Remodeling lessons: a llama, four goats and a horse

The title sounds like something Johnny Carson’s Carnac the Magnificent character would have said while holding an envelope to his turbaned forehead. Instead, it describes the animal population on the property next door to my home in Midvale, Utah during the summer of 2007. The horse, a good looking Arabian, was a permanent resident, boarded at the back of the very narrow and deep ¾ acre lot that was immediately to the north of my home. The property was a throwback to the days when the area was agricultural; vestiges of small farms remain scattered throughout the community.

Around the first of June, I awoke to the distinctive bleat of a goat. As I looked out over the property next door, which sat slightly lower than mine, I counted four goats and one llama in addition to the horse. Oddly, all six animals were facing north, locked in a group stare – at what, I couldn’t say.

You can imagine the conversations that ran through the community in response to our new neighbors. While there were occasional issues with regard to odor, we came to appreciate the unusual diversity they lent to the neighborhood.

During a visit to the City to schedule a four-way inspection for the basement build out, I inquired about the animals. I learned that the property owner had been cited for allowing weeds to get out of control. Given the agricultural history of the property, the owner was allowed to bring in animals to control the weeds during the growing season. So, instead of using herbicide or frequent mowing, she found an elegant, entertaining and sustainable solution to the problem.

On August 31st I was working in my home office when the peace of the late summer day was interrupted by the rather desperate trumpeting of the Arabian. I rushed to the backyard to find my neighbor’s son, overweight and a smoker, chasing the goats around the property with lasso in hand. He was clearly frustrated by the unwillingness of the goats to join the llama in the trailer that had been brought in to return them to their home farm. It was hard not to watch and laugh – you can imagine who had the upper hand. Persistence did pay off and the property became, once again, the Arabian’s domain. The only thing that remained uneaten was a large thistle plant that no self-respecting goat or llama would touch.