Canadian goats get national exposure

Rick Mercer gets to grips with the goat industry at Agribition

Ernie Penney, far right, with Rick Mercer, Fred Homeyer and Brennin Jack

Published on November 27, 2011

Rebecca Lawrence  

  Watching Rick Mercer, host of the CBC show The Mercer Report, drive away with a goat in his vehicle must have been a funny sight for those at the Canadian Western Agribition in Regina.

  But fortunately for four-year-old Damian Schollar, owner of Friend the Goat, it was all just part of the show.

    Mercer spent time filming for a future episode at Agribition, which finished on Saturday.

    He was able to talk to many people at the event, including goat breeder Ernie Penney, of Moose Jaw, who told the Times-Herald it was the perfect opportunity to highlight the benefits of breeding goats.

    Penney did a five minute interview with Mercer for his show and spent two hours filming and chatting to him about the goat industry.

    “He said jokingly it would be nice to take a goat home. I do not want to let the goat out of the bag but it took four takes to do and it involved my car, Rick Mercer, a goat called Friend and Brennin Jack (the auctioneer).

    “I let them use my car to film the closing part of the show. We had people standing watching. It was hilarious,” Penney said. “The goat was in the car with Rick.”

    On a more serious note, Penney, the former president of the Saskatchewan Goat Breeders Association, said the interview with Mercer was a great way to advertise the industry.

    “It was an opportunity to do an interview with a well known media reporter on a national program and to be able to have Rick Mercer not just being at Agribition but being involved with the (goat) industry will really help producers and people looking at getting into the industry."