The previous year saw a hoard of goats took advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic and a quieter Welsh seaside town and invaded the neighborhood. This attack of goats earned them 15 minutes of fame in the form of viral video. However, it wasn’t like that their attack was over. They came back with more force. The goats are all over the town in greater numbers than compared to their last attack than ever after skipping their annual dose of contraception due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
These Kashmiri goats live in the rocky landscape of Great Orme along the coast of Wales. However, they are now in the habit of visiting the Llandudno in the winter and spring months, searching for food. As per the Conwy Count Borough Council, the goats were primarily a gift to a local lord from Queen Victoria. The story says that 100 years ago, these goats managed and escaped the state and settled peacefully in the wild.
The year 2000 saw these Kashmiri goats reaching an approximate number of more than 200 goats. Although their relationship with the nearby town inhabitants has been harmonious, still later, their increase in number starts to light up a concern. The nearby community then thought of reducing their population by dispersing the goats to other places and sites in the UK and deciding to give them birth control vaccines for better effects.
Everything was running smoothly. Only when the pandemic struck, the goats made full use of the empty town, where most were confined to their homes, goats decided to do the opposite.
One year on, spring is just starting to peek its head above the clouds, and the goats have returned to the town, stated BBC News. It’s suspected that there may be more than ever, as the goat population may see a kid-boom since they missed last year’s contraceptive jab.
“We do try and control the numbers on the Great Orme, and we do that through a contraception program. That involves rounding them all up. It takes some effort – lots of volunteers get together to do it and to look at the female goats,” Cllr Louise Emery, from Conwy County Borough Council, told ITV News. “But obviously, last summer, there was no way we could do that, so they have been breeding like goats.”
The future of the goat’s return is unknown. However, it is hoped that the herd would slowly move away from the town as green are back to its natural pastures, and social distancing is loosened in the town.
