Seesaws, hurdles no obstacle for goats at Boulder County Fair
Aug. 9—There were no ribbons for clichés at the Boulder County Fair 4-H utility goat show Monday afternoon.
Drawing veteran handlers and newcomers alike, the obstacle course portion of the utility goat show gave local 4-H'ers a chance to prove their animals were more than their stubborn stereotype.
"They like to work, and they have a willingness to please, and they truly do form bonds," said Genevieve DeSouza while her daughter Clara was on deck with her goat Forest, a personable Toggenburger, a formidable goat with an affinity for obstacle courses and long walks in the woods.
Forest and the other goats participating in the competition wore packs more typically seen on dogs. Sure-footed, hardy, goats are reliable pack animals.
After participating in a number of 4-H programs for 10 years, the obstacle course show was college freshman Liz French's last competition with her goat Snap.
"It's a little emotional but it's also exciting to be starting the next chapter of my life," French said.
After the competition but before results were tallied, French was satisfied with Snap's performance, but wouldn't speculate on his placement. "He's a little slow and not the most motivated."
With patient coaxing, Benjamin Weber, of Nederland, moved Daryl through the cardboard box, over the teeter totter and stepped through the water feature together, but Weber got a little tripped up at the pallet mountain feature.
"It was an illogical transition," Weber said afterward.
The obstacle course competition is scored based on how well the goat navigates each challenging station. The challenges ranged from a snack loading station where boxes of candy are loaded into the goat's pack to walking the goat through at least one water feature, which goats are particularly averse to.
Jessika Scoma led her Lamancha doe named Ginger through a pre-show demonstration of the course. Crowned supreme champion in the conformation portion of the show, Ginger and Scoma ran through the course with an easy confidence earned from their nine years of competing at the fair. After a moment of consideration at the water feature, the doe showed no protest.
"She's been a really special girl, a really great utility goat," Scoma said.
What makes a winning goat partnership?
"Trust," said Kate Johnson, who was the utility show announcer and the assistant dairy goat superintendent at Sunday's milking event. "The No. 1 secret I tell everyone is to build a relationship with your goat because if they trust you, they'll follow you anywhere."
