It all started last summer when there was some hullaballoo about keeping “farm” animals in the village. Even though this has been something that has been going on in this rural southern Italian village for centuries, it became an issue for reasons (certain people) I’m not going to get into. It didn’t directly have to do with us or Pasqualina, but it eventually landed at our doorstep, so to speak. We moved her around a bit to try to make do, but then my daughter was born in October of last year, and well, things got even more challenging with Pasqualina just a bit farther away than she always had been. I hardly ever even got to see her, in fact, because it was just too difficult for me to get there with the baby.

And so, we made an excruciatingly difficult decision to rehome her. She’s in *extremely* good hands, so at least that is not a worry, and technically I could visit her from time to time if I wanted. I haven’t been able to bring myself to do that yet, though, as I’m afraid I’ll blubber like a baby when I see her and when I have to leave her again.

I raised this special goatie from when she was just a wee kid when we weren’t sure whether she would make it because she wouldn’t take a bottle. But I persisted and she was an amazing companion to me for five years. Right now, I feel like I’ve let her down and failed her as a caretaker, though I doubt she feels that way – she always was a forgiving goat as her maaaaa felt her way through goat husbandry on the fly.

It’s not out of the realm of possibility that we would be able to take her in again at some point, but it’s not likely in the near future. And honestly, so long as she’s happy and thriving where she’s at, I’d rather not move her again and further stress her as she gets up there in goat years.

What does this mean for Goat Berries? I won’t be posting very much on the blog itself, though I do plan to keep the site online and also stay relatively active in the goat community on Facebook (including continuing to post on the Goat Berries Facebook page).

So, no, this is not goat-bye . . . but it is taking a lot to get used to life without my Pasqualina.

*wipes away tears, again*

Gävle Goat by plastAnka on Flickr

For some reason, the poor straw goatie usually ends up in flames before the Christmas season is over . . . which is why I was so excited when my friend Annika, who lives in Gävle, sent me this photo today — a perfect example of Goatspotting:

Why yes, this is one super smily Swedish goat.

Our guess is that this is because he’s made of cement and would, therefore, be rather difficult to set afire.

Now if only he could lend some of his cement to the Christmastime goatie . . . .

Remember if you’re out and about and spot a goat, snap a photo and send it on in for Goatspotting!

Well it’s time to help out 12-year-old Ava in Federal Way, Washington — animal control wants to take away her caprine friends, and it’s wrong, wrong, wrong in our humble Goat Berries’ opinion.

If you agree, have a look at Ava’s petition and sign it to show your support:

Hello! my name is Ava and I am 12. I have two Pygmy goats that live with me in Federal Way, WA. Ever since I was 3 I have wanted a goat. My mom said when I was 9, I could have one. So when I turned 9 my mom got me a Pygmy goat as a pet. For the past 3 years, Lilly has lived in the house with me. A year ago, Animal Control tried to come and take my baby away from me. They said that I have a week or else they would take it and sell her at AUCTION. I have severe anxiety so my pediatrician wrote a letter and now Lilly is an emotional therapy animal . 6 months ago, I got another goat, Juju. Goats are best in pairs, so they keep each other company. Juju and Lilly have lived In the house with me for the past 6 Months. Yesterday, animal control came again and they said if my goats are not gone by July 31st, they will be sold at auction. I live in a regular house, no acreage, just a backyard. They said it is not legal to have Goats in our community. Please help us. I am hoping that if i get enough signatures, animal control will realize that two goats living in the house is not a bad thing. Thank you.

Remember, you need to sign here by July 31 in order to make your voice herd, erm, heard!

Best of luck, Ava, Lilly, and Juju!

Sending much love from Italy!

No doubt that this girl is pregnant — only question that remains is one, two, or more?! She still has at least a couple weeks to go, we think.

Any guesses?

Gemma looks to be with-kid, too, but I haven’t gotten a good belly shot of her. She isn’t very big, so sometimes she just looks like she had a nice dip into the hay, so we’re pretty sure there can only be one in there. But as goat lore goes, you never can tell!

Positive, healthy vibes for an easy, successful deliveries appreciated!

Nancy explained: “I am not a goat owner but actually bought my home because there was a goat family that lived behind my property here in Georgia. Now, 17 years later, sad to say, there is only one goat left, ‘Baby,’ whose photo I included for your ‘GoatSpotting.’ I think she is such a pretty girl.”

Aw, she is a cutie, indeed! Love those horns!

Nancy takes Baby fresh fruit (especially strawberries), vegetables, peanuts, “and the occasional Ritz cracker.”

Lucky goat!

It has taken years for Baby to trust Nancy to touch her, but now Baby loves goat petties on her face, horns, neck, back, etc.

Nancy writes that she hopes to one day have a small farm where she can raise goats of her own. We hope you will be able to realize this dream, too, Nancy; you are going to make a great goat maaaaaaa someday since you’re already a fabulous goat aaaaaaaauntie! Thanks so much for sharing your goat story!

Remember if you spot a goat out and about or would simply like to share your goat story, please contact me!

First of all, our little Gioia went to her new forever home back in November. We are not really a goat enterprise here (understatement), and although I’d love to keep anywhere from five to ten goats, we just don’t have the space. Hopefully someday that will change, but for now, we’re limited to keeping two, and so we had to choose between Gioia and Gemma. Even though Gemma is a *huge* crybaby, we went with her since she is naturally polled (hornless) as is her mother; thus we could keep our pen horn-free.

Besides, sweet little Gioia had a different destiny ahead: she was fated to be a milker among a small herd of goats in the next town over. It all happened so quickly, and it was raining on the day she left, so I didn’t even get to snap final photos of her here. But here is an older one from when she was a wee kid.

I do miss her, but as many of you know:

This is life with goats: some are in your life for only a short time, but every single one touches your heart.

The next set of news is that a buck has been in the pen with Pasqualina and Gemma since mid-November, just after Gioia left us. P decided to get the same buck as last time, who had become a total sweetheart by the end of his previous stay.

And I’m happy to report that he totally recognized me!

Last time, it took a good few weeks before he would let me get close to pet him, but this time, he came right to me, nearly demanding face scratchies. I don’t think he gets much of those where he lives, so this has truly been a vacation for him. And he hasn’t headbutted me even once. At least not yet.

Isn’t he handsome?

We’ll be giving him back to his caretaker shortly, and then we wait to see if the girls are “with kid.”

Fingers crossed!

Are you breeding your goats right now too?

What’s new in your goat neighborhood?

Moose is too cute!

Here’s the deal. Doritos has an annual Crash the Super Bowl contest, and some fellow goat lovers filmed a commercial featuring “a silly Doritos-loving goat named Moose.”

Of course (because who can resist a goat?!), “Goat 4 Sale” was selected as one of the TOP 5 Finalists for the competition.

From DoritosGoat.com:

What does this mean? Well, it means that, with your help, we have a chance at having “Goat 4 Sale” air on TV across America during the biggest TV event of the year – The Super Bowl!! That’s an honor enough, but not only that, there’s a shot at winning a million dollars and a gig with director Michael Bay!

Your vote can help make it happen, and send Moose the Goat all the way to the Super Bowl! You can vote EVERY DAY between now and January 29. Not only that, you can vote TWICE a day: once from your desktop computer, once from your mobile device.

So, would you help us make TV history and send “Goat 4 Sale” to the Super Bowl? VOTE HERE NOW!

Did you get all that? YOU can help make sure Moose the Doritos-loving goat gets some serious Super Bowl Sunday love by voting for the “Goat 4 Sale” commercial. So go forth, watch the commercial, and . . .

Vote 4 Goat!

Hope everyone celebrating has a Merry Christmas!

A few months ago, she came up with an amazing soap creation that include chocolate, almond, and coconut, but she was stuck for a name. So I threw in my suggestion — Choconut Almond Delight — and a new soap name was born!

Teresa is not only using the name, but she also sent me a bar of soap as thanks (and an extra bar for my mom who was acting as the go-between with the package since I’m in Italy). As it turns out, my mom didn’t even open the package before passing it along to me in a larger package, so I ended up with both bars and a really nice note from Teresa to my mom, which I read to her over the phone. Such a lovely gesture, Teresa, grazie!

Now, back to the soap — believe you me, this *does* smell good enough to eat. Though I do not recommend doing so, of course. I’m looking at you, goats.

Seriously, though, it’s a wonderful soap, and Teresa’s other soaps and products, ranging from handmade Christmas ornaments and dreamcatchers to jewelry and lip balms, are just as lovely, so if you’re looking for unique gifts for your loved ones this holiday season, why not check out Teresa’s Eden Hills Market and support a goat-related small business to boot?

And remember, you can even lease a goat through Eden Hills!

Lather up, folks, and support a fellow goal gal!

It was this commercial:

I still laugh every time I see it!

For those who don’t speak Italian, this is a commercial for Golia brand throat lozenges that are made with medicinal herbs. The voiceover says:

Chi conosce l’erbe non sbaglia.

He who knows herbs is never wrong.

Goats, of course, know herbs, but really this is a clever play on words as “erbe” in Italian also means grass, weeds, generally all the stuff that goats like to eat.

Like with many cross-cultural things, perhaps this commercial isn’t as cute once it has to be explained and translated, but we find it hilarious, and I hope you enjoy it too.

And hey, it’s always nice to see a goat hit it big, right?

Evvive le capre!