Video Shows Massive Herd of Escaped Goats Roaming San Jose Neighborhood

A trip of goats took over a peaceful Californian suburb on Tuesday evening.

Video footage shows dozens of goats storming through the wide-set streets of Silver Creek, a neighborhood in San Jose. In the clip, the animals are seen trotting past detached houses and taking breaks to munch on hedgerows and sniff out trash cans.

Silver Creek resident Terry Roelands told East Bay Times the goats escaped from an enclosure on a nearby hill at around 5.30 p.m. local time.

The animals are brought in each year to clear the brush, he said. This has been happening since the hill caught fire around 15 years ago, when a tractor clearing weeds hit a rock and set the hill alight.

However, it appears things didn't go quite to plan this time. On Tuesday, the goats made a break for it after one of their number, which had been eating flowers, tapped one of the electric fences, Roelands told NBC Bay Area. This caused the boards on the fence to break, he explained.

From the video, it appears the goats took advantage of the gap in the fence and broke free.

"I'm dead," Zac Roelands, Terry Roelands' son, tweeted. "When I got back from the store all the goats had broken through the fence and were recking havoc on our street."

He added: "This is the craziest thing to happen all quarantine"

The goats were swiftly rounded up and removed.

It is not the first time goats have gone runabout during the coronavirus lockdown. In March, 122 Kashmiri goats ran free in the streets of Llandudno, a coastal town in north Wales.

The goats were pictured chilling in churchyards and grazing on hedges. Some more daring animals were spotted atop stone walls and low roofs.

The goats typically graze in Great Orme, a limestone headland northwest of Llandudno. Under normal circumstances, the animals only enter Llandudno when the weather is bad, but town councilor Carol Marubbi said social quarantine may have encouraged the goats to enjoy the town while people were not present.

Last month, a flock of sheep visited an empty McDonald's in the Welsh town of Ebbw Vale. The unusual sight was photographed by a local man on his way out of a nearby supermarket. A separate flock was filmed playing on a roundabout in a children's playground shut during the COVID-19 pandemic, again in Wales.

Elsewhere in the world, lions have been photographed sleeping in the middle of tarmac roads, wild dogs have been filmed playing on golf courses and sika deer have been taking to city streets.

Brian Silliman, a Rachel Carson Distinguished Professor of Marine Conservation Biology at Duke University, told Newsweek animals have changed their behavior in response to the lockdown and, specifically, the absence of people during.

"These are behavioral responses on the order of weeks," he said. "They are responding quickly to the absence of human disturbance."

After weeks of lockdown, California Gov. Gerry Newsom has announced plans to begin an easing of the statewide stay-at-home order, including guidelines for dine-in restaurants and allowing certain businesses to reopen. Measures are being taken on a county-by-county basis.

In the Bay Area, public health officials have extended the stay-in-place order until the end of May at the earliest. The new order will include a limited easing of certain restrictions, they have said. According to the California government website, 69,382 cases of COVID-19 and 2,847 deaths from the virus have been reported in the state.

The below infographic from Statista shows the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases by country.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Advice on Using Face Coverings to Slow Spread of COVID-19

• CDC recommends wearing a cloth face covering in public where social distancing measures are difficult to maintain.
• A simple cloth face covering can help slow the spread of the virus by those infected and by those who do not exhibit symptoms.
• Cloth face coverings can be fashioned from household items. Guides are offered by the CDC. (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/diy-cloth-face-coverings.html)
• Cloth face coverings should be washed regularly. A washing machine will suffice.
• Practice safe removal of face coverings by not touching eyes, nose, and mouth, and wash hands immediately after removing the covering.

World Health Organization advice for avoiding spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19)

Hygiene advice

• Clean hands frequently with soap and water, or alcohol-based hand rub.
• Wash hands after coughing or sneezing; when caring for the sick; before, during and after food preparation; before eating; after using the toilet; when hands are visibly dirty; and after handling animals or waste.
• Maintain at least 1 meter (3 feet) distance from anyone who is coughing or sneezing.
• Avoid touching your hands, nose and mouth. Do not spit in public.
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or bent elbow when coughing or sneezing. Discard the tissue immediately and clean your hands.

Medical advice

• Avoid close contact with others if you have any symptoms.
• Stay at home if you feel unwell, even with mild symptoms such as headache and runny nose, to avoid potential spread of the disease to medical facilities and other people.
• If you develop serious symptoms (fever, cough, difficulty breathing) seek medical care early and contact local health authorities in advance.
• Note any recent contact with others and travel details to provide to authorities who can trace and prevent spread of the disease.
• Stay up to date on COVID-19 developments issued by health authorities and follow their guidance.

Mask and glove usage

• Healthy individuals only need to wear a mask if taking care of a sick person.
• Wear a mask if you are coughing or sneezing.
• Masks are effective when used in combination with frequent hand cleaning.
• Do not touch the mask while wearing it. Clean hands if you touch the mask.
• Learn how to properly put on, remove and dispose of masks. Clean hands after disposing of the mask.
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• Regularly washing bare hands is more effective against catching COVID-19 than wearing rubber gloves.
• The COVID-19 virus can still be picked up on rubber gloves and transmitted by touching your face.