That time a goat messed up my driveway pour over in Bellingham

Last spring I was pouring a small residential driveway outside Bellingham, maybe 30 yards total. Everything was going smooth until this neighbor's goat got loose and ran right across the wet concrete before I could get the finish on it. Left these perfect little hoof prints dead center in the middle pad. Homeowner was laughing her head off, said it added character. I had to trowel over those spots fast and hope the color matched. Ended up having to add a light broom finish to hide the rest of the texture. Now I always walk the perimeter of the job site first and check for loose animals before I even mix. Has anyone else had a weird animal incident mess up a pour?

2 comments

2 Comments

miles_grant3516d ago

Used to think stuff like that was just bad luck you couldn't plan for. A goose walked through a sidewalk I was pouring back in 2018 over in Burlington, left these deep three-toed prints every few feet. Had to stop the whole crew, scrape out the footprints with a margin trowel, and re-screed that section. Homeowner was pissed at first but ended up liking the pattern. Now I do the same thing you do, walk the whole site before mixing. That goat story definitely sealed it for me.

jessicamiller16d ago

Man, I had a buddy who did concrete finishing over in Richmond and he swore he had checked every single inch of the slab before they started pouring. Told me he even walked the whole perimeter twice because the homeowner had a big old labrador that liked to wander. Sure enough, right in the middle of finishing, a stray cat darted across the wet concrete and left a full paw print trail. @miles_grant35 your method of walking before mixing is the only way to go. He tried to smooth it over but it was too late, ended up having to chip out a whole two foot section and patch it. Now he sweeps the site with a push broom ten minutes before the truck shows up, every single time.