'Goat man' spotted in Utah mountains

Coty Creighton / AP file

The "goat man," in white, traverses an incline near Ogden, Utah, on July 15.

The sighting of a man dressed in a goat suit on a Utah mountain is causing concern among state wildlife officials, The Associated Press reported

The man, who remains unidentified, was spotted by photographer Coty Creighton on July 15 during a hike on Ben Lomond peak just north of Ogden in northern Utah.

Creighton told the AP he saw the man through a set of binoculars trailing behind a herd of goats on his hands and knees.


When the man noticed he had been spotted, "he just stopped in his tracks and froze," Creighton told the AP.

That's when Creighton began taking photos. The man then sat on a hill for several minutes.

He got back down on his hands and knees and hurried to catch with the rest of the herd.

While officials said what the man is doing is not illegal, they're concerned as the hunting season approaches that he could be mistaken for a goat or attacked by a live goat.

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"They may get agitated. They're territorial. They are, after all, wild animals," Phil Douglass, spokesperson for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources,  told the AP. "This person puts on a goat suit, he changes the game. But as long as he accepts responsibility, it's not illegal."

Goat hunting season begins in September.

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"My very first concern is the person doesn't understand the risks," Douglass told the AP. "Who's to say what could happen."

Officials said they just want to talk to the man and warn him of the dangers. They said he could be a wildlife enthusiast.

"People do some pretty out there things in the name of enjoying wildlife. But I've never had a report like this," Douglass said. 

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He might be a game hunter after coyotes,mountain lions, or other predatory game. Or might be a poor college student sent out by his professor to study herd tendencies.

  • 3 votes
Reply#28 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:09 PM EDT

...or maybe he's just odd, wouldn't EWE agree?

  • 2 votes
#28.1 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:13 PM EDT

And if you let me invest ALL of your money today, I will give you a 50% return in one month.

    #28.2 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:30 PM EDT
    Reply

    That's just odd.

      Reply#29 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:10 PM EDT

      Last time I checked we live in freedom. Let the guy play out in the wild in a goat suit.

      • 3 votes
      Reply#30 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:12 PM EDT

      Yes, dressing up and following the goats is not illegal, but what he plans to do is illegal in Utah especially if he is married to more than one of them! I love ewe too much baby!

      • 2 votes
      Reply#31 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:13 PM EDT

      Forget about the goats being dangerous, what about the mountain lions??

      • 1 vote
      Reply#32 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:13 PM EDT

      It's goat boy from SNL years ago!

      • 1 vote
      Reply#33 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:14 PM EDT

      He could be an ex con hiding out!

      • 1 vote
      Reply#34 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:17 PM EDT

      ahhh.........Utah where men are men and goats are scared !!!

      • 2 votes
      Reply#35 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:19 PM EDT

      You would think having more Wives would leave you drained..this guy is STILL having an affair.....insatiable

        #35.1 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:28 PM EDT
        Reply

        He's a liberal democrat that got tired of hugging trees or maybe a goat peed on him while he was tree hugging.

        • 2 votes
        Reply#36 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:20 PM EDT

        Hahahaha. IDIOT!

        • 1 vote
        Reply#37 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:20 PM EDT

        What would Mayor Michael Bloomberg do ?

        He always knows what to do !

        Don't believe it, just ask him !

        • 1 vote
        Reply#38 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:21 PM EDT

        Isn't it amazing that whenever something this strange turns up, the photographed image is either blurred or so far away that you would need a telescope to get any sense of it.

        • 1 vote
        Reply#39 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:21 PM EDT

        Read this in your Irish accent.

        Aye laddie, there b nuthin more fun en sneekin up on a heerd u goots so'z ukin have yer way with'em. They be sportin fun aye tell yuh.

        If'en that Doctah DooLitto come sniffin aroond, don cha be listnen to dat main ewe, dat prittee one yonder dare. She ben knowin to tell a farging lie many o times.

        • 2 votes
        Reply#40 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:22 PM EDT

        How is it that this sort of weird behavior no longer surprises me...

        America, home of the brave, land of the free-to-be-weird.

        • 1 vote
        Reply#41 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:22 PM EDT

        Could you have posted a smaller picture?

        • 2 votes
        Reply#42 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:22 PM EDT

        You made me LOL!

          #42.1 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:23 PM EDT
          Reply

          Sincerely wish I could be carefree enough to slap on a goat costume and follow around some goats. Maybe he's doing a documentary? Nah, prob just really into goats-which is A OK with me! Have fun "goat man"!

          • 2 votes
          Reply#43 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:23 PM EDT

          He mearly wants to be at one with the goats.

          Leave Goat Man be.

          • 1 vote
          Reply#44 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:23 PM EDT

          There weren't any No Goat Suits signs.

            Reply#45 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:24 PM EDT

            Re-past posts: Oh! I just love you all, you are so funny. You revive my faith in America. Keep doing what you are doing.

              Reply#46 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:24 PM EDT

              Picture doesn't look right to me looks faked. Too white and sets out on the scene. Even if the skin was albino there would be pink.

                Reply#47 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:24 PM EDT

                Uh.... It's white because he's wearing a GOAT SUIT!! Did you miss that part? It's only the focal point of the article...

                • 1 vote
                #47.1 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:50 PM EDT
                Reply

                ahh, that just Gene Wilder getting his funk on.

                • 1 vote
                Reply#48 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:24 PM EDT

                Will Obama support that marriage between goats and men too ?

                Looks promising, indeed

                • 5 votes
                Reply#49 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:25 PM EDT

                Yes,his "no sheep left "behind" policy!

                • 3 votes
                #49.1 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:27 PM EDT

                Or------'NO SHEEP BEHIND LEFT".

                  #49.2 - Tue Jul 24, 2012 3:23 PM EDT
                  Reply

                  More photos!!! More photos!!! more high resolution photos!!!

                    Reply#50 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:26 PM EDT

                    He is a potential candidate for the Darwin Award this year.If he continues into the hunting season,i'm certain,he will win this years award!I wish him the best.It's not good to be the slowest "sheep" in a pack during hunting season!

                      Reply#51 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:26 PM EDT

                      Maybe ,he's just speed dating!

                        Reply#52 - Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:26 PM EDT
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