Give Goldie the goat a gold badge.
She deserves it after escorting firefighters up and down a mountain on Wednesday as they worked to contain a wildfire sparked by a lightning strike near Cheyenne Mountain State Park just south of Colorado Springs.
The goat showed firefighters the best path, often stopping to bleat and encourage them to follow her route, said Shane Coyne, superintendent of the Southern Colorado Interagency Wildland Fire Team.
“She understood what was going on and what was happening,” Coyne said. “She wanted to make sure she knew all the humans got to the fire. This goat got to be a legend up there.”
The Rock Creek Canyon fire erupted early Wednesday morning in an area west of Cheyenne Mountain State Park. It quickly grew to about 5 acres, but fire crews hiked to the fire and dug a line to contain it, Coyne said. A helicopter also dumped water on the blaze.
Firefighters were on scene Thursday to make sure the line holds and the fire does not spread.
“When you get a line around it and it holds, it’s a good day,” Coyne said.
A Colorado Springs Fire Department crew encountered the goat and was so impressed with her guidance that it posted a video on the agency’s social media accounts.
“Every crew needs a good leader… apparently ours has four legs,” the fire department wrote on Instagram. “While working on the Rock Creek Fire, our firefighters got an unexpected escort from a very determined goat who led them toward the fire area and helped with some fuel mitigation along the way. We’re not saying he’s ready for a badge… but we’re also not saying he isn’t.”
Every crew needs a good leader… apparently ours has four legs. 🐐🔥
While working on the Rock Creek Fire, our firefighters got an unexpected escort from a very determined goat who led them toward the fire area and helped with some fuel mitigation along the way.
We’re not… pic.twitter.com/CWMUFBT3aC
— Colorado Springs Fire Department (@CSFDPIO) July 9, 2026
Word of the goat began spreading Wednesday as more crews arrived on scene, Coyne said.
“I heard there was a goat and was Iike, ‘OK, cool,’ ” Coyne said. “I didn’t know she would be so committed to our cause.”
His crew was the last to arrive that morning and, as soon as they reached the first charred ground, Goldie appeared.
“It just starts moving toward the fire,” he said. “She knew her area and she understood the assignment.”
The crew spent about three hours digging a fire break and working with chainsaws. When it was time to go back down the mountain, the firefighters stopped to secure their gear because they were navigating such steep terrain.
Goldie found them and started bleating, Coyne said.
“The goat meets us at that same spot,” he said. “She looks back and makes this bleating sound like, ‘Follow me, guys, and I’ll show you where to go.’”
Goldie led the men back to her owner’s house, which was about three-quarters of a mile away. At the time, Coyne said he was so exhausted that he forgot to get the goat’s name or its owner’s name.
He figured out Goldie’s name on Thursday, but still does not know her human, who is a Castle Rock firefighter.
“Animals are amazing and they do such special things,” Coyne said. “It’s been a pretty tough time in Colorado with the fires and this was a good story.”
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