Joe has one of the strangest stories of all of our goats. In the spring of 2012 we received a call from a woman in Portland. She had gotten a baby goat and was keeping it in her house. Not knowing what he needed, she was feeding him cow’s milk, gatorade, cereal and crackers. Needless to say, he was very sick, losing weight rapidly and suffering from chronic diarrhea. She brought “Little Joe” to us because she was afraid he was going to die.
When Joe arrived it was clear his growth was stunted. He was emaciated and full of parasites, and had a torn ear. His feet had never been trimmed, and though ill, had not been seen by a vet. After his initial care and quarantine, Little Joe joined the adoptable herd, where we kept monitoring him. After several months he still had intermittent digestive problems and didn’t grow an inch.
Our vet feared that he had permanent damage to multiple systems from his early months, and that he was unlikely to fully recover. We decided to move Little Joe in with our sanctuary herd so that he could have more stability while we cared for him until he passed. Surprise! Within weeks he started growing! His digestive system normalized, he gained weight, and he soon began to play with his herdmates, something we had not seen before. Within a few months Joe had turned into a regular, happy goat. When he topped 100 pounds (he’s now over 200!), we dropped the “Little” from his name. We figure he just needed to know he was home.
Your sponsorship will support veterinary care, feeding, and other expenses at the rescue. Thank you so much for being part of our rescue efforts! After you complete your payment via PayPal, you will see a “return to merchant” option – click on it! When you return to the NMF page, you will see the document link in a black box. This is the PDF of your card.
