MOST HEARTBREAKING RESCUE

You all know the problem with "free to a good home" placements for dogs and cats...well, the same goes for farm animals! Unfortunately, baby farm animals are DARLING and people buy them thinking "how hard could it be?" Well, it is VERY hard because they grow up to be, well, FARM ANIMALS! That cute little piggie or goatie grows into a pig or a goat...most people are not equipped to give them the facilities and care that they need. These babies, that have ben raised like the family dog, then have to go somewhere!

Too often, where they go is worse than death! We have been working day and night (literally) to help save approximately 50 goats, sheep, cows, pigs and chickens from a livestock trader south of San Antonio from just such a situation. This trader, posing as a "Christian Minister" respond to ads offering free or inexpensive livestock promising a good home with a loving family. The reality could not be further from it!

We first learned of the situation when a concerned donor contacted us about someone posting ads offering to take unwanted farm animals and then turning around and offering those same animals for sale. We went to the site under the guise of wanting to buy two registered LaMancha dairy goats they had advertised for sale.

What we saw at the site was HORRIFYING. Animals were kept without food, shelter, or water. Most were very sick and many were emaciated to the point of death! Some were kept in broken down open stock trailers again without shelter, bedding, food, or water. Animals were wandering sick, lame and starving. The two goats we were shown were mere skeletons and yet we were assured that they were being milked twice a day...look at the pictures in our photo album and ask yourself how anyone could take even one ounce of milk from these girls?

We left with the two girls (breaking our rules NEVER to purchase rescues) and rushed them to the vet. They are both emaciated, scoring a zero (0) on a body condition scoring system. They were also both suffering from respiratory infections, one has a gash that was infested with maggots on her elbow, and they were both VERY pregnant. These people were milking goats that were due to kid any day!!!

We got them home and started them on antibiotics, wormed them, offered them the most tasty meals and treats and all of the hay and water they could ever want. They were given soft bedding, access to green grass pasture and a covered stall where they could escape the sun and wind! These are the things that animals under the control of humans deserve and yet, these girls had been denied all of them for months!

One of the girls kidded the next day with twin girls! Tiny baby skeletons but so full of life and joy that it makes us laugh and cry to see them bouncing around and begging for their bottles. They are, of course, being bottle fed because the moms have NO CALORIES TO SPARE!

The second girl kidded the next day, sadly with one dead and decomposing baby, but happily, with one TINY living baby boy. While babies such as these should weigh about 9 pounds, the girls weighed only 5.3 and 5.6 pounds and the tiny baby boy weighed only 1.9 pounds! It is a miracle that they were born alive and an even greater miracle that they are healthy so far.

We are not out of the woods yet and all five are still teetering on the brink but we will do everything we can to save these few and to help the others we had to leave behind. Humane organizations and law enforcement are involved and will, we hope, be taking the most severe action possible. We will monitor the situation (hound them day and night) to make sure that something is done to stop these people from torturing more animals.

The lesson here is NEVER give away or sell an animal without first CHECKING OUT THE HOME AND GETTING VET REFERENCES!!! People will, unfortunately LIE to you. Don't let your animals suffer because it takes too much time to do your homework. These creatures, whatever their form, are not here for us to use and profit from like a sack of potatos or used bicycle. They are God's creatures and we are charged with giving them the care and humane treatment that all living things deserve.

Lady and Mano Lamancha

We first received the call some time back about four goats, a billy, a nanny, and two babies, who needed a new home. We told the “friend of a friend” who called that we would be happy to take the goats. When we called to follow up on their whereabouts we were told that one of the babies had been found headless in the pasture and that the other three were now being claimed by the man who had abandoned them in the field many months before. Helpless, but worried, we continued to try to follow up on the condition and status of the three remaining goats but got nowhere. Several weeks later, we got a call about them. We were informed that the other baby had “disappeared” – most likely sold for cabrito - but that the nanny and billy were free to leave. We immediately arranged for their transport to the sanctuary. Minutes later, however, we received another call and our hearts dropped. The billy was OK but the nanny was laying in the blazing sun in a pool of her own diarrhea and covered with fire ants. No one had any idea how long she had been there in that condition. They asked us “…do you still want her or should we just shoot her in the head?’ Incredulous but trying to be diplomatic, we said that we did indeed still want her and we asked if the caller could please move her into some shade and rinse her off to cool her and to remove the biting ants until her transport arrived.

When the two arrived at the Sanctuary, our worst fears were realized. The billy, a beautiful LaMancha buck we later named Mano, was in fair shape considering the starvation conditions the family had lived in. He was vetted, wormed, given vaccinations and a vitamin boost, had his hooves trimmed and horns tipped, and put in a large stall with a paddock to await neutering. To our horror, the nanny was covered in crusted diarrhea and had swelling lumps all over her little body from the fire ants. She was the thinnest goat we have ever seen at the shelter. Literally a skeleton covered by skin, she was hardly even able to hold her own head up much less to stand and walk. She was infested with lice and her body temperature was so low that we were unable to get a reading on our thermometer. We named her Lady and she was carried to a soft pile of bedding in a shady stall next to her mate’s and covered propped up between two hay bales to keep her lungs from filling with fluid. We went right to work trying to save her. Our first priority was to warm her and get her re-hydrated and to administer medication in an attempt to counter the effects of the toxins from the ant bites. She was given fluids and wormed. Too weak to eat or drink on her own, we fed her our special “magic mixture” through a tube. We started her on a course of antibiotics and reintroduced the flora that ruminants need to digest their food. Her care was all-consuming for two days. Through all of the poking and prodding and sticking with needles and turning, Lady never once complained. She called out softly to anyone who came near and looked with grateful eyes at anyone who worked with her. She showed forgiveness immediately and trusted that we were there to help her. We loved her already and were determined to try to make up for what she had been through and to give her the best chance at survival that we could.

On the second day, her body temperature had returned to normal and she was even interested in nibbling on some oak leaves – which even the weakest of goats simply cannot resist. Her lungs sounded better and her eyes were brighter. We were hopeful that she had reached us in time.

But goats can be tricky. They are the consummate survivors and will struggle to live through the worst of circumstances: starvation, illness, lack of water or shelter. They fight valiantly to stay alive but their stamina is not infinite. Even surrounded by all of the things that she had been denied for so long - nutritious food, clean cool water, medical attention, shelter and the love of her caretakers - lady lost her battle. The damage that had been done to her internal organs and respiratory system was too great. Lady died of neglect and indifference and greed. She and her family had languished in a barren field behind someone’s residence for untold months. The family who lived in the residence sat down to eat their meals every day knowing that the four were trapped in a bare ground prison without food. Neighbors turned their faces from the misery that they saw – none of their business anyway, right? The family in the residence had air-conditioning and running water and comfort and safety. The helpless creatures “behind the house” had none of these. Lady and her family could do nothing to help themselves – they depended on the compassion of the people who had them caged. They were betrayed by those they relied upon and we can only imagine their desperation and feelings of helplessness and the suffering they endured. Each of us has a responsibility for the innocent and helpless creatures that cross our paths. There is always something that can be done. Help simply came too late for Lady and her babies.

To ease our heartache and frustration over poor sweet Lady we still have our Mano. We are proud to say that Mano, Lady’s mate, has beaten the odds. He was wethered and is waiting to be introduced into the flock. He has gained weight and is a sleek, strong, and beautiful testament to the endurance of his kind. He is slowly gaining trust for people and still seems surprised when he is fed – twice a day! He will never again be hungry or thirsty or neglected. He is finally home.

Mano LaMancha’s Favorite Pastime

Mano, Big, Strong, and Healthy!!!

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Nanny Granny 3 weeks after arrival at the sanctuary

Nanny Granny, Blanca & Rita

Nanny Granny, Blanca & Rita

The most recent additions to our family are Nanny Granny, Blanca and Rita. Nanny Granny was received from another animal facility that could no longer take care of her. When she arrived, she was severely underweight and malnourished, tipping the scales at only 39 pounds, partly no doubt due to her advanced age of approximately 14 years. Her coat was rough and sparse and every bone in her body was visible. She was also, unbeknownst to her previous keepers, three and a half months pregnant - well past the accepted safe reproductive age! Because of her poor physical condition, advanced age and pregnancy, Nanny Granny’s prognosis was bleak. She refused food initially and so had to be hand fed our special “boost” diet orally via syringe every two hours. She was also dehydrated and so was given Gatorade mixed with honey every two hours in order to rehydrate her and to increase her energy level. Granny was put on medications by our vet which were prescribed both to help stimulate her metabolism and to help stave off the potential complications of her pregnancy. Because of her poor body condition, the babies could be seen moving on both sides of Nanny’s body - normally babies can only be seen on the right side with the left being occupied during pregnancy by the body’s organs, predominately the digestive organs. While we were concerned with this, it sure was reassuring to see that the babies were active and vigorous!

We all wished that we had more time to lavish Nanny with nutritious food and good prenatal care before the babies’ arrival but the average gestation in goats is about five months and so we had to do all we could in the six weeks that we had before the due date. Nanny rebounded slowly and began to eat on her own but she was kept on an enriched diet in order both to help the babies develop normally and to build up her own body condition. She was fed “free choice” a mixture of pelleted goat feed, a high protein supplement, oats, and black oil sunflower seeds and she had all of the good quality coastal hay she wanted. She was given small amounts of alfalfa (a special treat that only the weakest of our animals are given) and loose minerals, salt and baking soda were always available to her. (Goats seem to know what and how much their bodies need.) Nanny began to gain weight and after six weeks at the sanctuary she had gained approximately 20 pounds!

Tensions were high as her due date neared. We were told by our vet to anticipate complications during and after the delivery and we were almost certain that the babies, if they survived, would have to be bottle fed due to Nanny’s poor body condition. She was put on round-the-clock watch with our “birthing kit” at the ready and the vet’s phone number on speed dial. Nanny had been showing some of the typical signs of labor for nearly a week before she actually got down to business and so when the time finally came, all was ready! Fortunately, our vigilance paid off because neither delivery was normal. The first kid, a little solid white girl we later named Blanca, was malpositioned and her birth had to be assisted. The second kid, a little solid black girl named Rita, was a breach birth who also had to be repositioned in order to be born. These types of presentations result in a high mortality rate in even healthy goats. Given her compromised condition, it is unlikely that Nanny would have been able to deliver either of the babies without assistance and, according to our vet, all would have been lost had we not been there to help her.

Within minutes of birth both babies were up and about on their wobbly legs. We were so relieved that the deliveries had gone well and that the babies were healthy that we almost didn’t notice that the girls were both nursing normally. Both got plenty of colostrum (the all important “first milk” that contains the antibodies needed to fight off infection) from Nanny and so we gleefully threw out the bottle that we had thawed for them earlier. Nanny has proved to be an exceptional mother. We have not had to bottle feed the girls as they are thriving without supplement. The trio have been kept separate from the group, partly because of Nanny’s health and age and partly because we always keep babies separated from the flock until they are swift enough to keep out of harm’s way, but they are in a stall and paddock where they can meet the others through the safety of the fence and we hope to be able to integrate them gradually over the coming months.

Blanca and Rita are unusually inquisitive, affectionate and friendly and we are so happy to have them. They are immediately accepting and trusting of new people and so are wonderful ambassadors. Because all of our males are neutered upon arrival, we seldom have babies and so these little ones are a real blessing...there is nothing more heartwarming than a baby goat...they have beaten the odds and we are so proud of them!

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Cash

Meera


Cash & Meera

Cash and Meera, fairly recent additions to our flock, are brother and sister cashmere goats. When we agreed take them in, we were assured that Cash had been wethered or fixed so he could not reproduce. Upon arrival to pick them up, it was immediately apparent that Cash was definitely still intact. We immediately separated them and called the vet. Both appeared healthy save for a heavy parasite load and dangerously overgrown hooves. They were immunized, wormed, and Cash was wethered. They have joined the flock now and we are still slowly working to return their overgrown feet to normalcy.

Meera, however, has developed the characteristic look of a developing mid-pregnancy, something that we had hoped wouldn’t happen. She was bred before coming to the shelter and we can only hope that the father is not her brother, Cash, but another intact billy who lived on the property where she was kept. Brother – sister pairings do not typically result in a good outcome. For this reason and others, it is very important to wether male goats when they are young. We are hoping against hope that Meera has simply developed a nice “grass belly” but if she is, indeed pregnant, we will be at the ready to assist the birth and to give the kids the best chance possible.