Meet Mo

This is our angora goat Mo (short for Lawnmower).  I wish you could see his eyes because he has such a soulful gaze.  Because goat's pupils are rectangular, some people refer to them as devil's eyes.  There is absolutely no devil in this goat.  He is very docile, calm and so serene.   We got him last year, the weekend after Chris found out that he would have to mow all the grass he sowed in the back yard!  I had no experience of goats, and I was rather intimidated by his size, but he turned out to be the dearest, sweetest pet you could imagine.  From the first day we brought him home, he has been eating out of our hands.  He loves to have his head rubbed.  He talks to us!  He comes up to the gate to see me when me pull into the driveway.  He gets along great with our dogs; seeing the three of them line up for apple and carrot treats is hilarious.  I had not expected to love this goat so much. 

Mo spends part of his time at our warehouse, keeping the yard there in check.  Folks in the neighborhood surrounding the warehouse love him, too.  They talk to him, and stop their cars to inquire about him.  They bring him treats.  Some little kids even tried (unsuccessfully) to feed him chicken and biscuits.  One lady  wrote him a love letter and stuck it in the fence!

People always ask me if I work with his lovely mohair fleece in my artwork.  I don't.  First of all, we are terrible at sheering, so the fleece is a hacked up mess when we're done.  Second, I have neither patience nor energy for cleaning and carding the wool, although I do love nuno felting.  Finally, I would rather play with my one true love - fabric.  All that was until I saw the new BabyLock Embellisher today at Atlanta Sewing Center, with its 12 needles and endless potential.   I may just have to change my mind about working with "Mo"-hair.