Farm Idioms...

A while back friend Marion suggested I write a blog about expressions that are commonly used in the English language, that take on a new, and MUCH more clear meaning when one lives with animals/livestock.

It was a good idea, but I promptly forgot about it. Until today, when she reminded me, and I decided I'd tackle the project.  It's a bit too long to do in one go, so, dear readers, please expect an uptick in blog posts while I work through some of these ideas with you. 

Let's start with the expression, "smells like a goat."  This is a term I have heard and used all my life. It was easy to assume that goats must smell really BAAAD!  Then I got a goat. A lovely mama goat, with her three day old kid.  I assumed they would smell unpleasant, and was happily surprised when they did not. Mama goat smelled like clean, sweet, farm animal.  Her breath, if she burped, was enough to peel paint, but overall she smelled kind of nice.  And her kid smelled like hay and shavings and green grass and sweetness.  I was confused why people used the term, "smells like a goat." 

Then we bought a buck.  It was a cold October day when we went to pick him up. We didn't have a trailer, so we popped him in the back seat of our pick up truck.  I had been around him in the barn, and did  not detect an unpleasant aroma, though I had learned that bucks smelled awful.  We got him into the truck, and I hopped into the passengers seat. I inhaled.  All was well. I looked at my husband and said, "That's not so bad." He turned to me, his eyes watering, face red.  "I feel like I've been maced."  It took a second, and then the smell hit me.  It was blinding.  We drove home with the heat blasting and the windows down.  I had a headache for hours after, all because the buck smelled so incredibly bad.

Male goats go through what is called, "rut."  Normally this is from fall till late winter, and it means the goat is ready to breed.  The surge of hormones makes them do funny things.  They urinate on their legs, beard and face.  Their urine is loaded with "fragrant" sex hormones, designed to entice female goats to feel romantic. Trust me when I tell you, this is not the scent of Old Spice. The above photo is Yasker.  An adorable little Saanen buck that visited us last fall. That discolored hair on his face?  Soaked in urine. The scent is indescribable. It's enough to make you understand, on a visceral level, what, "smells like a goat," really means.