Goat Gone Rogue

A retired teacher friend has a country home in Toms Brook, over in the Shenandoah Valley. For a couple of years now, her Facebook page has recorded periodic sightings of a lone black and white goat whom she and her neighbors call Gilbert.

Gilbert lives on the fringes of their lives, occasionally folding himself into a lawn chair for a nap, or venturing onto a porch or carport for protection from the rain. Evidently, about six months ago a small herd of deer adopted Gilbert, and today a Funkhouser Oil truck driver shared a video of that herd crossing the road in front of him with...... a goat?!! 

My friend was as excited about the video, which she shared on Facebook for Gilbert’s many fans, as the truck driver likely was for an explanation of what he thought he’d seen. After two years of fandom, today I finally learned Gilbert’s origin story. An escapee from a local slaughterhouse, now he runs with deer. And that is the story of a self-made goat who has brought unexpected joy to a little corner of Shenandoah County, Virginia.