XENIA — Apparently goats don’t like to get their feet wet.
Or at least according to Garrett Hook, 11, who navigated the Harness & Pack Goat Show Aug. 2 at the Greene County Fair for the first time with Jake, a purebred Alpine.
“You can tell [his breed] by the way his ears stick out,” Garrett Hook said. “His stomach is black now, but before we shaved him he was all tan and white.”
Garrett Hook of Jamestown led Jake — weighted down with water bottles — through a tunnel and pool, on top of a balance beam and see-saw and over a pole. They and five other pairs navigated the course.
The two left the obstacle course feeling pretty good — Garrett Hook, happy with his first pack show; Jake, willing to put the kiddie pool nonsense behind him.
Although Jake was only on loan, he and Garrett Hook became fast friends getting ready for the fair.
“I live in Jamestown and you can’t have goats in the city,” he explained. “So we are borrowing him. But we’ve seen each other almost every day this summer.”
The obstacle course wasn’t new for either of them: they had been practicing.
But Garrett Hook said sometimes it takes more than practice; sometimes you just need a big sister.
“My sister has a goat named Jelly. Before that she had Peanut Butter. And Peanut Butter’s mom was Peanut,” he said.
Alice Hook, who also took Jelly through the obstacle course, has been taking goats to the fair for four years.
“I help him by cleaning out his goat’s hooves,” she said.
Her brother admitted she’s rubbing off on him.
“I did learn from my sister. That’s why I’m almost as good as she is,” Garrett Hook said, who has now taken goats to the fair three years in a row.
Garrett Hook earned fourth place in showmanship with Jake. But his sole focus wasn’t on goats this year. He‘ll also tell you how much he loved his Science Fun with Dairy Foods and Explore the Outdoors projects.
“When I grow up I want to be a chemist,” Garrett Hook said.
His sister earned second place in Skillathon, third place in her showmanship class, fifth place in overall showmanship, and fifth place in dairy market showmanship. She also received third place for her Fast Break for Breakfast project, second place in Explore the Outdoors, and first place in Canning and Freezing, which earned her a trip to the state fair.
Now that he’s gotten his feet wet at the Greene County Fair, Jake gets to go home to his farm.
