Mystery Goats Munch Their Way Through Town

FALLS VILLAGE — Goats have been roaming around Falls Village but nobody knows where they’ve come from or to whom they belong. Town Clerk Mary Palmer said she received a call just before Christmas from Mark Burdick, an agriculture education teacher at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, reporting there were three goats in the area near the regional superintendent’s office. But by the time Palmer and her son, animal control officer Luke Mittaud, arrived, the animals had vanished.

The goats have been spotted weekly and are often seen in a field off Warren Turnpike Road, just past the Region One Pupil Services building. On Monday, Palmer received another call reporting a sighting in the same location.

"They’ve been seen once a week," Palmer said. "Often they get near people’s houses but their dogs usually scare them away."

There are two black goats and a brown goat that wears a collar with no tags. The animals are about the size of a golden retriever.

"I’ve checked with all the usual suspects, but none of them are missing any goats," Palmer said, adding that she has confirmed that the animals do not belong to the high school or Camp Isabella Freedman.

Anyone with any information on the goats should contact Palmer at 860-824-0707 or Mittaud at 860-671-1811.