Do you love yoga but find that it lacks a certain something (goats)? Or, do you love goats but feel like when you hang out with them you're both kind of bored? Maybe what you need is Goat Yoga.
Goat Yoga is not a "Portlandia" episode or a brand of healthy cheese. Instead, it's a yoga class, with goats, at Lainey Morse's No Regrets Farm in Albany.
The concept was born after Morse auctioned off a kid's birthday party at her farm and the child's mother, Heather Ballenger Davis, asked if she could host a yoga class there. Morse's six goats joined the class and it was a huge success.
"My goats are very social and friendly animals and love to interact with people," Morse told us over email. "Animals are known to have so many health benefits for humans as well, so the mix of goats and yoga seemed to fit."
Morse has worked as a photographer for the past ten years but in 2015, she said, "after having some health issues I decided to stop shooting portraiture and focus on starting a business around my farm."
"The ultimate end goal is to specialize in animal-assisted therapy for people suffering grief or abuse as well as people with special needs or disabilities," she said. "That is down the road but as for now, I'm starting out with Goat Yoga which has been a huge hit."
There are, of course, a couple problems with Goat Yoga. The goats like to make themselves comfortable on yoga mats, as do Morse's barn cat and her chickens. "I think we both know what could potentially happen that's bad," she said about one potential downside of a goat getting too comfortable, "and luckily it's just in little pellets!"
The next Goat Yoga class is scheduled for Sept. 10 but it is, unfortunately, sold out. The one after, for Sept. 24, still has some openings. And at $10, it'll be much cheaper than any Portland vinyasa you might do. Sure, there will be more "pellets" but also, more goats.
-- Lizzy Acker
503-221-8052
lacker@oregonian.com, @lizzzyacker