In a game preserve - I forgot which one -
Once upon a time lived a Billy Goat.
Living among wolves didn’t howl like one
He maaa’d goat songs like a goat ought.

He was grazing in the meadow growing rounder every day
Never getting into any troubled matter.
He was useless as a goat - as the Russians like to say,
However he was harmless, which is better.

He lived in the woods, by the little moat
Never treading the turf of his neighbors’
But - they noticed one day modest Billy Goat,
And elected him to be their Scapegoat.

For example Bear, local goon and cheat,
Would insult or hurt someone, like the bears do,
They would find the Goat, bring him in, and beat
Him between the horns till he couldn’t move.

Poor Goat suffered daily never trying to protest
He endured all the beatings with a smile
Even Bear said: "The Goat sets example for the rest
He is a hero, I have noticed after while."

They protected him like a royal heir
Even sent patrols all along the road
To make sure that, even if he’d care,
From the game preserve couldn’t go the Goat.

As far as the Goat, he was running free
However he started acting weird
Once he braded his dirty long goatie
And called Wolf a jerk from behind a tree.

Yet another day or evening, as he was routinely "scaped"
All because the Wolves bit more than their share
He, as though by mistake, began to growl like a Bear
But at that time no one seemed to hear or care.

While the predators fought their petty wars
The opinion grew in the game preserve
That more precious than Foxes, Wolves or Boars
Is the priceless old Billy-scaping-Goat.

Once the Goat heard that, all his manners changed
"Hey you, brown", he cried, "hey you, grey,
I will take away the Wolves’ place in chain
And from Bears their rights to see light of day."

"I will show you what a Goat is like when he is really mad
I will poke holes in everything that moves
I will gore you to death and after that I’ll hurt you bad
And I’ll let the world know you died from my hooves."

More than one of you will eat dirt for food
You will rot in hell where it’s really hot,
It is I who will decide if you were bad or good
There is no escape from the Scaping Goat!

In a game preserve - I forgot which one -
Goat runs the show, not like once before,
He lived among Wolves, and he howled like one,
Now he growls like Bear, so he scares more.