Wednesday, August 31, 2011

The Goat Bandit Girls

They might have gotten away with it, if it hadn't been for that pesky neighbor. The one who called 911 to report a curious sight; something that seemed out of place for this quiet neighborhood in Mankato, Minnesota: two young girls, in their pajamas, walking down the street in the middle of the night, with a goat.

Apparently, the 911 operator found that a bit odd as well and sent an officer to investigate. (Though in my neighborhood, you might have to through in two chickens and a donkey before it raised anyone's eyebrows.) When police arrived, they found the odd trio just as it was described, and decided to ask a few questions. The girls tried to explain that the goat lived in their closet, and that they routinely took it out for late night walks. Nothing out of the ordinary here . . . just two girls and their goat, out for a midnight stroll. The officer wasn't buying it. He walked the girls home and talked with the parents. Forget about police videos of car thieves or drunks falling over -- I want to see taped footage of how that conversation went down.

As it turns out, the step sisters, ages 6 and 7, had attended a birthday party at the Sibley Park Zoo earlier that day, when they had apparently grown so fond of the goats they decided they would take one of them home and keep it as a pet. (No word on how they smuggled the goat out of the petting zoo.) I must give them props; as a child I surprised my parents with snakes, rescued baby birds that were stashed away in strange places (usually not at the same time), but a goat? That takes ambition.

All things considered, getting caught as they did is probably for the best. Something tells me that a goat in the closet wouldn't have turned out too well in the end. If somehow the trip-trap of hoof prints coming from the bedroom didn't alert mom and dad, trying to explain why you got hungry and ate holes in all your school clothes would have been a dead give away. Although having a goat in your closet might have provided a credible excuses for why you home work got eaten . . . assuming, of course, your teacher bought into the whole goat in your closet story.

1 comment:

  1. I must give them props; as a child I surprised my parents with snakes, rescued baby birds that were stashed away in strange places (usually not at the same time), but a goat? That takes ambition.

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