Famous SpokesGoat Pricilla went to that big field in the sky yesterday. I can’t say it was unexpected. Pricilla was a very old goat. The lifespan for a Nigerian dwarf goat is 12 – 15 years and Pricilla was 20. A remarkable age for a small furry caprine with a big smile.
She came to me in 2007. She was pregnant and would soon present me with Sarah and Michael. After I listened to her cry for her babies I never pulled another kid from its mother to bottle feed again. She had one more kid – Kevin – before she retired to munch grass in the summer and hay in the winter. She was my first goat (with AbbyGoat who died last year.)
The last couple of years she has really slowed down. She had gotten very arthritic in her hips and she was having a lot of trouble with one front leg. The young goats were very mean to her. I kept her in a pen by herself but she could still see the herd so she wasn’t alone. She still had a lot of fire though; the other day I needed her to come back into her pen because a dog was running around loose and I didn’t want it to chase her down. I was trying to convince her to go back and any time I gave her a little nudge she growled at me. She was a stubborn old goat.
She never failed to make me laugh.
She would greet me every morning when I opened the barn door with that big goat smile on her face. She wanted her apples! When she wasn’t there yesterday morning I knew something was wrong. From what we could tell she just went to sleep and didn’t wake up. A pretty good way to go. Her timing was a marvel – John had been away on a week’s vacation and had just gotten back the night before. If she had died any sooner I would have been alone to deal with it. This way he was here to give me lots of hugs.
I think she waited.
I will miss that smiling goat face in the morning.
I leave you with The Maaaaa of Pricilla – her theory on life:
This is my philosophy which is The Maaaaa of Pricilla.
I thought I would share it with all of you.
Only work with people you like; butt the others out of your life.
Play like a kid; hop, leap and frolic.
Eat what you love; burp with abandon.
Bask in the sun; this is why we have the sun.
Love your herd; they have your back.
I hope you enjoyed this – I try and live by it everyday.
Pricilla’s blog is still up if not active. You can go and check out her maaaas and her favorite posts like When Harry Met Stinky or the story of How Pricilla Came to Live on the Happy Goats Farm.
Her blog is The Maaaaa of Pricilla and while her maaaaa may have been quieted here on the Farm they will remain loud and clear in my heart and on the internet for anyone who cares to listen for them.
Goodbye Pricilla. I will miss you. Enjoy all of the good grazing in the big field in the sky with Millie, PB, AbbyGoat and all of the other goats who have gone before you.
