It’s well-known that practising yoga and meditation is good not just for physical health, but also for one’s sense of mental well-being. But what about the health benefits of practising yoga — with goats?

Goat yoga has emerged as one of those quirkier ‘blends’ of yoga that seem to be popping up everywhere nowadays, from yogalates (or is it pila-yoga?) to HIIT yoga and aerial yoga. But according to Lainey Morse, photographer and founder of Goat Yoga, doing yoga with goats happily roaming around isn’t any different than other forms of animal-assisted therapy — think of the comfort that dogs and horses can bring to someone who’s depressed or suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. This is goat therapy, says Morse:

Goat yoga was created to be a therapy for people and provide a happy distraction for those suffering from stress, illness or depression. It really works!

Morse, who owns a farm and often found solace in spending time with her goats whenever she felt low, got the idea for goat yoga back in 2016 when she let a yoga instructor friend use her Oregon property for hosting a yoga class. Some cute and cuddly baby goats roamed in, nuzzling and climbing onto students, much to the delight of everyone. At that moment, goat yoga was born.

Even if one might be sceptical about combining exercise with animals that will undoubtedly get underfoot, the point is that these lovable creatures do get students to let their guard down a bit, all in the middle of a bucolic setting. Put all those elements together, and that in itself can be quite beneficial.more at treehugger.com