Dalebert the goat heading to new home on a farm

The goat that led an hours-long chase through the Hollywood-Rose Hill neighborhood earlier in September has moved to a new home.

The goat, named Dalebert by the USC students who bought him off Craigslist to keep as a pet, was picked up by Columbia Animal Services last Wednesday, a few days after he hopped a backyard fence and scampered through the downtown Columbia neighborhood.

Animal Services held Dalebert for a few days as they worked to find a suitable home for him outside the city. On Tuesday, Animal Services officer Alan Wilson drove to his sister-in-law’s farm in Lugoff, dropping Dalebert off at his new home.

Dalebert will join three other goats in a three-acre pen at the farm, and he will be treated as a pet, Wilson said.

Dalebert’s stay at Animal Services wasn’t entirely uneventful. It took just a few days for the goat to slip under a loose point in his fencing and escape into the main barnyard, said Marli Drum, Animal Services Division superintendent.

Drum said her staff was able to quickly return Dalebert to his holding area, a feat that stands in contrast to the efforts of his previous owners, who secured the goat only after he had cornered himself in USC’s athletics village.

“We chase a lot of animals around here,” Drum said.

This story was originally published September 16, 2015 at 7:26 AM with the headline "Dalebert the goat heading to new home on a farm."