July 21, 2005
Let's talk goats
Goats were the first animals to be domesticated and they are hardy and social beasts.
Goats make a really cool sound called "bleating."
Goat milk is very nutritional and is used for drinking as well as manufacturing goat cheese. Goat meat is consumed all over the world.
Some goats produce specialized and valuable coats - namely mohair and cashmere. Mohair is a long fiber produced by Angora goats. It is similar to the lustrous long wool of sheep, but distinct from the angora fiber produced by Angora rabbits.
Cashmere is the soft undercoat which can be produced by nearly any type of goat. Some goats produce an excellent quantity and quality of cashmere.
Goats have also played a part in mythology. The Sumerian god Marduk was often seen in the company of a goat. The Semitic goat-god Azazel was a symbol of life and energy.
In both Judaism and Christianity the goat symbolized lewdness, though the Christians carried it much further where the goat came to be associated with lust and the devil.
Once at a petting zoo, a goat grabbed hold of my wife's sweater and wouldn't let go. My wife thought it was very funny until the goat started pulling with all its might. Then she panicked and started shrieking, which was pretty damned funny. She now has an intense fear of goats. That was quite a few years ago, but even now if the mood strikes me at bedtime I'll turn out the lights and tell her that that goat was really Satan and he can now control her through her dreams. I take an occasional elbow to the ribs, but the general reaction is usually worth the pain.
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I've never been attacked by a goat, but I had a friend who kept one as a pet. his name was Snirt, after the dog in the Hagar the Horrible comic strip. That horned beast would eat anything; we caught it eating cow shit once.
Posted by: shank at July 21, 2005 08:40 AMAh yes the honorable goat. You failed to mention the web comic Goats, not that that has any real historical value but... it's a comic... about goats...
Aren't goats also the sign of Satan if drawn inside a pentagram? Or maybe that's just 80s metal goats.
Posted by: Oorgo at July 21, 2005 11:11 AMWe had friends that raised goats of various breeds. Their favorite "toy" was an old car hood up on cinderblocks like a trampoline. Once in a while one would jump smack into the middle of it and then be catapulted up in the air when it sprung back to shape. They'd have to replace the car hood every month or two. I guess Satan made them do it.
Posted by: Ted at July 21, 2005 11:12 AM
Jew