I purchased Zachary, my pet goat, from a party that raised goats in Thornton, Iowa. He came to live with me as a very young goat. I put him in a building with two cats because I wanted him to get along with them.
We had a dog that was a part miniature lab, a dachshund, and a rat terrier, and her name was Jitters. Jitters and Zachary got along well together. Jitter was a brilliant small dog. She won every prize at a dog show at TSC except for one tip. A puppy won that prize. She would jump into my father’s arms on command, shake hands, and roll over; she loved cats.
My cat Tabatha had her kittens in Jitter’s dog house, and when she left for a while, Jitters was the head babysitter. She watched over those kittens as if they were her offspring. The kittens would come running out of the dog house in the morning, followed by Tabatha and Jitters.
Zachary would jump on our windowsills and look at us while preparing breakfast in the morning. Jitters and Tabatha would be waiting for their fried eggs, oatmeal, and regular morning food. Where one went, they would all go.
When Zach was very young, the two kittens he grew up with the thought, let’s play a trick on the goat. They left him in the cornfield by himself. My Father and I found him in short order as we heard him bleating in the area, and he rode home with us in the pickup. We could not find Zach at one time. He was quick, and he sneaked into our house. We kept calling him outdoors to no avail. We went into our home, and he was standing in the middle of the living room, and luckily, nothing was damaged or soiled.
They would all go out hunting together. Tabatha and Jitters would stay in the ditch and hunt for mice. Zachary would veer off into the cornfield and eat the ear corn left behind by the combine. One time Jitters caught a mouse, and Tabatha got it away from her. Tabatha tried to get her kittens to eat it, but they were too young yet to know what to do with it. Jitters got her mouse back and had her appetizer for the day.
Once they got on the blacktop by my place, a lovely woman herded them back to my site. She got out of her car and said I assume this is where they live I said yes and thanked her. However, she did not herd Tabatha because you can never herd a cat. Tabatha came back all on her own.
Zachary and Tabatha, and Jitters had many fun adventures together. They were beautiful and loving pets. Tabatha lived to be seven years old. Jitters lived to 14 years old. Zachary lived to be 16.3 years old. I am sure they are having fun adventures in heaven. God Bless our beloved pets.
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