Home
Creators
Search Recent Random
Posts
Search DMs Popular Hash Lookup Tags Random
Importer
Import FAQ
Register Favorites Keys Review DMs Logout
Community
Telegram ThePornDude
Home Creators Posts Import Register Favorites Logout

Call for questions: MOUNTAIN GOATS! (Patreon)

Published:
2022-09-01 19:34:16
Imported:
2026-06

Content

Ooooh, mountain goats.Tomorrow I'm chatting with an expert in them -- and she gets to ride around in helicopters and count goats from the sky. What is this life??

Leave your questions below, kiddos! 

Comments

Emily Palin

Why do they crave that salt so much?

Melissa Wise

How the hell do they stand on the side of mountains on 2 inch ledges and don't all plummet to their death?

Frederick Raymond-Coursol

First time question asker: HOW!? how do they stand on such small rocks? I need to know😂

Emma

How do they climb like that?!?

Lydia Mattson

Thoughts on the Crave That Mineral meme

30.004861 cm of fun!

Can you get John Darnielle as a special guest? He's such a fun podcast guest!

Gaelicpearl

Do they have any kind of special brain/physical skills that help them balance and climb the way they do? Thinking about inner ears maybe??

RJ Doidge

Is there ever any crossover with the fainting goats and the mountain goats? I feel this could be disastrous but was the first thing that came to mind…

Aeriel Belk

Not really a question, but I'm from colorado and my favorite prank to pull on visitors was always to tell them that mountain goats are able to walk on such steep mountains because they are born with legs on one side of the body shorter than the other, but that means they can only walk in one direction, they're either left goats or right goats 🤣

Whitney McT

First time question asker: can you drink their milk

Gordee

Do mountain goats cause death from any falling rocks or do people/animals stay away from them?

Abby Grieb

Same question!!! And do they ever fall and get hurt or are they like cats land perfectly fine?

Alyssa Brainard

Seriously, are there magnets in their cute little feets?

corvidthey

How can I become best friends with a mountain goat?

Euan Munro

Do they ever use the pointy end of their horns?

Specs Owl

Are all mountain goats truly wild, or do they descend from feral farm goats? Why is their hair so soft?

Amy C.

Why do their eyes look so dang creeeeeeepy?

Jess Loeffler

How has human expansion affected them? Are they high enough to mostly avoid direct human interaction? (Other than on the Mt Evans highway lol)

Aeriel Belk

I was gonna ask the same thing! I LOVE fainting goats haha

Keenan Dailey

Do we know why their babies are called kids? As a parent, I wonder if they had the word first, and parents started referring to the children as “baby goats.”

Joe Mueller

How common is it for them to get stuck while smashing their skulls together?

Sara Cavagnis

Omg mountain goats! It’s gonna be an amazing episode Do they need/look for salt like regular goats? Why do they do that?

Celia Bell

I’m from Alaska and there were a lot of jokes growing up in my family about the mountain goats purposefully causing rock slides onto the roads below them. Is this a real thing they do, or were my people just goofy?

Between Dumplings

Do they have special hooves that give them grip? It's crazy. Where do they sleep and do other things (yes, I mean sex. They can't possibly do either hanging on to a teeny cliff?!)

Manette Eaton

Are those photos of mountain goats climbing sheer cliffs real or photoshop?

Julia Fisher

What about their bodies enables them to navigate such difficult terrain?

Aeriel Belk

But I do know that was bred into the breed by humans so they have a sacrificial goat they can leave behind to distract predators while the "good" goats escape, I'm not sure in true evolution it would be likely haha

PMunro24

At what age do the baby goats start to climb on cliffs?

Lene Olszeth

Do they defy gravity as soon as they're born, or do they have to learn balance somehow?

Jenna Congdon

Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!!!!! I LOVE GOATS. My question: how on earth do they walk up a cliff that's essentially vertical? Just, how?! Do they ever fall? How are they such ninjas?

Scalebar

The smell! Why do they smell so strong?

Dr. Niki

A story from Dr. Headbutt: I once called a mountain goat person in search of some mountain goat brains for my headbutting project, as one does, only to be informed that they're not actually goats and they don't headbutt either! I was very ashamed that day on my lack of mountain goat knowledge 🤣

Christina Pfaff

First time question asker: When I'm hiking in the mountains and the goats stop to watch me, are they actually judging me for my inferior rock scrambling abilities or am I just projecting?

Elektra

How do they do this? Do they have a higher mortality rate as youngsters due to the sheer danger of the climbing they do? How do parents know their young are ready to climb like they do??

Ale Guerrero

First time q asker here! O M G: YESSS to this ep! Ok my question: I’ve heard from many a hiker and climber friend that mountain goats lick pee to get their necessary salt content, is this true? AND even scarier, I’ve been told that mountain goats in certain popular parks in the PNW (where hikers are always doin their business outside) have come to associate the humans with the pee and have started to chase and / or wait for them at the tops of climbs and peaks. Any of this true? Or totally false? SO fascinating…and terrifying!

Rachel

Mountain goats vs big horned sheep??? Why are goats some places in the US and sheep's in others and sometimes the overlap?? What habitats favor one species over the other?

Lydia Mattson

Not to be gory but have you ever encountered a case where a mountain goat has fallen off a mountain? And was it their fault or were environmental factors responsible

Kelsy Simpson

How much do mountain goats travel? I often see them on mountain ledges but have never seen a mountain goat home. Where do they even live?!

Allison D

Any thoughts on the band The Mountain Goats? If you're familiar with them, do they live up to the name?

Holly Spencer

Have you ever witnessed a mountain goat meet a sticky end during your research...or are they basically indestructible?

Shealyn Wippert

Why do mountain goats hang out where they do? It's rocks that could kill you and not a ton of good eatin'. What's the deal? Where do they sleep???

Paul Smith

Do Mountain Goats in captivity need steep surfaces for their health and well-being? Also, do you like the band The Mountain Goats?

Taylor Wade

What’s the limit on defying gravity? Can they climb upside down???

Bonnie Detwiller

Why are they called goats if they're technically not a goat? Are they guilty of identity theft?

Jess Loeffler

What's a common range size for them to explore? Are the the ultimate climbers just bagging 14er after 14er or do they tend to stay around the same few peaks/areas?

Arthur

Mountain Goats vs Mountain Sheep…besides their horns. What’s the diff?

Ale Guerrero

Ooh another question: Why are their eyes square?!

Kaitlin

I went on a hiking trip in Iceland (insert life changing sigh) and was super jealous of the mountain goats. Why was I trying not to die just walking and breath, and they were basically playing hopscotch on the tiniest piece of lava rock. What, Why, How?!?

Aurora Rogers

Do their bodies have any extra defenses in place to help prevent broken limbs?

Brittney Corrigan

Where do mountain goats go to give birth? How soon do the kids have to be able to scale the sides of cliffs?

Chris Curious

What's the steepest angle they can climb on?

ladyofgoats_

You definitely need to look up pictures of mountain goats going to natural mineral deposits... They climb some crazy stuff to get there!

Jess Loeffler

This one is more for her personally, did she (or anyone she works with) ever have motion sickness issues sitting in a helicopter and looking down and counting? I need Dramamine to watch an imax movie filmed on a helicopter. How do you do it??

Sarah Garcia

How are they so regal & majestic?! My partner and I were hiking in Joshua Tree and a mountain goat was just hanging out around the bend of a narrow trail, sitting up on a rock watching us go by and admire its beauty.

Harper

How do mountain goat kids go from bebe to ultimate ninja goat? How often do they fall? We always see footage of them climbing, but it’s not clear how much has been edited out.

Joseph Wooten

We all know that sometimes thier horns will continue to grow after reaching maturity...but why don't they ever stop even tho it causes problems in the long run like growing into the sides of thier heads or making mobility more difficult. Is there a natural process they go through to tend and care for them so that doesn't happen?

Michael Swords

Why do goats scream? Their "BLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH is hilarious, but what are they calling for?

Filip Strömberg

Are they actually as stubborn as they are portrayed?? And how smart are these wee things?!

Harper

They’re NOT goats?!?!

Adam Weaver

Have mountain goats ever been successfully domesticated?

Matt Ceccato

What is the highest known altitude a mountain goat can successfully live at? Does a thinner atmosphere affect them differently than other animals?

Alex

Since they don't have digits that can grasp onto things... how do they get enough traction to climb, and more importantly, how do they not fall off??

Sheri Berry Bo Berry

First time question asker- why the side of cliffs? Why did they decide to leave their flat land lovin’ brethren and head for the hills? Are they risk takers? Adrenalin junkies? Or were they just tired of stepping in puddles and getting moldy hooves?

Karen Seidler

While hiking in Glacier National Park we came across huge white goats. They were beautiful. Can they be dangerous?

WorldsStrongestCatMom

First time question asker, Mountain goats on the Hoover Dam, what is up with that? Is it just because?

Shelby Reardon

I second this! I think goats are awesome but their eyes make me shudder.

Anthony Hughes

First time asker - Do mountain goats have extra grippy hoofs?

Bálint Novák

What about the craaazy headbutting between males? How are they not getting concussions? What happens with the subdominant ones in such a rivalry?

Natalie Gertz -Young

How do you count them? Just with your eyeballs? Do you use heat signatures? Or something else? If by temperature how do they differ from other animals like deer, moose, elk?

Bethany Goodine

First time question asker here - is it true that one set of legs is shorter than the other side or is that flim flam?

Lindsey

How do they not fall off

Petr Kubik

Were there ever any psychological studies done on what it must feel like to be a "Judas goat" in the Galapagos?

Kieran C.

What's the steepest slope you've seen them scaling or heard of them scaling? What's their limit?

Ashley Bray

How can we recreate safely around mountain goats, for their safety and ours?

Tim Passe

Same question. Do they have a vestibular system that has any resemblance to the human one?

Bex W.

How related are they to the goats we have on farms? Can you drink mountain goat milk?

Dr. Niki

No!! Goat cousins! I felt so stupid for not knowing that... Considering it's supposed to be my expertise

Jesse Hurlburt

What's the evolutionary traits that led to them being so agile and being about to jump around so professionally

Tracy Martini

Do they ever fall? And what keeps them from falling?

Dr. Niki

Mountain goats don't headbutt! See the Bovine Neuropathology episode ;)

Sydonie S.

Very excited for this! Do mountain goats have many natural predators?

Jesse Hurlburt

How good is their eyesight? I know regular goats have an hourglass shaped pupils, what about the mountain goat?

Ren

Do they crave that mineral!?!

Ana

Evolutionarily speaking, when did domestic goats split off from mountain goats? Was it entirely due to human intervention?

Tim Passe

What is the evolutionary advantage? Did they just run up a hill from a predator one day and go “hey, this is way easier than using our horns”?

Jessi Jordan

How closely related are wild mountain goats to their domesticated relatives we raise for meat/dairy?

Bees knees

Do we have any populations that have genetic bottlenecks? I think there may be some very isolated populations that don't get very much fresh blood . . .

Stephanie Coombes

I live near a wildlife preserve in northern Canada and the mountain goats babies are the cutest animals I have ever seen. Why do they all give off such an impressive presence??

Marron Brown

How the heck do they consume adequate nutrition in such rugged terrain?

Billie Nelsen

WHAT is going on with their hoof-toes!

kexi

Why do they look like they want to shove me off the path? Do they? And also: how???????? How do they not fall off? How do they find enough to eat? How do the babys learn to navigate that territory?

Matt Thompson

What is the sharpest angle they can walk across? There is a picture of them walking across this dam in Italy that looks like it is at an 80 degrees angle

Claire Norrell

How close to vertical can they climb? Are they soft? They look so fluffy. Also, how many John Darnielle jokes does the Ologist have to field every day? (ftqa)

Handrea

How do they literally defy gravity?

catherine saxbe

What makes them so much better at balancing than other four legged creatures? Do many baby goats fall to their deaths when learning to balance?

Deacon Raid

Goats in the Olympic mountains in Washington. They are introduced? What is their deal?

Sydonie S.

Have humans use their wool for anything?

Mauri Pelto

The USFS service asked us to inventory goats around Mount Baker each year while we work on glaciers, now 30 years later we have a good record that illustrates the reduced snowpack has helped them, and despte greater numbers their foraging style not leading to problems for the alpine vegetation.

Chris Baker

First time question asker. They are very impressive climbers. Has anyone ever measured what rock climbing grade they are capable of climbing?

Kelly Pal

Are baby mountain goats able to climb the steep cliffs right away or do they have to be a couple weeks old first?

Julia Vollmer

1. I lived on Maui and there were many wild goats that lived on the side of the volcano, but moved down to the shore everyday. What would be a benefit of them coming down lava fields to the beach? 2. Also, what allows them to maintain their balance in places with questionable footing? Is there something physiologically that allows them to alter their center of gravity? 3. What type of vocalization was the goat demonstrating in the viral cover of Taylor Swift's "I Knew You Were Trouble," and what does that vocalization signify? If fit with the song well, but I felt like the goat was trying to express something!

Dr. Niki

Goats don't have ever-growing teeth!

Earl of Greymalkin

1) How much mineral could a mountain goat crave if a mountain goat could crave that mineral? 2) How do they grip anything? Do they ever fall off the mountain? How do lil goats learn to not fall off? Do lil goats have a training regimen? 3) What do they eat? How much do they have to range about to get enough food? 4) Do mountain goats sound different from other goats? How much do they use vocalizations to communicate with each other? Do they yodel at each other in the mountains? 5) What are goat herd social structures like? How do different groups mix with each other (or not)? Do they have gang wars? 6) Can you boop them or will you get knocked off the mountain? 7) What is this story about mountain goats introduced into Washington's Olympic mountains and eventually being evicted for being nuisances? Why were there introduced in the first place and what went into relocating them? 8) What do mountain goat populations tell you about the health of the ecosystem? 9) Do helicopters startle the goats? Do you have to sneak up on them from the sky? Do you get to see them interacting with any other animals up there? 10) When mountain goats poop, does it roll down the mountain?? Do they use excrement to mark territory? 11) What other animals are scaling these kinds of inclines if any? Are there birds nesting on these surfaces at all?

Rachel Katz

What can you tell us about queer goats?

Deacon Raid

Aren’t they not “true goats” in that they aren’t in the Capra genus? Who are their closest relatives? Muskox? Do mountain goats smell bad???

Naomi Jane

My mum told me and my siblings that mountain goats and sheep have two legs shorter than the others on one side. We believed her until reciting this fact in our first weeks at university, whereupon we were laughed at. Is there ANY factual basis to this, or has our mother outright trolled us?!

ConnieConnieBoBonnie

I heard that mountain goats are not really goats, but more like goat-antelopes. If you could rename them something that better described what they actually are, what would you call them?

Mark Hewlette

I think I've only seen them at a fairly high altitude. What is their normal altitude and how high can they go? Are they related to the mountain goats you see in the Andes? Are there other Mountain goats around the world?

Jodi Pierce

What is the highest elevation a mountain goat has ever been recorded? How many days after birth do they begin climbing? Are there populations of Mountain Goats all over the world? If so are the all genetically related ie separated because of Pangaea breaking up or did some species develop separately?

Elizabeth Rich

What makes mountain goats special/ different from "regular" goats? Do mountain goats "scream" the same as regular goats? Lastly, who is the real G.O.A.T????? (My bet is that it's dadward)

Mallory Skinner

Is it true that goats will eat anything, even non-food items?

Cate Muenker

Are they really goats? Are they related to farm goats? Why do they like living on rocky cliffs on only 8 toes and without a long tail for balance? And is their wool used to make clothing?

Larissa

Do they ever fall? If not why? How?

andrewsdoppelganger

Living in the Canadian Rockies I've seen mountain goats in the middle of the road eating asphalt. I'm fairly certain we don't salt the roads in the winter so as to not attract wildlife. I'm so confused, why are they doing this?

Matt Jolliff

Are mountain goats technically goats?!

Marie

Gotta ask, why?! I mean which reasources is worth the effort ot the extreme climb.

John Casey

I've seen videos of mountain goats clinging to seemingly impossible little bits of rock on cliff faces. How can they manage to get enough traction to do that?

Ali Vessels

Are mountain goats and bighorn sheep related at all?

Anna Vilnīte

How do the baby goats learn climbing? Is it something they are just born knowing how to do or is there a learning process and if yes, how does it work?

Christine Parker-Graham

Glacier goggles!! Do mountain goats have any eye adaptation to help prevent snow blindness? So. Much. UV.

Beth Kennedy

How much do mountain goats move between different elevations and how do they adjust to differences in air pressure and oxygen levels?

Nico Price

Could a mountain goat climb a particularly knobby tree? Would they?? If so I’d like to know why we don’t have more centaurs.

Alice Rubin

how is climate change affecting mountain goats?

Alice Rubin

do mountain goats dream?

Caylie Evans

How is human development altering their environment? Are hikers a danger to them? Do they avoid commonly used human trails or happily coexist?

SueG

Why do goat eyes have horizontal pupils?

Collenne

Another first time question asker here! Do they have any anatomical adaptations that enhance their ability to live at altitude?

Buhbrie

Why do they sound like Will Ferrell when they yell?? And why do they freeze and fall over when startled? There's a study showing that goats look to humans for help when they can't solve a problem, what does that say about their intelligence?

Fiorelily

Hi allie, long time listener, first time questioner. We know why ungulates have horizontal peepers, but for mountain goats that climb steep mountain sides, what evolutionary use are they? A mountain lion isn't going to come zooming over on a horizontal plane, so what good are they?

Riikka Puttonen

Not really a question but mountain goats kinda look like humans wearing a goat suit.

Andy Cole

Anybody else excited that Alie is talking to John Darnielle??

Emma Sherwood

Can you talk about how / why their climbing ability evolved? I also saw some goats climbing trees - are they related? Did tree climbing goats or mountain climbing goats evolve first?

Daniel Fox

Which is the better Alpinist; Mountain goat, or Alex Honnold?

Aven

They always walk those crazy paths and cliff faces. Do they ever slip and fall off? Or do they just never fall?

Brandi Harbaugh

Is it true that mountain goats age can be counted like a tree based on the rings on their horns? Also can we discuss the the golden fairy tale classic movie about the book “three billy goats gruff”. That was the stuff of children terrors in terms of animation… or I am just a scaredy-cat.

Claire Mendenhall

Long time listener, first time questioner - How on earth do they climb the side of steep cliffs and mountain sides?

Ashley Oki

Why the beard??? And why does it look so good??

Julie Brigidi

Do mountain goat does typically birth 1 or 2 kids. How long until the kids are weaned? And how the hell do they keep up with the mom?

Ashley Oki

Are mountain goats the same as domesticated animal? Was the domesticated animal turned wild or vice versa?

Ashley Oki

Are there any benefits to goat milk/products compared to cows milk?

Ted Hamilton

The eyes. Please explain the eyes so I can not have nightmares anymore.

Morgan Casey

Are they playful? For some reason they give me the impression that they like to party.

Allie Brown

First timer and I have a ton of questions since these are some of my fave animals: - how is increased human outdoor recreation and the subsequent peeing of those humans in lots of places changing mountain goat distribution? Why do the goats want that pee salt so much? - why do they leave their fur everywhere? Are they just that itchy?? Is it a territory thing? - Is the relocation of goats from areas they are invasive just a positive PR thing? (Ex. From the Olympic forest to the North Cascades) I heard the ones they don’t capture are euthanized. Why spend the billions of dollars to relocate a few? Are there genetic diversity reasons for this? How do they choose which goats to relocate? - Are the mountain goats moving higher in elevation (like the pikas are) as climate change keeps messing with our earth? - How do they change the landscape they live in? Do those changes help or hurt any other alpine animals and plants? - Why are they sometimes in big herds of ten or more and other times riding solo? - Why is their fur so coarse? - Why are they so effing cool?

Colleen Sellwood

Why do goats inhabit the Valley of the rocks in North Devon, England? So random

Morgan Casey

What are the biggest differences between mountain goats and mountain-dwelling sheep?

Miranda Buckley

Has she worked with indigenous communities on historical population estimates and/or traditional caretaking of cloven stink-floofers (alternatively: rock-hoppy stab-noggin) populations?

Evan Foster

I can always see mountain goats a mountain away due to their white coats in the summer. Why don't they change fur color during summer months to blend in more, like other alpine/arctic species? Did they ever have a historical predator that they would have to worry about?

Joanne Frankland

Why do they eat clothes? Or is that just petting zoo goats?

Laura Kinney

Did the ologist take part in the mountain goat relocation project in Washington state? Why would it make a difference if the goats were in the Cascade range vs the Olympic range? Alie, please look up and describe how the goats were transported for this project because it’s fucking hilarious 😂

Mary Simpson

What are the predators that Mountain Goats have to deal with?

Ryano

Long-time listener, Dadward. If you read this... sending you the psychic goodness of easing heartache to you, your sisters and Momward. Why the eff are some goats fearless and others literally paralyzed by fear? Is it rooted in the same level of "intelligence" goats seem to possess...or are otherwise cursed with? Thank you, goatologist!

Bryant Bainbridge

What is with the crazy rectangular pupils on Mountain Goats? What do they see that we do not?

WiGeekMom

How do I convince my city council to let me get mountain goats to clear the scrub from my limestone retaining wall?

Angela Clark

How did they teach them to hold instruments and play indie folk music?

Amy Narimatsu

I've heard one of the reasons goats can eat anything is because they'll eat a plant from the bottom up-is that true? What is their digestive system like?

Skylar P.

Do their weird mountain feet give them any trouble when walking on flat land?

Skylar P.

Also, what’s her favorite song by the Mountain Goats, and why is it “This Year”?

Hope

Physiologically, why can they walk straight up inclines like that? Do they ever fall?

Erik K

How often do mountain goats get stuck if ever?

Nancy Kay Clark

I, too, want to know more about the eyes! Do they have a Corpora Nigra, like a horse, but sideways? Do they have a Tapetum Lucidum? Also, how many stomachs do goats have? How long can they go without water? Do they have any vestigial structures in their anatomy?

Erik K

Why are mountain goats on the hunt for salt so much. Where do they get it normally. Because where I was backpacking in British Columbia the mountain goats follow you around hoping they can drink your urine. I know strange.

Bálint Novák

Wow, thanks @Niki Acki! :D Sounds like I need to revisit that episode.

Jim Bartholomew

Goats are often portrayed as harbingers of evil or as a symbol of satan. There has to be a reason for this, any guess?

Specs Owl

Why is Jon Wurster's #mynewworstfriend the best thing on the internet? And my mum wants to know, where do they sleep, and how long does it take for the kids to learn how to climb the steep hillsides?

Sarah king

What’s the steepest slope a mountain goat can climb?

Danae DeJournett

I love goats!!! My question: is there anything about their physiology that makes them medically useful to humans, like how bees or sharks might be good for studying cancer treatments. So far as I know, they’re just really cute lawn mowers. Also, how long does it take for goats to graze down, say, an acre? ALSO also, why do they have beards? That questions might be the most important.

Jack Sparks

I've been informed that mountain goats are not actually goats and so I guess, what is a goat and why are mountain goats not that? Also do you like that band?

Nicole Losurdo

I know we chatted a little about them in the concussion episode, but do we know if mountain goats have extra protection for their brains because of their head butting behavior? Why the hell would they evolve a behavior that could damage one of the most vital organs in their body!?

Isabelle Brooks

Can these goats have more than two horns?

BeckytheSassySeagrassScientist

Why do their eyes look like that? And why us it similar to cuttlefish?? How the heck did THAT evolve the same way?

BeckytheSassySeagrassScientist

So goats are famously indiscriminate grazers who I'm sure would eat rocks given the chance. Do they shape their landscape? I bet there's not much veg up on those crazy craggy cliffy arid mountain tops. Do they just defoliate everything? Can they be an ecological nuisance species?

Morgan

Why are they so fluffy and cuddly looking when the only ones I've met have wanted to gore me with their horns? I work at a zoo and all 3 mountain goats we've had have been super mean

William Andrews

How many different species of goats/sheep are there and how are they classified? Are sheep a subset of goats or vice versa? Can we get more goats to do brush clearance for fire protection please?

TheMushy

Can we talk about their eyes? How do goat eyes work, and why are the pupils horizontal? Does the shape benefit them and seeing their steap terrain?

Elena Horne

Is there anything that can be done for goats in the wild who are dependent on humans for food or overly friendly with humans? Asking as a resident of the Canadian Rockies who’s tired of seeing tourists feed “the little deer”.

The Wizard Seraphim

How solitary are they? What do they eat? How do they balance??

Jamie Quinn

How to these creatures that can weigh as much as me (or heavier) scale cliff faces on tiny ledges when I can’t balance on the sidewalk curb 9/10 times?

Kate E

What is the highest altitude they can climb to? How do they sleep? Are they facing challenges due to human encroachment on their environment and/or climate change? Does a pregnant goat have to carefully find a level area to give birth on so the baby goat doesn’t immediately fall off a cliff?

Amelia Heins

Hoof care.. How do they keep them in shape for tip-tapping across mountains? Do they have to file them down somehow like cats and their claws?

Heathcliff the Cat

Do they get vertigo? I get dizzy just from looking over a 3rd floor balcony. If I were a mountain goat, I wouldn’t live very long at all because I would just get woozy and fall off a mountain side.

Nathan-Andrew

What do they eat up there, above 13,500 feet?! I swear there was nothing growing - nothing! But there they were, hopping merrily about, while I was laboriously dragging my miserable form up the mountain. The show-off bastards.

Sara Nelson

What’s with the expression “goat rodeo”?

Jaclyn Martin

How are goats able to find areas that we have urinated or left sweat on? Do they have a strong sense of smell? While hiking in areas with goats, I know that you should pee on rocks otherwise the goats will dig at the dirt for the salts.

Jaclyn Martin

It totally is hilarious. I remember watching one of those videos on the bus and laughing so hard I began to cry. The person in the seat in front of me turned around to see if I was ok.

Kristi Hager

This! Also, I love your descriptions

Kim Josund

Ask her about the mountain goat relocation project in WA Olympic National Park -- pretty fun to see those goats flown out by helicopters. Wondering how the animals handled that (I think they were tranquilized?) and how well relocation went.

Kristi Hager

What sort of population count or behavior differences do you see when studying via helicopter vs. on foot? Also, has anyone lost an item during studies by not securing it in the helicopter? (I always picture big ones with doors on both sides)

Myra Poundstone

I'm so excited for this one! Why are their pupils so weird? I half thought this was only in movies until I saw one up close recently. The goat itself was soooo cute but the eyes are actually a bit offputting. Also, do they mind being kept in pens? In the wild they have so much space, but I saw some in a zoo recently and couldn't help thinking they must feel a bit confined.

Bridget White

What's the most interesting goat trail you've seen?

Chandler Witherington

I am sure someone has asked this but how on earth do they climb sheer cliff faces with HOOVES?? Also do they ever fall off the cliffs or are they always totally accurate in their footing?

Hayden Sloan

Related: drinking water? Can they go for a long time without drinking?

Hayden Sloan

How do you feel about the phrase "The GOAT"?

Imogen Lovell

First time question asker! I have read that mountain goats will fight all kinds of predators including grizzly bears. How come they have evolved to be so aggressive instead of using their mountain climbing skills to escape from threats?

Hannah Gilman

** do they compartmentalize their fear center in their brain? Like they can scale an upright cliff but will haul ass if they feel threatened? Like how!? Also. Am so stoked for this episode! I love in Washington state and see these amazing animals all the time!

Shelby Mills

What makes them able to balance on precarious ledges and NOT fall?

Shelby Mills

What did Yellowstone kill down the population a few years ago? Who is their natural predator(s)?

Quincey Robisheaux

What's something you wish everyone knew about mountain goats?

Laura Jordens-Harris

Can they balance on insanely narrow paths from birth or is it a skill they acquire?

Average_pi

What are their lungs like since they are very active but also in the mountains. Also, do they have beards?

Katie King

Are there any mountain goat species that produce wool that people use for spinning, knitting, etc?

Dynamic Duchess Cosplay

Are there any instances of mountain goats yeeting climbers/tourists off of a mountain? If so, how common is it? First time question asker :)

Marly

Do goats sleep standing up? Where do they sleep?

Rachel .B

What adaptations relate to mountain goats incredible balance? Do they rely on mechanisms in the inner ear like humans? Is their inner ear more advanced than ours?

Justine Doll

Why are baby goats so rambunctious?

taylor paschall

I heard on a hike that you only really see females. Where do the males live?

Sarah Meaden

How do mountain goats generally adapt to lower altitude living? I live in the PNW and most of our zoos or animal parks have mountain goats among their residents. Some have been brought in from the wild though I'm sure most are born in captivity. Do the goats need to change anything to live lower or are they just shocked at the lack of wind, bounty of plants, and higher temperatures?

Emmalee Jones

Three questions: 1. Is there anything particularly interesting or unique about their circulatory/respiratory/renal/immune systems? 2. Do they hold any world records? Highest goat etc lol 3. I read that one of the seduction techniques of a male mountain goat is - 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴 - staring. Wut? Also I just want to add that these singular genus/family episodes are my fav, thank you and good work :)

Amy Graham

There are a lot of mountain goats where I live. And I’ve seen documentaries. But I still don’t understand: how in the heck do they climb/walk on such narrow rock ledges?! They do NOT look like they’d be nimble.

R P Bergmann

How the heck do they survive head butts

Karla Maria Pires

Hooowwww?!?!? How are they able to stand on top of such small surfaces?!?!?! Is it the legs, the feet, the force? How?!?!

Stephanie Vaughn

I am wondering why, in the Northwest why mountain goats are on every major glacier except mt Hood in Oregon?

Meg W

What's up with their long pupils? What is their vision like? Does it help them with climbing? Also, why pellety poops? Also, also, do they all have horns? When do they get or loose horns? If a horn breaks does it come back? Are they hollow? PS I loooooove this podcast

Karla Maria Pires

Oh! I have another one: their eyes...are...so...weeeiiirrrddd! What's the evolutionary advantage of that?

Aubrey Dunn

I have 2 questions. What’s up with their eyes? And how can they climb mountains that literally go straight up?

Reiley Allison

Opinions on goat yoga and the use of goats as personal pets? Is it fine to socialize in this manner with all kinds of goats? Or should we just let them be goats? Also what is their natural habitat and range?

Amber McIntyre

Not a hunter, but I understand that in order to hunt a mountain goat, you must enter a lottery that is highly competitive and chances of ever getting a license are slim. Why is hunting them so coveted? Also circle of life here- how do pregnant mountain goats give birth? Do they carry about as normal going up and down mountains, or do stay/come off the mountain more? Do they give birth up there?

OtterApocalypse

Is there a market for mountain goat milk? How high is the premium for some of that delicious mountain goat teat squirt turned into cheesy deliciousness?

BENJAMIN

Do the mountain goats have and raise their young on the mountains!? Or somewhere less extreme?

Dr Laura M Smith

I read that mountain goats have been introduced in certain areas, requiring them to be relocated later on. Given that they are so territorial, is relocation a suitable option to manage goats in these places? What is generally involved in doing goat management / conservation?

Jessica C

Why did goats evolve to live on mountains? Why not just be in a nice flat field?

Brent Maphis

What are mountain goats' relationship with Baphomet?

Kari Klotzbach

Do they have the most amazing inner ear system that allows them to balance that way?

Lani Bouwer

How is their balance so amazing?!

Jarred Abrahams

What is it about their feet that gives them such good grip?

Ginja Ninja LB

Where are they most prominent in the US? I've only seen them from waaaaaaaaay below in the mountains of Alaska

Bronwin

Do they really always come prepared?

Heather Moore

Do mountain goats get cramps? Watching them climb cliff faces makes me hurt...

Heather Moore

Do mountain goats have depth perception? How does that impact their navigation on rocky faces?

Matt Palmquist

Can mountain goats get nutrients from glacial melt? I was watching some in the Oregon Cascades this week and they were right next to a cirque lake full of glacial flour.

Riley J

Do they ever fall? If so, is it known how many goats die from falling?

Curious Cat

First time question asker here: just how are their feet structured to allow them to stand on basically nothing on almost vertical cliffs? Or are they actually floating and they're just pretending to stand to not alarm us humans?

Jeanette Moss McCurdy

Hello, first time question asker and Ologies superfan here. Why are goat pupils rectangle? I assume it is proof they are from another planet.

Leanna Shuster

How, just how, do they manage to stand on and climb through practically vertical rock faces??? Is it magic....must be magic, right?!

Saskia Dunn

Can mountain goats ever be afraid of heights? Is there something in the dna that stops them? Can I bottle it and use it on myself?

Tammie Wong

Why do they have such an awesome scream?

Celena Hsiung

I just moved from the mountain west to the east coast--do we have mountain goats on the east coast? Please say yes

Jackie

What are the adaptations that allow them to jump around on cliff faces?

Karlie V

Do they have incredible limbic systems?

Jackie

How soon after being born are they cliff-competent?

ALopez

Are nanny goats a different species? Also, why are they called nanny goats?

Phylicia Chandler

First time question asker!! Are their hooves specially structured for rocks? Do they ever fall?

Hannah Matousek

How many continents are mountain goats found on?

Amanda Smith

FTQA: Do mountain goats lose the ability to climb while pregnant?

Rachel Tullius

Does she listen to the band the Mountain Goats while counting goats?

Rebekah Fitchett

How do they balance on teeny-tiny little ledges?!?

Queen Jean

What is your most memorable goatly encounter? Location, setting, observaton of goatly prowess?

Joshua S.

are the goats from Brother Bear an accurate representation of mountain goats?

Rachel

My husband says that they really like salt and if you're hiking around them and pee they will try to drink your pee for the salt content and sometimes it gets a little dangerous IS THIS TRUE??

GreenBriar

FTQA: Do they slip and fall ever?

Celeste

Are they able to climb upcliff faces as if they're hooves had frog-like adherence? How do they in the words of wicked the musical, defy gravity?

Celeste

Also do all goats sound more or less the same in terms of bleating? Would all goata fit very well into the Taylor Swift I" knew you were trouble" goat scream dub?

Celeste

Could you milk a mountain goat? And if so, should you? And then maybe would you?

Celeste

Lastly, shameless plug for Jenny by the Mountain Goats

Christa Avampato

What makes them want to climb out onto those tiny ledges? Are they just daredevils?

Miranda Panda

Are mountain goats actually sheep?

Lora Donnelly

How do they turn around on steep cliffs? Do they really do a headstand?

Lora Donnelly

Do they like songs by The Mountain Goats?

Lillian Wangler

FTQA: How do I increase my odds of seeing a mountain goat while driving through or camping in the Rocky Mountains? Also, if you're not familiar with Generation Wild's mascot, Wilder, you gotta Google him.

Sleepy John

the scarity of shaving cream about 12,000 feet?

Lauren Theis

Why do they have such weird Kermit eyes? What’s going on there

Quinn West

What is the theory behind why they evolved to climb? To evade predators? To get food?? Or just for shits and giggles?

Quinn West

Omg I love goat eyes I hope they expand upon that but I want the ologies to go into that 👀

Quinn West

(More of a general goat question) How do I tell a goat I love them? Do they like pets? Food? Or just to be left tf alone?

Wells Howe

Why in tarnation are they being shot from helicopters in Grand Teton National Park!? Is it really their fault that Europeans introduced them to the American West as a trophy hunting animal!???

Purple4Parasites

I'm a vet tech. I work with all sorts of animals. Why are goats (of all types) the absolute best animals on the planet?? xD

Gina Maday

Are their hooves split? On one whole big toenail?

Gina Maday

Yesssss!! Is there EVER a documented case of mountain goat concussions?!?!

Kyriaki Karalis

Goat eyes are SO strange, I'm v. curious about this too!

Damon LeMaster

How is it that they can scale near vertical mountains with hooves??

Alaina Cruson

Do they help each other climb cliffs and things?

Andrea Crain

There's a Swedish restaurant in Door County, Wisconsin that keeps goats on its grassy roof. Do you think the goats like living on a restaurant roof or is that goat abuse?

Andrea Crain

I'm assuming she ONLY listens to the Mountain Goats. :)

Emma Doyle

I heard their getting pneumonia from livestock, do they often interact with domestic goats/sheep?

Shelby Smith

Do mountain goats have best friends? What's the difference between mountain goats and goat goats? Why are their eyes like that?

Yvana Alvarez

What's the highest a mountain goat can go up a mountain with having problems with lack of Oxygen like humans? Or do they not have that problem? Are mountain goat lungs just built different?

Charlotte C

Can mountain goats offer advice to bipedal human friends on improving nimbleness and grace when moving about? Asking for a very clumsy friend.

Maisie Lopez

follow up: if they slip, can they catch themselves or do they take an unavoidable tumble?

Pickles

Why did mountain goats get moved to Olympic National Park, and how was the decision made to start removing them from the park.