Each year we witness inspiring transformations at the sanctuary. The animals we rescue have suffered injuries, abuse or neglect and they each have unique challenges on their road to recovery. We work with our rescued family for however long it takes to ensure they have a safe and healthy future, free from harm. Here are some of our favorite stories from 2019.
Lola, the Goat
Lola came to us in March 2019 as a baby goat with little hope. Two days after her birth, we received a call from a farmer in Iowa about Lola. She was suffering from severe frostbite after she was born in the middle of the night during one of Iowa’s winter deep freezes. Within the first week at the sanctuary the skin on her back legs and hooves started to peel away. We had to monitor her closely, providing daily wound therapy and frequent vet checkups. Despite our best efforts, the frostbite was too severe. It was clear she was in a lot of pain, her hooves had become infected and we were advised to amputate both back legs to prevent the infection from spreading.
Founder Dan bottle feeding baby Lola.
Lola had to undergo surgery at such a young age and after the initial recovery, Lola needed rehab to learn to walk again. Since she had a partial amputation Lola was a candidate for prosthetics so we had custom ones made for her. We also got her a cart. This allowed her to stand upright while taking the weight off her back legs so she could get use to her prosthetics. She couldn’t quite figure the cart out well enough to walk with it, but it did give her the confidence to stand on her own. And after months of daily therapy, she began to walk again.
Lola regaining confidence and stability
After a traumatic youth and a long period of recovery, Lola finally moved to the sheep and goat barn to be with her new friends (some of our other special needs goats and sheep). Lola is making new friends, walking with confidence and head butting new buddies like KJ and Charlie. But, her best friend still remains a sheep named Ginger who she spent the first 8 months of her life with at Barn as they both needed regular rehab. (Charlie, KJ and Ginger’s stories will be featured on Animal Planet in the Spring!) Although Lola has made new friends she still loves the humans who were there with her every day, helping her learn to stand and walk again. And Lola demands their attention regularly!
Lola and best friend Ginger
Given a second chance at life, Lola has proven to fight for it just as much as we did. She is a determined and courageous young girl with a bright future ahead of her.
Lola is a perfect example of how farmed animals, even baby goats, have immense perseverance and the determination to fight for their life. We gave Lola the chance at the life she knew she deserved. That’s what we do as a sanctuary. We save who we can and do what it takes to help them, but they show up to fight for their future too—and this year, Lola has shown the world what that looks like.