Gibbles, the good-natured three-legged goat, is more like his normal playful self, thanks to a $1,100 wheelchair funded by donors to the Happy Herd animal sanctuary in Aldergrove.
Sanctuary co-founder Diane Marsh said the four-year-old Gibbles, who was rescued from a goat meat farm near the B.C. – Alberta border in 2019, has been through a lot.
He arrived with a dislocated hind leg that was fixed, but then it turned out one front leg had such severe arthritis that it could not be repaired by a veterinarian after Gibbles broke it playing with a sheep at the sanctuary.
“When they put the screws in [to his bone] it just disintegrated,” Marsh recalled.
READ ALSO: Gibbles, a three-legged Aldergrove resident, makes full recovery
Given a choice between euthanasia and amputation, Gibbles became the very first goat in the Lower Mainland to undergo successful surgery to have his limb removed.
Through it all, Gibble has remained an even-tempered, playful presence with his best friends, Linus the lamb and Pickles the pig.
“He’s the sweetest little guy,” Marsh enthused.
“He gives everyone a reason to smile.”
READ ALSO: Langley home to a happy herd of farm animals
But lately, Gibbles was beginning to have trouble getting around, struggling to get up after he laid down, and wasn’t playing games with his friends they way he normally would.
The solution turned out to be the type of wheelchair made for dogs with missing limbs or paralysis, and it had an immediate effect when it arrived on Wednesday, Jan. 19, with Gibbles able to move and play with other Happy Herd residents again.
Tiffany Akins, a volunteer and Happy Herd board member, views Gibbles as a good example of how to respond to challenges.
“Gibbles walked out of the vet right after his surgery,” Akins recalled. “Amazing – walking right away.”
No matter what happens, Gibbles remains “very sweet,” Akin noted.
“He loves humans.”
“We can always learn from animals,” Akins told the Langley Advance Times, “because they are so resilient and adaptable.”
Happy Herd animal sanctuary is a registered charity dedicated to saving at-risk and abused animals.
The four-acre volunteer-run farm has more than 70 animals, including goats, chickens, cows, pigs, turkeys, hens, ducks, cats, and dogs, and one donkey.
More can be found on the sanctuary at www.happyherd.org or the Facebook page “HappyHerdBC.”
Have a story tip? Email: dan.ferguson@langleyadvancetimes.com
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