The Andy Griffith Show: The Loaded Goat Episode Elicits Fond Memories

Mayberry Life is real

Some people think life in Mayberry on The Andy Griffith Show mocked small-town life. I saw the episodes as art imitating life because so much of it reminded me of my childhood and the people and animals I knew.

Whenever I watch The Loaded Goat episode, I am reminded of dogs, cats, chickens, and horses who were given names and treated like they were part of the family in my community.

My cousins, friends, and I had dogs who obeyed commands without any formal training. They caught balls and frisbees, and walked with us to local stores.

When we had Easter egg hunts, there were baby chicks and large chickens that would run out of the bushes where we hid the eggs and sometimes chased us.

One neighbor had horses and cows she named and talked to as if they were family. A few older family members had dogs who slept in their beds, and they treated them like children, which is why I related to the scenes with Jimmy the goat.

Jimmy was like family to Hutch

In this episode of The Andy Griffith Show, Mr. Cy Hutchison or Hudgins (Forrest Lewis) brings his goat Jimmy "uptown" to Mayberry as a local construction crew is blasting for an underpass near the town.

The rumor is that Mayor Stoner (Parley Baer) wants to bring the highway past his brother's gas station so he will get more business. Cy wants Jimmy to experience his shopping trip and keep his pet close because the blasting makes the goat nervous.

Jimmy is tethered to a bench in front of the Barber Shop while there are men inside waiting for Floyd, the barber, to return. Jimmy gets free, wanders into a storeroom, and eats half a case of dynamite.

Otis and Jimmy are hilarious

Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith) and Barney Fife (Don Knotts) are told by Opie Taylor (Ron Howard) that the missing goat went into a shed. The sheriff and his deputy realize the goat probably ate some dynamite, and they place Jimmy in the cell used by Otis Campbell (Hal Smith). They add pillows and lots of straw to soften a possible explosion.

As usual, a drunk Otis enters the cell with a key. He falls to the floor several times because his bed has been removed and replaced with straw for the goat. Otis finally notices his cellmate and kicks him out.

Jimmy becomes angry and starts crying out and shaking his head. Andy and Barney return and are afraid the goat will blow up. He only calms down when Barney plays his French harmonica.

Not seeming to understand the seriousness of the situation, "Hutch" scolds Jimmy for acting up on his first trip to town. Fans of Andy Griffith voted The Loaded Goat as one of their top 10 favorite episodes.

Memorable scenes

Andy and Barney eventually lead the loaded goat safely by a rope around his neck out of town as Barney plays the harmonica. It is implied and assumed that Jimmy eats a lot of hay, and the dynamite will come out when he has a bowel movement.

Hutch said Jimmy was like a friend and that he did not want to see anything happen to him. I wish the goats' fate had been clear so we would know for certain. The mayor had stopped the blasting, but Andy ordered it to begin again before leaving the sheriff's office with Jimmy.

Mayor Stoner and Hutch didn't know this, and when they heard a loud explosion, they believed it was Barney, Andy, and Jimmy. While expressing their sorrow at the loss of two brave men, they take off their hats.

The audience laughs because Andy and Barney come out of the back room of the jail, also laughing. Anyone who grew up in a rural area where animals were like family can appreciate The Andy Griffith Show episode The Loaded Goat.

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