Chat
02-16-2016, 07:40 AM
Story time: "The Uninvited Guest"
A couple of weeks ago, Finn discovered he could jump over the gate that blocks off our front porch steps. He did it twice and was immediately reprimanded and made to get back down, and that seemed to be the end of it. But last Friday he rediscovered his talent. Phil and I were working up in the office when I heard a loud crash on the porch. We thought the goats were fighting and had clashed their horns against the rails. But after a few minutes we started noticing a regular "ka-dunk, ka-dunk, ka-dunk". It sounded like a goat was wandering around on the deck!
I went downstairs to investigate and sure enough, there was Finn staring at me through the window. I promptly escorted him off the porch with a few firm words and then I went back to work. About two minutes later there came another crash--the sound of hooves from a 150 lb. goat landing solidly on the hollow porch stairs from an almost 4-foot leap. I went down again, scolded Finn firmly, and once more put him off the porch.
Well, Finn was not to be gainsaid. I watched clandestinely through a side window while he waited for me to disappear. He walked up to the gate then carefully paced backward to a calculated distance. He took on a crouching stance while he eyeballed the height of the gate carefully up and down. Finally, with a quick run-up and a flying leap he was over the gate and on the stairs, oh-so-proud of himself! That time I was not in a genial mood. I threw the door open with a shout, Finn whirled around in alarm, and I took a few whacks at his hastily retreating butt. That time I did not politely open the gate for him to leave--I made him jump back over.
I took the "surprise attack" approach twice more before Finn finally walked away from the porch gate deflated. He wandered dejectedly off with the herd and I thought we'd seen the last of him that morning. I trooped upstairs to get back to work and to laugh with Phil about Finn's antics.
But Finn apparently was not as frightened or discouraged by "raging monster Nan" as I thought. About ten minutes later I heard another crash on the porch.
"That's it! He's getting the water treatment!" I shouted as a flew down the stairs.
I ran to the basement and retrieved our emergency disciplinary Super-Soaker squirt gun and filled it with nice, cold water. By then, Finn had wandered along our wraparound deck and was peering curiously in through the back-porch glass door. He saw me coming and looked at me eagerly as though he expected a reward for his cleverness. Imagine the shock when instead of a cookie he got a face-full of water! Finn whirled around, hooves scrambling on the slippery hardwood boards. I gave him a barefooted boot in the backside as he disappeared around the corner, then I chased him all the way round to the front porch stairs. I had the clear advantage--hooves do not get good traction on a wooden porch floor and for once in his life Finn could not outrun me and my terrifying water pistol of death. He was a pretty wet goat by the time he reached the front porch gate and leaped over to safety.
That was the last time Finn let himself onto the deck, but the loaded water pistol is still sitting by the front door in case he decides to chance it one more time.
The End.
A couple of weeks ago, Finn discovered he could jump over the gate that blocks off our front porch steps. He did it twice and was immediately reprimanded and made to get back down, and that seemed to be the end of it. But last Friday he rediscovered his talent. Phil and I were working up in the office when I heard a loud crash on the porch. We thought the goats were fighting and had clashed their horns against the rails. But after a few minutes we started noticing a regular "ka-dunk, ka-dunk, ka-dunk". It sounded like a goat was wandering around on the deck!
I went downstairs to investigate and sure enough, there was Finn staring at me through the window. I promptly escorted him off the porch with a few firm words and then I went back to work. About two minutes later there came another crash--the sound of hooves from a 150 lb. goat landing solidly on the hollow porch stairs from an almost 4-foot leap. I went down again, scolded Finn firmly, and once more put him off the porch.
Well, Finn was not to be gainsaid. I watched clandestinely through a side window while he waited for me to disappear. He walked up to the gate then carefully paced backward to a calculated distance. He took on a crouching stance while he eyeballed the height of the gate carefully up and down. Finally, with a quick run-up and a flying leap he was over the gate and on the stairs, oh-so-proud of himself! That time I was not in a genial mood. I threw the door open with a shout, Finn whirled around in alarm, and I took a few whacks at his hastily retreating butt. That time I did not politely open the gate for him to leave--I made him jump back over.
I took the "surprise attack" approach twice more before Finn finally walked away from the porch gate deflated. He wandered dejectedly off with the herd and I thought we'd seen the last of him that morning. I trooped upstairs to get back to work and to laugh with Phil about Finn's antics.
But Finn apparently was not as frightened or discouraged by "raging monster Nan" as I thought. About ten minutes later I heard another crash on the porch.
"That's it! He's getting the water treatment!" I shouted as a flew down the stairs.
I ran to the basement and retrieved our emergency disciplinary Super-Soaker squirt gun and filled it with nice, cold water. By then, Finn had wandered along our wraparound deck and was peering curiously in through the back-porch glass door. He saw me coming and looked at me eagerly as though he expected a reward for his cleverness. Imagine the shock when instead of a cookie he got a face-full of water! Finn whirled around, hooves scrambling on the slippery hardwood boards. I gave him a barefooted boot in the backside as he disappeared around the corner, then I chased him all the way round to the front porch stairs. I had the clear advantage--hooves do not get good traction on a wooden porch floor and for once in his life Finn could not outrun me and my terrifying water pistol of death. He was a pretty wet goat by the time he reached the front porch gate and leaped over to safety.
That was the last time Finn let himself onto the deck, but the loaded water pistol is still sitting by the front door in case he decides to chance it one more time.
The End.