It's a somber day for the local fauna fans of El Paso, 'Bob the Goat', a unique figure often spotted in the rugged expanse of the Franklin Mountains, has died following a conservation-led relocation operation. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), was attempting to capture and move the well-known goat to pave the way for the reestablishment of native desert bighorn sheep in the area. According to KTSM, the goat needed to be relocated to minimize the threat of disease transmission.

TPWD's efforts on Aug. 13 culminated in a tragic accident when their methods to contain the goat, after several non-starting attempts, finally led to its capture and subsequent death. "The goat died as an unfortunate and unintended result of the relocation effort," said Froylán Hernández, leader of TPWD’s Desert Bighorn Sheep Program, as obtained by El Paso Matters. Roping the animal, a standard procedure in wrangling livestock, was the method employed just moments before the incident occurred.

The misadventure did not end with the death; it sparked an investigation into the health risks the goat might have posed to its would-be bighorn sheep counterparts. "Staff collected tissue samples from the goat to better understand its cause of death and determine if the bacteria which causes infectious and fatal pneumonia in bighorn sheep is present in the Franklin Mountains," added Hernández. The presence of such bacteria could have been detrimental to the bighorn herd, putting a damper on restoration efforts for these iconic mountain dwellers, as detailed by the El Paso Times.