ON THE TRAIL
*Please feel free to print out these tips.
Teaching a goat to pack is just a matter of putting
the saddle on. The goat will usually turn and smell it and may try to taste
it. Most usually accept it with no trouble.
Take the goat for easy hikes with no weight or panniers
at first. The goat will associate the saddle with a fun outing. After a couple
of hikes, add the empty panniers and later start adding weight a little at
a time.
If your goat is still growing, keep the loads light
so you don't injure it. Once it has reached maturity, it can be loaded to
25% or so of it's body weight.
If you have more than one goat, you will notice that
they seem to compete for positions on the trail. After they get it worked
out, remember the hiking order. If you have to tie the goats together in
a string, tie them in the right order. It will make the difference between
an orderly hike and a tangled mess.
It is normal for goats that are hiking loose to stray
30-40 yards away to eat while you travel. They will run to catch up only
to stop and nibble a tasty plant and let you get ahead again. They will rarely
let you get our of sight though. This eat and run behavior will decrease as
the goat tires after a couple of miles. Most goats file in behind you plodding
steadily along on the trail.
Conditioning is probably the most important aspect
of goat packing. Simply stated, the more you hike with your goat the better
it will be. Start with short trips and build gradually.
While hiking watch the goat for signs of tiring.
If it stops repeatedly or has its mouth open and panting then stop and give
it a break. If it stands around eating, give it 5-10 minutes or until it
is breathing normally before heading out. If it lays down when you stop,
give it 20-30 minutes rest before starting again. You will soon be able to
easily tell when your goat is in need of a rest break. The important thing
to remember is for you to control the break times. If a goat gets tired and
lays down while hiking do not stop for it. Keep going and the goat will get
up and follow. After a short distance you stop and give the goat a break.
If you stop when the goat does, you are teaching it that it can stop the
hike anytime it wants by simply laying down. It is up to you to watch the
goat and give it a break before it feels the need to stop you.
Other things that would make a goat want to stop
or lay down are saddle sores or rubs, injuries, and sharp objects poking
the goat from the backside of the panniers or saddle pad. If the goat doesn't
want to go, you should take some time to make sure everything is ok, before
going on. Keep this in mind when loading panniers and put soft conforming
materials against the "goat side" of the pannier.
On the trail, goats quickly learn how much room they
need to keep the panniers from hitting obstacles. You can help teach your
goat how to detour around narrow openings by always walking a path the goat
can fit through. The goat will learn to follow the same path you take after
it gets stuck a few times trying to take a shortcut. Speaking of shortcuts,
you should never let your goat cut across switch backs. The easiest way to
prevent this is to make sure the goat or goats are piled up tight behind
you prior to the switch back. A lagging goat will almost always try to shortcut
the corner straight to you.
Streams are one of the biggest obstacles for the
new packer. Goats have a natural dislike of water. They will avoid stepping
in it if at all possible. They will almost always jump a small stream and
may refuse to cross larger ones. If your goat refuses, pull it into the water
and lead it across. After a few crossings the goat figures that it isn't
that bad and will start walking in without any trouble. Leading your young
goat around in a creek before hand makes it easier when you get on the trail.
One of the most commonly asked questions is about
predators. After several years and lots of miles of packing, we have never
had a bad incident. Of the goat packers who have had problems, most were
with other hikers' dogs. On rare occurrences, cougars have also caused problems.
Most people take some type of protective measures, carrying a firearm, can
of pepper spray, or guard dog. A first aid kit for the goat is also recommended.
Probably the most important thing to remember when
packing with goats is to pace yourself. Goats can commonly travel six to
twelve miles per day but not all in one shot. A slow steady pace with short
rest breaks will allow the goats to cover a lot more trail. A hard fast pace
will wear the goats out quickly requiring longer rest breaks and less trail
covered at the end of the day. One of the biggest attractions to goat packing
is that they allow us to enjoy the surroundings. So take your time and "smell
the flowers".
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