May 8, 2008

Photo/Photo Illustration by Pet Pulse

WOODSTOCK, N.Y. – Brooklyn is one of the last places you’d expect to find a male goat wandering the streets, but after being found there originally earmarked as food, Albie is now instead part of a loving home.

“It appeared that he had been hog tied, which is basically where all four legs are tied together,” said Jenny Brown, founder of the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary in upstate New York. “He was probably purchased from a live stock auction and was intended for food, but he escaped.”

Animal Care and Control in New York City called Brown about Albie, and she agreed to take him. A veterinarian, however, determined that his left front leg required amputation, and Albie now has a stump there that is several inches long.

Suddenly, Brown and Albie had a special connection.

“When I was 10 years old, I lost my leg after three years in the hospital with chemotherapy,” Brown said. “So I had to have my leg amputated from the knee down.

“I did feel something really special with Albie, and I didn’t want him to go through life without the leg that he had.”

Since Brown was satisfied with her artificial leg, she called her prosthetics maker, who offered to help Albie – for free. Albie may be one of the only goats in the U.S., if not the world, to be living with a prosthetic leg.

Pet Pulse watched as Albie had a mold taken for his prosthesis by certified prosthetist Eric Tomkins, who made a house call to the animal sanctuary. For now, Albie will use a temporary prosthesis until the permanent one is ready.

“This is my goat bag,” he said, doing some show-and-tell, preparing to examine Albie on a bed of hay in a barn. “And this was Albie’s first cast when he first had his amputation done.

“Okay, relax,” Tomkins told Albie, gently massaging his back.

Tomkins applied a temporary “peg leg” made of wood, fastened to the side of his stump, serving as a brace. It’s a narrow dowel with a rubber tip at the bottom, similar to a walker for humans.

Tomkins says he’s glad to help Albie, especially considering the trauma he’s been through.

“I think the wrong that’s happening in our society, you hear about what they do with animals,” he said. “And in Albie’s case they had hog tied him, which led to the amputation.

“So it was really wrong, and I’ll try to right that wrong if I can.”

Then it was time for Albie to test his new leg.

“So let’s see how Albie does,” Tomkins said, holding out some grain, coaxing him to walk.

Finding the ideal fit could take weeks, even months. For now, though, Albie seemed to be moving well with his new attachment, even hopping smoothly onto a large rock.

“He’s actually doing great!” an excited Tomkins said.

“It took me a long time to get comfortable with my artificial leg, and be able to run and become active and do all the things I really wanted to do,” Brown said.

“And I really want the same thing for Albie.”

To support Albie and the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary, visit woodstockfas.org.
You can also sponsor Albie with monthly payments of $25.

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