The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats

Once upon a time a Mother Goat lived in the forest together with her seven children. One day she left them at home alone to get food, but warned them about the Big Bad Wolf, who will try to come in to eat them by pretending to be their mother and convincing the kids to open the door. Her white feet and sweet voice however will reveal the real Mother. After she is away, the Wolf tries twice to get in, but both times the young goats realise that it is not her Mother who is at the door. The Wolf himself is not stupid and disguised his gruff voice with honey and black feet with flour.

Now for third time the Wolf is again at the door and says "Let me in children, your mother has something for each and every one of you", this time the children hear the honey-softened voice and see the flour-whited feet and open the door for what they think to be her Mother. As soon as he is inside, the Wolf eats six of the young goats and only the youngest is able to hide in a clock. After that the Wolf is so pigged out that he can not move anymore and falls asleep under a nearby tree.

Later that day the mother comes back home and is shocked to find the open door and just her youngest child. Together they make a plan to get their children and siblings back. With a pair of scissors the mother opens the belly of the Wolf and the six children spring out miraculously unharmed. Together they fill the Wolf with rocks and the Mother uses needle and thread to sew him back up again. After his sleep the Wolf is very thirsty and goes to the river (or well) to drink, but falls in and drowns under the weight of the rocks.

The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats was chosen this year for the new annual welfare stamps about the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm (issued 06-02-2020). Apart from the three stamps above I will also keep one self-adhesive coil stamp for my collection.

Unlike the Brave Little Tailor last year this fairy tale was already featured on a West German stamp set, as it was included in the old welfare stamp series about the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm in the 1960s. You can see those old stamps here. Four Young Goats and a Big Good Wolf were also shown on one of the Swiss fairy tale stamps of 2018.