I think we can all agree that baby goats are adorable. Something about the little furballs' spunk amuses the living snot out of us. But there is something especially captivating about a disabled baby goat being given the opportunity to live its life to the fullest. They take us from squealing children sharing pictures on Facebook to empathetic fans deeply invested in the life story of a real animal. Take the 260,000 followers of the @goatsofanarchy Instagram account for example.
Leanne Lauricella started the Goats of Anarchy Instagram in 2014, after adopting her first baby goats, Jax and Opie. What started off as simply a loving home for pets became much, much more as she quit a well-paying job and adopted her first rescue goats, Ansel and Petal (pictured below). She devoted her time rescuing innocent baby goats from abusive and unhealthy conditions, rehabilitating them and teaching them that there really is love in the world. Ansel and Petal were found in a backyard starving to death among hundreds of other mistreated, dying, and dead animals. Like heroes in capes, Leanne, Barnyard Sanctuary, and several other angels swooped in to save the over 150 poor animals that survived the ordeal. Since then, Ansel and Petal have grown into happy, healthy adult goats in Leanne's care. Just look at Petal's smile!
After the rescue of Ansel and Petal, the Goats of Anarchy farm continued to expand as they rescued more and more goats from similarly abusive situations. However, the farm's mission changed after the addition of two special needs babies, Chibs and Lyla. Chibs and Lyla were born with leg deformities and their owner couldn't take care of them, and of course, who could say no to their little faces? Chibs had contracted legs that made it hard for him to walk, but fortunately they corrected themselves. Lyla, on the other hand, is a different story. She is missing her entire back left leg, hip, and part of her pelvis, has a shortened spine, and had a hole in her belly that was leaking urine. With so many issues, Lyla had to make a lot of vet trips, which means there were a lot of vet bills.
After Lyla, new special needs babies began to flood in. And during all of this, Leanne was trying to get the Goats of Anarchy Special Needs Baby Goat Rescue registered as a non-profit and move to a new house, build a new barn, a new fence, and playground. With all of the new expenses, she set up a GoFundMe to help afford the moving, construction, and veterinary costs. If you appreciate her work and enjoy her account, please consider donating to help her sweet little goats. If you can't afford to donate, please share this article (normally I don't ask for people to share the article within it, but this is a special case). The more people who hear about the GOA Rescue, the more donations we can raise! After receiving three new babies last week, donations would go a long way to helping these little babies.
Here are the newest GOA babies who your donations would go to:
Angel
Angel lost her back left leg and half of her back right leg due to frost bite. She is forced to use her little pink cart until she stops growing and can get a prosthetic. Until then, she's a sweet and happy little potato.
Abel
Abel and his mother Alley were found with untreated injuries amoung other abused goats in a man's backyard. When all of the animals were rescued, Alley and Abel were adopted into the GOA family. Abel's foot was probably wrapped in wire and was severely damaged, and Alley got her eyelid caught on a fence. Both are healed and have settled in nicely to their new home.
Miles
Miles was born with severely contracted front legs and could barely walk because of them. He received a surgery that cut the tendons in his legs to straighten them out. He has been on splints for 10 weeks now, but is healing well. He has circulation through his legs, but may not have much feeling in them. That doesn't stop him from being a spunky little kid, though!
Linc
Linc was run over by a truck and suffered a broken leg because of it. He would have been slaughtered if Leanne and Caitlin Stewart of Rancho Relaxo didn't step in and save him, his mom, and a dying piglet. Linc is still afraid of people, but is getting around with a cast on his leg.
Pilot
Like Angel, Pilot lost parts of both back legs to frost bite, along with his ears. He will be getting prosthetics soon to help him walk around - but for now, he's getting around with pool noodles attached to his nubs to help him train for normal walking.
Polly
The newest addition, Polly is blind and very, very cute. She has some light sensitivity, but other than that likely cannot see anything. She was born in May and is very tiny for her age and still has to be kept inside and bottle fed. However, she's already a fan favorite!
Again, please donate to https://www.gofundme.com/babygoatrescue or share the word. And don't forget to follow @goatsofanarchy!
