First published in the July 22 print issue of the South Pasadena Review.

The buzz of a circular saw means nothing to Mavis. She stands next to one, unflinchingly, while Binny naps on a nearby chair. Zelda has sought out shade, nose in a pile of tools and bits of wood.

Mavis, Binny and Zelda are goats. They do as they please, totally unaware that their independent personalities help give Band of Goats Construction its signature spirit.

“These guys are always on the job. And people just love goats,” Dave Gardetta, one of two humans that make up Band of Goats, said. “I don’t think I’ve ever met somebody who didn’t love goats.”

Gardetta and his business partner, Noel Enriquez, are prepared to take on handyman projects in South Pasadena and beyond with goats in tow. The group has constructed elaborate animal homes in South Pas and have taken on bigger projects, like a barn in Atwater Village that can house six horses.

The projects are imaginative. The horse barn, for example, is aesthetically pleasing as it is functional, made from the ground up with recycled materials and an oxidized steel roof. Jody Rath, the barn’s owner, was pleased with Gardetta and Enriquez’s ability to adjust on the fly to his requests. And the goats are just a bonus.

“They bring comic relief,” Rath said. “(Gardetta and Enriquez) would sit down and play guitar and the goats would just kind of be walking around and jumping up on stuff. It was fun to see. It was fun to come into work.”

Most of the goats’ activities are innocent — they meander through building materials and jump onto car seats if the vehicle’s door is left open. Other times, their mischief and appetite are more than inconvenient.

Mavis ate $600 cash. One of Gardetta’s previous goats, Augie, drank roughly a quart of green paint. While working on a project for Rath, one of the goats ate paper receipts for hardware and materials.

“Not real happy at the time,” Rath said of the receipt mishap. “And the goats could care less because the goats just want to eat.”

Fortunately, Gardetta and Enriquez had digital receipts and could still put together a total. Gardetta also has digital project blueprints on an iPad, keeping the important documents out of goat mouths.

Three hungry goats are part of the group now, but Gardetta originally began with two: Mavis and Augie. After Gardetta left his writing job at Los Angeles Magazine, he needed something to lift his spirits.

Like many who adopted pets during the lonesome stay-at-home orders during the COVID-19 pandemic, Gardetta found company in animals. Mavis and Augie fulfilled a longtime goal of owning goats.

Zelda and Binny came along shortly after Augie died of cancer, a heart-wrenching experience for Gardetta. In Augie’s final moments, Gardetta sang to him a song that he often played, and he swears he could hear the goat bleating in rhythm.

“I remember that day,” said Enriquez, who was there when Augie died.

“You remember I cried my eyes out?” Gardetta asked him. “(Augie) just went down and I cried for like a half hour and he was there the whole time.”

Roughly two years later, in 2020, Gardetta got Zelda and Binny. Together with Mavis, they live in the house with Gardetta and sleep in the bed. They go on camping trips and have visited several national parks.

Band of Goats is small in numbers, and it’s unlikely that will change. Enriquez, who is quiet but adept at just about any construction-related work, likes having only one (human) co-worker and Gardetta is confident two people are all that’s necessary for quality work.

The goats will continue to do what they want. It’s their world, and we’re just here to bask in their charm.

“They make a site kind of calm,” Gardetta said. “And, it’s not like they give a personality to a site, but they’re so sweet. And they’re easygoing, as long as they’re not eating your receipts.”

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Outlook Newspapers is a set of weekly newspapers with a vision of not only informing the communities we serve, but strengthening the relationships among its members and organizations.

Contact us: https://southpasadenareview.com/contact-us

Our site uses cookies. Learn more about our use of cookies: cookie policy