Young Kid, Broken Pelvis

Well, there's a video on page 3 if you care to see them all. ;-)

 

So a long-overdue update on Butterfly... She healed very well over the summer but it's obvious she will never be "normal". She can run, jump, and climb as well as any other baby goat but has trouble standing on her hind legs without support. I worked with her a little on this to encourage those muscles and help her figure out how to balance with a wobbly pelvis. Either it's fused in the wrong spot or not really fused at all but her tendons, ligaments, and muscles are doing everything to make up for the problems in bone structure. Standing on her hind legs was obviously not painful, but she wobbled abnormally which makes me think her pelvis never actually fused back together. Helping her learn how to balance on her hind legs despite the lack of good pelvic support was a fun "physical therapy" exercise for both of us.

She ended up going to a friend of mine in Utah who packs goats (he sometimes posts photo montages here) and her brother George went with her. George is an AWESOME brother! When we went to their new home, the new owner had a German Shepherd that was overly curious and a little too rambunctious. With mama now out of the picture, George stepped in as Butterfly's protector. He repeatedly put himself between Butterfly and the dog and he actually hit the dog a few times when it came too close. He's the youngest goat I've seen to stand up to a dog that size. He also put himself between Butterfly and other goats that might be aggressive. George is aggressive at the food dish and won't let anyone else eat--except Butterfly. She can share his food any time.

I'll have to post some photos because Butterfly accompanied us on some of our hikes in Utah and she was every bit as bold and athletic as George and the other goats. Her rump has a funny round shape to it but otherwise you'd never know she spent the first part of her life crippled. I'm so happy for her!

 

She's 3/4 Alpine, 1/4 Nubian. I LOVE her long, delicate ears. They are some of the most graceful I have ever seen. She's long and delicate in every way so the name Butterfly really suits her. It's lucky she has such a slender build because I believe her lightweight frame is what allowed her to not only heal quickly but even retain her athleticism despite such a severe injury.

 

She's not old enough to carry a pack, but perhaps when she's full grown she might carry a light pack for day hikes. She'll mostly be a pet though I think.

 

I forgot until now that I never actually posted these photos of Butterfly playing on the boulders in Utah last September. She did amazing on that trip and no one could outrun, outclimb, or outjump her!





Look at her climb, catlike, down this almost vertical rock face!


Brother George thinks it's all about him (look at that pose!), but no, it's all about his nimble sister!




I hear that Butterfly continues to thrive in her new home. I don't know if her life will be long, but I know it will be filled with excitement and adventure and happiness.