This is not the type of scene that you see on a regular basis. The goats, perhaps -- especially if you live in a rural area -- but the tower?!? Well, that's another thing altogether. Goat towers like this one are certainly few and far between -- the one depicted here is among just three that are known across the globe, including the original in South Africa and its other doppelganger, located in Ekeby, Norway.

David Johnson's 31 foot tall "Tower of Baaa," located on a farm in Findlay, Illinois, is constructed out of 5,000 hand-made bricks and spans 7 feet wide. Accommodating his modest herd of 34 goats, this architectural marvel contains 276 concrete steps that his goats are more than happy to navigate. By their very nature, the ruminants are highly inquisitive, remarkably intelligent, and impressively well-coordinated -- scaling high structures and remaining graceful and composed while in precarious spots is what they do best.

While goats have gained notoriety in recent years for their handy-dandy function as carbon footprint-lite, perpetually hungry grass and weed mowers, it’s simply a case of everything old being new again. Goats have been plowing through tangled, overgrown land ever since they burst onto the evolutionary scene. Their digestive systems allow them to consume practically any organic substance in the botanical world – including invasive plants that normally cause great distress and sickness to other creatures – but they do happen to be partial to the tender new growth on trees, shrubs and plain ol’ garden variety weeds.

It is their milk and the silky product of all of that herbaceous grazing that Charles Back, proprietor of Fairview Wine and Cheese estate capitalizes on. Home to the original goat tower – built in 1980 – this South African producer of vine juice and 20+ gourmet cheeses is based in the Paarl region of the Western Cape province, approximately 60km from Cape Town. In just a few years, his estate has secured its position as South Africa's leading producer of artisanal and specialty cheeses. When the 750 Saanen goats in Back’s herd aren’t spending their time donating milk, they enjoy flitting about in the fields, mowing to their hearts content and exploring the nooks and crannies of their quirky yet distinctively goat-friendly high rise. Click here for a top secret look at what happens when they gorge on too many Yucca, Canadian Thistle, Dandelions,  and Leafy Spurge.