While working through our New Year’s Eve brush-clearing project, I found a mostly intact goat skull at the end of our back pasture. It is super cool.
The skull is likely a remnant of a carcass that scavengers got to sometime last summer. Unfortunately, in farm world, nature often takes its course when we lose a beloved animal. It’s very common for us to hear packs of coyotes howling on our property. We also see many foxes, raccoons, opossums and owls on the prowl. Even mountain lions. There are plenty of hungry wildlife out there.
I snagged the skull for some closer inspection. It’s not common for us to find bones of any kind on the property. The critters would typically carry them off into sheltered areas where they can eat with some form of protection. This was definitely a unique situation.
I was completely blown away by the beauty of this thing. It’s easy to be a bit creepy-crawly about it and not want to pick something like this up. But I’m so glad I did. The fusing of the bones is so incredible. The areas where the brain and spinal cord would sit into it are wild to see up close.
There are plenty of intricate details too. And, it has all of the teeth. They kind of wiggle if you nudge them – which obviously makes sense, but is just truly crazy to feel.
Not only is this skull particularly intriguing – but it has some pretty spectacular symbolism coming to me on New Year’s Eve. The goat spirit animal is symbolic of new opportunities and greater heights to be reached. It’s appearance indicates and favorable point in life where you can use your own abilities to achieve greater success.
Goat symbolism encourages a leap of faith. They are also symbols of health, lust, vitality and abundance.
All welcomed things in the next phase of our lives.