Courtesy of Danielle Langloism, Wikipedia CCLFainters Not Always Funny
Fainting goats are often the butt of jokes and the tremendous number of videos out there provide ample reason why. However, it’s not always funny raising them. At times it can be downright frustrating.
Fainters are prone to the same illnesses as any other breed so their care is the generally same but that fainting business can make it tough to maneuver them around. Imagine heading out to the pasture to bring the herd in. That’s a fairly normal and simple task for most but if you have fainters, it can be a trial.
“C’mon, guys, let’s go in,” to which half the herd drops and rolls. So you have to wait for them to get up again and try to herd them closer to the barn without having them drop again. Use herd dogs you say. Yeah, sure, that’ll work. Send that overactive border collie out and watch the whole herd scatter, fall and roll over.
Loud noises, visitors, strange dogs, even cats or large birds can make fainters do what they do. It’s not always easy, although it is perpetually entertaining.
We’ve had ONE fainter over the years. We won’t have any more – if we can help it. While they can be enteraining, they don’t mix well with other goats. It becomes a source of “fun” for the other goats to see “Fluffy” flop. Picture a redneck goat saying “Watch THIS!”, just before she scares the poor fainter. My other goats picked up on it REAL quick. We felt sorry for the poor girl and took her to a Fainting Goat Show we knew of and sold her to some people who had Fainters. It’s just disturbing to see a goat flop for no reason.