A Herd of Goats Escapes Enclosure and Runs Free Through a California Neighborhood

From House Beautiful

As people around the world have been isolating amid the ongoing pandemic, animals have been showing up at unexpected places. Dolphins and swans returned to the clear canals in Venice, and more than 150,000 flamingos flocked to Mumbai, creating a sea of pink. In a less serene instance of "nature healing," a herd of goats ran free through a residential neighborhood in San Jose, California.

On Tuesday, Zach Roelands posted a video on Twitter showing the goats running along a road and up a few driveways, some weaving through trash and recycling bins near the sidewalks. A few stopped to munch on plants and flowers before Roelands and his neighbors shooed them away. "When I got back from the store all the goats had broken through the fence and were [wreaking] havoc on our street," Roelands wrote in the caption. "This is the craziest thing to happen all quarantine."

Replying to a comment asking how many goats live on his street, Roelands said none, but they come three times a year to clear dead weeds from the hill behind his house. While attempting to eat from his neighbor's backyard, the goats escaped from the hill by jumping up and breaking through a fence, Roelands told USA Today. It only took a few minutes to get them back into their enclosure.

When asked on Twitter if the goats "ate your grass and saved you the work of mowing the lawn for the week," Roelands responded that instead of grass, they ate the plants and pooped all over the grass. "You know, more fertilizer so I’ll have to mow it twice as often," he joked.

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