Q.
Our next strange English idiom takes us to the barn. The person who ‘gets your goat’ is uniquely skilled at driving you mad, at getting under your skin.

Why are adorable goats – I mean people pay to have them stand atop their backs in yoga – associated with irritation?

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A.

The most popular origin story for the ‘got your goat’ idiom takes us to the world of horse racing.

Goats are thought to be calming creatures.

Racehorses, on the other hand, can be skittish. Meanwhile, you have a big money race ahead. How to keep your thoroughbred calm? Get a serene, peace-propagating goat, put them in the high stakes stable, watch your racehorse chill.

However, your racing nemesis wants your horse to be neither calm nor race-ready. So, he steals your peace bovid – “Got your goat!” – leaving your steed in shambles for the big day.

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