Baby goat alert: The newest residents of Murrells Inlet

Goat Island in Murrells Inlet has new residents.

Two baby goats now live on the island behind Bubba's Love Shak and Drunken Jack's, marking the second time goats were born on the island since they were placed there in 1982.

"They're normally born about right before we put them out there," said Al Hitchcock, owner of Drunken Jack's. "Today I noticed they were playing with each other, like kids. The first couple of days all they were doing were eating and sleeping. You'd see them for a couple of minutes and then they'd disappear."

Goats were first sent to the island for the summer to help with undergrowth. Now, five adult goats along with the two babies live there. The goats have benches and a their own little condo to help them hide from any rain or rising water.

"We put the goats over there, they thinned it out for us," Hitchcock said. "People were so enthused to see the goats and ask questions about them, we put them back every year. We pull them off every November and put them back in April each year."

During the winter months and any major storms, the goats live at the Osprey Marina in Myrtle Beach with marina owner Carson Benton's goats.

"We just mingle our goats with his, and then next year, when we go to pick them up, we'll get some of his and some of ours just to mix up the bloodline," Hitchcock said.

Hitchcock said it was too early for the goats to have names or to know their genders.

"Baby goats are always the most fun to watch because they do play a good bit, hop around," he said. "They don't like to bend their knees, they just sort of hop from place to place."

This story was originally published May 3, 2018 at 3:56 PM with the headline "Baby goat alert: The newest residents of Murrells Inlet."