Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion Pack goats??

The NF websites all have warnings to avoid pack goats due to Big Horn Sheep. When is that last time somebody took a pack goat up a drainage? In living memory? There are a number of goats down in Owens Valley - is this a thing? I'd definitely consider a pack goat to carry my stuff. Can I rent one???

Apparently it IS a thing:

According to INFS regs:

"Pack and Saddle Stock
Stock includes animals traditionally used for saddle or pack stock, like horse and mule. Other animals like llama, burro, and goats are also considered stock. Dogs are considered pets even if they carry a pack.
• Stock are prohibited, Whitney Portal to Trail Crest.
• Where stock use is allowed, the maximum number is 25.
• In Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon wilderness areas, the number of stock will affect your group size limit and grazing restrictions may apply. Contact the parks.
• Grazing is prohibited: east of Shepherd Pass, Pioneer Basin, Hilgard Meadow.
• Seasonal grazing restrictions apply where grazing is allowed.
• Camping with stock is prohibited east of Shepherd Pass.
• To prevent disease transmission to endangered bighorn sheep use of pack goats is prohibited west of Highway 395 in Inyo National Forest."

It was the use of sheep and goats by the early Sierra Nevada pioneers that caused the extinction of Big Horn Sheep.

Horse and mule packing are strictly regulated by the Forest, including limiting areas where pack stock may leave the trail and where they may graze.