Goat yoga? Yes, it’s a thing.

Experienced yogis and even those who have hardly practiced yoga are flocking to pastures to do sun salutations and downward facing dogs with these little critters.

Vail Stables has been doing horseback rides for 16 years, but once owner Kym Luck heard about this craze, she wanted her goats to be a part of it.

“We’ve always had goats in our petting zoo, so we thought, ‘why not?’” she said.

Goat yoga was started by Lainey Morse in Willamette Valley, Oregon, in August of 2016. Nigerian dwarf goats are the preferred breed used since their petite stature bodes well for interacting with the students in the class.

Amy Lieberman is a health coach and yoga teacher who drives over from Summit County to Vail to teach classes and has learned how to tailor the class to incorporate the littlest of livestock.

“Now that I have been teaching a number of weeks I know how the goats often can crawl under an arm or leg or hop up on student’s backs, so table top, downward dog and poses where the goats can weave in and out of limbs involves and excites the students,” Lieberman said.

Living in the moment

Kris Castille is from Florida and heard about goat yoga at Vail Stables and liked it so much that she and her daughters have come back a few times during their stay.

“You’d never think to put it together, but it is very soothing,” Castille said. Daughter Cassidy, who had several goats nibbling and climbing on her while on the mat, explained how she thought goat yoga could be topped.

“I think the next step should be dog yoga, or even better, puppy yoga,” Castille said.

Beyond the yoga poses, it’s more about living in the moment.

To learn more about goat yoga and the class schedule at Vail Stables, visit http://www.vailstables.com.