of handling the other goats while he watches from a distance. He needs to see that you have full right to access "his" does, and he also needs to see that you will not harm them. If he can watch you from a distance without interfering, then try to make peace with him. You won't be able to feed him by hand for a while because right now he hates and fears you, but bring his favorite treat out and toss it to him. If you can stand on the other side of the fence and feed him from a bucket that's okay too. He needs to know that you mean him no harm unless he attacks you. And once again, throwing in the towel on this one is not a terrible option. It's not a sign of defeat. It's a learning experience. We all have them.

[Erikthviking]

Tying him up is another option on the table. Not one that I like, but we are well past "what I like" territory. Working on finding a place I can tie him and still keep him safe and healthy. What time frames should I tie him if that is the route that I go? Still looking for the tools to beat him at his own game. Last night he kept his distance and did not get jolted. That is where we are at for now, but I don't really consider it progress since I don't think he sees the jolt as anything but pain to be avoided. Thank you again for the advice, I appreciate someone who is willing to apply their experience to the situation.

[Nanno]

Keeping his distance is actually good progress. Pain to be avoided is still something learned. He needs to learn that hitting people is painful! A hot stove is an inanimate object. It harbors no ill will toward anyone. Yet we all learn as children that we must respect it and not put our hands on it, either on purpose or even by accident because the stove does not care. It will burn us regardless of our intentions. When a child first gets burned they might stay as far from the stove as possible for a while until they realize that it's not going to jump out and burn them for no reason. In fact, it's a great thing to cozy up to, but it still has to be respected for the hot object it is.

Any stout fencepost or a barn wall will do for tying your goat up. He should only be tied when you're there, such as at feeding times or if you're working in the barnyard. You can also tie him up and trim his hooves. I would probably work with his hooves whether he needed a trim or not just to drive home the point that I'm in charge and can handle him as I please. My favorite halters are the Sopris X: https://www.soprisunlimited.com/halters
A big goat like yours would probably wear a size 6. They're not cheap, but they'll last a lifetime and unlike other goat halters, these actually fit.

A halter and a stout rope tied to a fencepost or a ring in the wall of the shelter should do the trick. He'll probably rear up and act crazy at first, but oh well. It's unlikely that he'll actually hurt himself, but keep an eye on him anyway just in case. When (not if) he hooks a leg over the rope and gets tangled, you should let him fight it for a while until he either figures out how to untangle himself or gives up fighting and looks defeated and helpless (or looks like he could injure himself, like if he wraps it around his neck). At that point, rescue him. It only takes a few times for the dumbest goat to figure out fighting doesn't work and that he needs to stand quietly or he'll get himself in trouble. It also leaves a good impression when you rescue them from being entangled. They start looking to you as a source of help.