One with the goat: Goat yoga comes to Bowmanville

A Bowmanville woman and her husband have turned part of their farm into a yoga studio to hold goat yoga classes.

Jen Kavanaugh of Kavanaugh Farms says she purchased the pygmy goats last year. Pygmy goats are a breed fairly small in size. Kavanaugh lets six to seven of them run freely during her classes.

“They’ll jump from one person’s back to the next, so the yoga poses that we’re doing is really inviting the goats to come and play,” she said.

The yoga instructor hopes the class will help connect visitors with animals and nature.

“It gives people a different experience…Coming back to that place of connection. When we’re here in nature and connected to the animals, it really fosters that,” Kavanaugh said.

For first-timer Michelle Miranda, the class was different from other yoga classes where she had previous gone.

“It’s sometimes hard to clear your mind when you’re on your mat, so the goats definitely helped clear those unwanted thoughts,” she said.

Off the mat, the visitors can interact with other farm animals in Kavanaugh’s barn after the class.

“They’re able to just have fun, they’re able to come in and decompress from whatever happened in their day,” Kavanaugh said.

The yoga instructor hopes the experiences will be something the yogis will never forget.

Watch: Goat yoga and more across Canada

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