Have you fallen in love with the idea of a goat as a pet? They have many charming qualities, but here’s what you should know before getting one

By Julie Mancini

Andrews McMeel Syndication

Goats in sweaters. Yoga with goats. Goats doing agility. Goats on the internet. Goats are everywhere these days, including suburban backyards and living rooms.

What’s to love about a goat? A better question might be: What's not to love? Goats are bold, curious and mischievous. But maybe it’s their wide-eyed playfulness that has made them a pop culture -- and pet culture -- phenomenon.

While standard-size goats such as Nubians or Alpines might be a little much in a home backyard -- they can weigh 100 to 200 pounds -- miniature breeds such as the pygmy or Nigerian dwarf bring the same entertaining goat energy in a smaller package.

What can you do with a goat? Some have been known to hang out and watch TV with their people. Goats have learned to run agility courses -- they’re naturals -- and they can perform tricks such as high-five, spin and wave, and even pull small carts.

Check your fencing before bringing a goat home. Goats are chewing champions, and they will find ways to exploit any weaknesses in their enclosures. They will chew indoors, too, so don’t leave your goat inside without supervision.

Whether you're keeping goats in the country or suburbia, visit breeders to see their stock and determine which size goat fits your family. Take note of the enclosures the breeders use, and ask for recommendations on building a secure goat pen. Otherwise, you may find them making a break for freedom and stopping traffic with their cuteness.

Goats are natural browsers, so if you're keeping them in your backyard, be prepared for your landscaping to become their salad bar. Consult your county extension office about goat-safe plants, and consider landscaping with your goats in mind.

Grass isn’t all goats eat. They need 2 to 4 pounds of hay daily, depending on their size and breed. Hay is divided into two groups: grass hay and legume hay. Grass hay provides some protein and energy, but legume hays, such as alfalfa or clover, usually provide more nutrients, including protein, vitamins and important minerals such as calcium, than grass hays. Also provide plenty of fresh cold water in buckets, and change the water at least twice a day.

A busy goat is a happy goat. If you can, provide your goats with some leafy tree limbs. This keeps them occupied as well as fed. Other ways you can keep your goat busy are to provide him with a ball he can chase around the yard or create some sort of climbing opportunities for him. Just make sure whatever you build isn't too close to an outside wall, or you may be chasing your goat down the street.

Not too surprisingly, goats can develop digestive problems if they eat the wrong thing. Make sure your veterinarian knows a little something about caprine care, or is willing to learn.

The best way to keep a goat entertained is to have two goats. Goats are herd animals, and if they don't have another goat around, it will fall to you to entertain your lone goat, which can become a full-time job. You will find yourself with a bleating shadow that follows you around the yard, then stands at the back door, bleating loudly, until you pay more attention to him.

Routine care includes regular brushing and hoof trims, which give you an opportunity to give your pet some extra attention, as well as ensuring that his coat and hooves are in good shape.

Before adopting a goat, do your homework. Check with your city government to determine whether goats are legal as in-town pets. Visit local breeders and ask their opinion of goats as backyard pets.

(Guest contributor Julie Mancini has shared her life with a variety of companion animals, from a blue budgie named Charlie to her current companion, a black lionhead bunny named Bella. She has written about animal topics for 29 years.)

Q&A

The best chews

have some give

Q: Are cow hooves safe for dogs to chew on? My dogs love them and eat them down until nothing is left. Is that OK? -- via email

A: The search for the perfect canine chew toy is a never-ending quest for dog owners. Chewing is a natural behavior for dogs, one that they find both entertaining and stress-relieving. Chewing also helps to keep teeth clean. For puppies, chewing helps to relieve the discomfort of teething.

A good chew toy is safe, interesting to the dog and holds up to aggressive chewing -- at least for a while. Pet product manufacturers have come up with all kinds of chew toy options, from rope bones to tough rubber toys such as Kongs to the cow hooves that you mention.

I’m not a big fan of cow hooves (and similar items such as antlers, sterilized bones and hard plastic or nylon chews) and here’s why: These items are excessively hard, and it’s not unusual for a dog to break a tooth chewing on them. That’s painful to the dog, and it’s painful to your wallet because a broken tooth needs to be extracted. If a broken tooth goes uncared for, it can become abscessed.

Hard chews such as cow hooves can break into sharp pieces that can injure your dog’s mouth or cause internal injury as they pass through the body. Dogs can also choke on small pieces of hoof. And like any animal product, cow hooves can be contaminated with salmonella and E. coli bacteria, so it’s essential to wash your hands thoroughly after handling these items.

“Chewse” toys with some flexibility to them. They should be large enough that they don’t fit all the way into a dog’s mouth.

My rule of paw? Don’t buy any chew toy that you wouldn’t want to be whacked in the knee with. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

Horse protection

rule delayed

-- Horse lovers and animal welfare advocates were dismayed when a regulation proposed by the United States Department of Agriculture to protect gaited horses such as Tennessee walkers from painful soring techniques used to make them step higher was delayed by a presidential memo to halt new rules that had not yet been published in the Federal Register.

Soring is done with chemical irritants such as mustard oil, diesel fuel or kerosene, or mechanical devices such as boots, collars, chains or rollers. The intent is to blister or irritate a horse’s forelegs and cause him to exaggerate an already high-stepping gait.

The USDA proposal would have replaced horse industry inspectors, who could have conflicts of interest, with independent veterinarians or animal health technicians trained and licensed by the USDA. Those inspectors would have no affiliation with horse industry organizations.

It would also have prohibited the use of all action devices, pads and foreign substances used to sore horses. The changes would update the Horse Protection Act, a federal law passed in 1970 that prohibited sored horses from participating in shows, exhibitions, sales or auctions or from being transported to or from any such events.

-- Cats remember what and where they’ve eaten, according to the results of a Japanese study. The finding is significant because it demonstrates that cats have what’s called episodic memory: a unique memory of a specific event. They also found that cats had the same skills as dogs when it came to responding to human gestures, facial expressions and emotions.

-- Healthy treats for dogs include berries, cut-up carrots, snap peas, green beans or apple slices. Mini rice cakes make great dog goodies, too. -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. They are affiliated with Vetstreet.com and are the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Joining them is dog trainer and behavior consultant Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.

Tooth trivia, tongue talk, oral care and more about what goes on in your cat’s mouth

By Kim Campbell Thornton

Andrews McMeel Syndication

A cat’s mouth is a fascinating object of study. It’s a killing machine, filet knife and hairbrush, all in one. Here’s how it works.

Kittens are born without teeth and develop 26 deciduous, or baby, teeth, starting with the incisors and followed by the canines and premolars (molars don’t come in until adulthood). By the time a kitten is 7 months old, 30 adult teeth, including the missing molars, have made an appearance. But how do those teeth work?

Cats aren’t designed to chew. After killing their prey by biting or crushing the neck, spine or throat with their sharp fangs (known as canines), they tear off the meat with their carnassial teeth -- long-bladed molars and premolars -- swallow it (bones, feathers and all) and let their digestive juices go to work. Whatever isn’t digested exits the system, either through the front end -- regurgitation -- or out the rear, as waste in your cat’s litter box.

The rough feline tongue is an equally important player in the cat’s mouth. Its sandpaperlike surface is perfect for scrubbing every bit of food off bones.

If you were to examine a cat’s tongue closely (folks, don’t try this at home), you would find that it’s covered with tiny, hooked barbs facing toward the throat. They’re called filiform papillae, and their job is to help hold prey in place while cats eat.

Cats also employ the tongue in the grooming process. Those same barbs effectively remove dead hairs and debris from the cat’s coat. If your cat has a few hairs out of place, the tongue serves as a convenient built-in hairbrush to, er, lick them into shape.

Notice that your cat licks herself clean right after a meal? Instinct tells her to remove food odors that might excite the interest of predators. If your cat licks you after you get out of the shower, she might be trying to restore your “normal” smell.

One drawback to the tongue’s design is that cats can’t spit things out. Because they face the throat, those hooks direct loosened fur (or anything else the cat swallows) down the hatch. Later it comes back up again in the form of a hairball (known scientifically as a trichobezoar).

The tongue is also an essential factor in how cats drink water. Have you ever thought about that before? Top scientists have, and they used high-speed photography to document the process.

When they drink, cats curve the upper side of their tongue downward. As the tip of the tongue touches the water’s surface, the cat rapidly pulls it upward, bringing a column of water along for the ride. The jaws close and the cat swallows. In the space of a second, cats can lap water four times, and the tongue’s speed during the process has been clocked at 1 meter per second.

You lean in to love on your cat and suddenly you jerk away, appalled. That breath! It smells like he’s been swigging tuna juice straight from the can. That stink can be from periodontal disease or from cat cavities, known as oral resorptive lesions. Veterinarians say that half of all cats have some type of dental disease by the time they are 4 years old. That doesn’t mean it’s normal. A cat whose breath smells is the victim of gum disease or some other health problem.

You know the drill: Brush your cat’s teeth daily, starting in kittenhood, to help prevent infection and nasty brown tartar buildup -- which is not just ugly but also harbors bacteria. A professional dental cleaning under anesthesia will help to keep his teeth white and his mouth healthy.

Q&A

What to do if

bird has diarrhea

Q: My bird’s poop looks more liquid than normal. Do birds get diarrhea? What should I do? -- via email

A: Good question! If your parrot eats seeds, his normal fecal droppings probably are dark-colored with a dry, firm texture. If he eats a lot of greens, they may be softer and more of a green color.

A bird with diarrhea has watery droppings. You may notice that the feathers near his vent are stained, that he seems lethargic or has lost his appetite, or that he looks unusually fluffed up.

Birds can get diarrhea from a number of causes, including stress, a poor diet, intestinal parasites or an infection. A change in diet can cause diarrhea as well. So can fruits or vegetables that haven’t been washed well to remove pesticides. Diarrhea can also be a sign of kidney, liver or pancreatic diseases.

Birds with diarrhea that doesn’t clear up within 24 hours need to be seen by the veterinarian so the problem can be diagnosed. Take your bird in right away if you see blood in the droppings or your bird is straining or seems to have abdominal pain. Otherwise, keep him warm and give him fluids to help him stay hydrated until he can be examined. You’ll need to take a fecal sample to your veterinarian for analysis. Bring the paper lining his cage so the veterinarian can check several samples.

If you have multiple birds, separate the one with diarrhea from the others. Disinfect the cage and everything in it with boiling water or a bird-safe cleanser. Wash hands thoroughly after handling the cage or the bird so you don’t spread disease. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

Medicated skin

cream kills pets

-- Five dogs have died after accidentally ingesting a topical cream called fluorouracil, prescribed for people with skin cancer. One dog began vomiting and experienced seizures within two hours of puncturing the tube. He died 12 hours later. No cases involving cats have been reported, but the cream is likely toxic to them as well. If your pet is vomiting and having seizures, be sure to let your veterinarian know if anyone in your family uses any type of medicated topical cream. Discard cloths or applicators used to apply the cream in a place inaccessible to pets.

-- Is your Pomeranian losing hair all over his body? He may have a skin condition called alopecia X, also known as black skin disease or elephant skin. The dogs may first lose color in the hair, followed by hair loss over most of the body. Little is known about the cause, but it appears to be more common in males than females and can occur at any age. The skin typically becomes black and thickened. If fur comes back, it is often soft and cottony instead of the normal harsh texture. Sometimes dietary changes or treating for a yeast infection can help.

-- Americans spent nearly $63 billion on pets in 2016, according to statistics gathered by the American Pet Products Association. The APPA’s 2015-2016 national pet owners survey found that 65 percent of U.S. households -- 79.7 million homes -- own a pet. That’s up from 56 percent in 1988, the first year the survey was conducted. Basic annual expenses pet owners face include surgical veterinary visits, routine veterinary visits, food, treats, boarding, grooming and toys. Owners spent the most -- $23 billion -- on food, followed by $15 billion on veterinary care, $14 billion for supplies and over-the-counter medications and $5 billion for boarding and grooming. -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. They are affiliated with Vetstreet.com and are the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Joining them is dog trainer and behavior consultant Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.

Statues and plaques honor dogs, cats and other animals who have contributed to human well-being

By Kim Campbell Thornton

Andrews McMeel Syndication

Remember the story of Greyfriars Bobby, the little Skye terrier who stood watch over his master’s grave in Greyfriars Kirkyard for 14 years? If you visit Scotland’s capital city of Edinburgh, among the sights you’ll see -- if you can get past the hordes of tourists surrounding it -- is a memorial to Bobby, honoring his loyalty and, perhaps by extension, the loyalty of all dogs. The statue is smaller than expected, but it draws crowds, who then overflow to the nearby churchyard where Bobby’s beloved owner, John Gray, lies.

Memorials to the love, loyalty and bravery of dogs, cats and other animals are found ‘round the world. Devotion cast in bronze or sculpted on a wall, they stand as inspiring tributes to animals who have been our companions, guardians, soldiers and helpers. As you travel, keep an eye out for their monuments, and whisper thanks to them for their affection, fidelity, valor and labor. Here are 22 to look for.

A number of memorials honor dogs and other animals for their military service. Dogs have delivered messages, laid telegraph wires, detected mines, dug out bomb victims and served guard or patrol duty. Horses and mules have pulled artillery, transported supplies and carried officers into battle. Other animals who contributed and died in wartime include pigeons, elephants, camels, oxen, cats, canaries and glowworms (which provided light to read maps or orders).

In London, the Animals in War Memorial recognizes all such animals. A curved stone wall, located on the edge of Hyde Park, bears their images. Alongside it are two bronze pack mules, a bronze horse and bronze dog.

"Four pounds of courage." That’s the description of Smoky, a Yorkshire terrier from Australia who helped lay communication lines in the Philippines during World War II. After the war, she entertained hospital patients and children in orphanages with her tricks. Smoky has seven memorials around the world: Brisbane, Australia; Lakewood, Ohio; the AKC Museum of the Dog in St. Louis; Hickham Air Force Base in Hawaii; Ohio Veterinary Medical Association Animal Hall of Fame in Columbus; University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine in Knoxville; and the city of Eastlake, Ohio.

The United States War Dogs Memorial in Holmdel, New Jersey, features a bronze statue of a kneeling Vietnam War soldier and his dog.

The National War Dog Cemetery at Naval Base Guam features the famous Doberman Kurt and pays tribute to the Doberman pinschers and other dogs killed at the Second Battle of Guam in 1944. A replica of the memorial is at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine in Knoxville.

Other war dog memorials are at March Air Force Base in Riverside, California; the National Infantry Museum at Fort Benning, Georgia; the Military Working Dog Teams National Monument at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio; the Marine Corps Memorial Garden at Camp Pendleton in California; and the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Quantico, Virginia.

Visit New York City’s Central Park to see the statue of Balto, the lead sled dog whose team helped to deliver diphtheria serum to snowbound Nome, Alaska, during a deadly epidemic in January 1925.

Feline memorials honor cats primarily for companionship. Trim accompanied Capt. Matthew Flinders on his circumnavigation of Australia, and his statue is in Sydney just behind that of Flinders. Towser the Mouser is recognized with a bronze statue for ridding Glenturret Distillery in Perthshire, Scotland, of 28,899 mice over her lifetime of employment there. Hodge, Samuel Johnson’s cat, is portrayed sitting atop a dictionary near the famed lexicographer’s home in London. The inscription: “A very fine cat indeed.” And who can forget Dick Whittington’s cat, whose mousing prowess legendarily aided the 14th-century thrice-elected mayor’s success. The cat’s statue is located at the foot of London’s Highgate Hill.

Q&A

Cat bites

after petting

Q: My brother’s cat will come over to people purring, so we’ll pet her, and then all of a sudden she bites. -- via Facebook

A: That’s a common complaint of many cat owners. It’s one of the weird things about cats: As much as they love being petted, they can take only so much of it. Too much petting causes them to become overstimulated; that’s when they lash out with tooth or claw.

Some cats give little warning before nailing you. Others give several clear warnings before taking matters into their own jaws (or paws).

Signs that a cat has had enough stroking can be as subtle as a flick of the tail, twitch of the ear or shiver of the skin. The whiskers may rotate forward. When you see these signs, stop immediately.

You can work to increase a cat’s tolerance of petting. Sit down next to her instead of picking her up for petting. Don’t pet her while you’re doing something else that holds your attention, such as watching television; you need to be able to watch her body language so you know when to stop.

Start by petting less sensitive areas of the body: behind the ears, beneath the chin and at the base of the tail (the area where it joins the body). Some cats are easily set off by long strokes down the back, and the belly should be completely off-limits.

Try to gradually pet the cat for longer periods, always stopping just short of the point where she becomes uncomfortable. Giving a treat during the petting party can also help to increase the cat’s enjoyment and toleration of the experience.

Finally, it’s always a good idea to take the cat in for a vet check to make sure nothing physical is causing the behavior. -- Dr. Marty Becker and Mikkel Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

Eyes are window

to canine health

-- A dog’s eyes are more than orbs with which he sees that tennis ball coming. They can offer clues to his well-being. Healthy eyes are bright and shiny. They don’t shed excessive tears, and the whites are really white, not yellow. A yellow tinge to the whites of a dog’s eyes can be a clue to liver damage or other serious illnesses. The lining around your dog’s eyes should be pink, not red or yellowish. Any kind of irritation on or around your dog’s eye is reason for a visit to the veterinarian. Eye injury is an emergency.

-- You can’t really take this cat snowshoeing -- unless he rides in a backpack -- but he is smart and good at learning tricks. Named for his white-tipped paws, the snowshoe was created by crossing American shorthairs and Siamese to achieve a cat with a pointed coat pattern, white markings on the feet and an inverted white V on the face. A snowshoe with perfect markings is rare. The cats come in two color combos: seal point and white, and blue point and white. People-oriented, affectionate and easygoing, Snowshoes get along well with kids as well as other pets, including dogs.

-- Do you talk to your dog in a high-pitched tone of voice, maybe more slowly than you would to a person? In infants, a high pitch and slow tempo are known to attract attention and promote language learning. Turns out that puppies are also responsive to this type of speech. Adult dogs, on the other hand, aren’t any more receptive to it than to normal speech. Researchers found that people tend to use this type of speech anytime they think they won’t be understood, whether they’re communicating with Fido or another person, such as someone from another country. -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. They are affiliated with Vetstreet.com and are the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Joining them is dog trainer and behavior consultant Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.