Goats Galore

You might not know much about Lewisburg. It’s a quintessential Tennessee small town – weathered rows of old buildings surrounding a courthouse, with a humming Wal-Mart and strip malls on town’s edge.

Near downtown, Lewisburg boasts a magnetic park on  Big Rock Creek, the home of the Goats Music & More Festival. We couldn’t tell you about the Music & More. But if you’re like us and fond of goats, the festival has what ails you. The weather was perfect for early October, crisp and not really cool.

Barely an hour from Nashville, the festival ushered us into a different world. This was farm country. People here lived and worked with livestock. The people presenting goats spent their lives with them. I grew up in the suburbs and have always long for a better connection with the animals that sustain us. It wouldn’t be hard to picture a few goats roaming our backyard and chomping on the grass (reducing my need to mow the backyard).

Our first taste of the festival's marquee attraction came outside the alleys of vendors. A small pen for some Nubian goats, who did not participate in the judging. The Nubian goats were just prologue to massive tents hosting competitions for Boer and myotonic goats.

The goats were all business under the tents. People traveled across the mid-South to show these goats. Mostly white with brown heads and patches, Boer goats stand wide and stout. They grow fast and can mate year-round, making them suited as meat goats.

Myotonic goats are better known as fainting goats. Myotonic goats were first noted in Marshall County, allowing its county seat to lay claim to this festival. When surprised or stressed, the goats splay their legs out and freeze. Startle the goat, their legs go rigid and they fall over. Younger goats fall and “faint”, while older goats brace themselves against the instinct. Nothing startled the goats during competition.

Competitions started for goats as young as three months and up to “senior” goats, open to any animal three years or older. The older goats made less noise, while the younger goats, especially those less than a year, were not as accustomed to showing. Almost all goats stayed calm as the judges surveyed them. They picked winners, but had strong words for all contenders.

The resting pens were open to visitors. Goats jumped onto the rails of their pens as we lingered, while handlers escorted participating goats out to the competition. Children darted in and out of their family goat pens. Goats popped up to the railing in hopes of snagging something to eat.

As we cross the creek, the music – some brand of modern country - drowned out any bleating. Having heard the youngest goats bleat earlier was all the music we needed.