Saving Izzy
Donation protected
Get day to day updates on Izzy on Instagram! His name is izhe_izzy - look him up!
ABOUT IZZY
Izzy is a baby goat, born with the future of a meat goat at -25 degrees on the night of January 10th. His name, Izzy, or “Is he” was coined from the constant questions, “Is he going to live through the night?” “Is he going to walk?” “Is he going to be able to keep up with his mother to nurse?”
Izzy was born the smaller of two twins, with a muscle paralysis in his back legs caused by a nutrition problem. Unable to tuck his legs under him in his stall, his legs suffered from frostbite on that first cold night.
As is custom on many meat ranches that have injured animals, Izzy’s fate was to be put down; he was given a chance to regain some strength on his own at nature’s will, but if his improvement was not vast, he would be put down by the next morning.
I saw a special spirit in Izzy, and finally with his owner’s permission, I worked to rehabilitate him myself through creating custom braces and stretching his muscles and working them using water resistance. The great news was that Izzy he was able to learn o walk on all 4 legs! He regained full use of his back legs, and was released with his mother. I couldn't have been more proud of this little guy's spirit. Sadly, the days were cold and Izzy's inital 'run in' with frostbite on the night he was born meant he was susceptible to frostbite much more quickly than his sibling. Izzy again, now walking on 4 legs, endured stave 4 frostbite on his back legs, and he again faced being put down.
Eventually, I was able to convince his owner to allow me to adopt Izzy rather than put him down. As soon as I had full control over Izzy's future, I wisked him away to a vet, who assured me that my decision to save him was a wise one, and that he deserved a chance.
Izzy made incredible progress in his short life; he started his life dragging his back legs behind him, progressed to walking 'club footed' and then with bracing and rehab, he was a happy 4-legged goat, running full steam. The diagnosis of stage 4 frostbite was hard to hear, because it meant that he would lose his backlegs from the shin down.
When his back feet died and he was no longer able to feel them, he proceeded to walk on only two legs; impressing me with his determination to continue moving. Through more rehabilitation and training, I trained him to walk on his back legs, despite not being able to feel them. The reason for this is because when he grows up, he will have prosthetics and must learn to trust his back limbs.
Izzy's back legs naturally seperated along the line of frostbite between the dead tissue and the live tissue. Within two days of each other, the started to 'fall off' and Dr. Meyring surgically assisted their removal to keep Izzy comfortable. It's unbelievable, but Izzy immediately accepted the temporary prosthetics we vet-wrapped to his legs, just 2 days after his second surgery. The little guy has full intention of spending his life on 4 legs.
Izzy's legs are not his only hardship. Each week we seem to find a new hurdle to jump, but his spirit is incredible and he makes it through just as you would expect of a goat; with determination and stubborness.
Izzy will need aditional prosthetics; right now he is 9 lbs, and he may someday grow to be over 200. This fund is to help keep Izzy walking, and will pay for his medical bills as well as future prosthetics. Any additional funds will be used to help other Ranch and Farm animals that may not have otherwise have a chance to live.
ABOUT IZZY
Izzy is a baby goat, born with the future of a meat goat at -25 degrees on the night of January 10th. His name, Izzy, or “Is he” was coined from the constant questions, “Is he going to live through the night?” “Is he going to walk?” “Is he going to be able to keep up with his mother to nurse?”
Izzy was born the smaller of two twins, with a muscle paralysis in his back legs caused by a nutrition problem. Unable to tuck his legs under him in his stall, his legs suffered from frostbite on that first cold night.
As is custom on many meat ranches that have injured animals, Izzy’s fate was to be put down; he was given a chance to regain some strength on his own at nature’s will, but if his improvement was not vast, he would be put down by the next morning.
I saw a special spirit in Izzy, and finally with his owner’s permission, I worked to rehabilitate him myself through creating custom braces and stretching his muscles and working them using water resistance. The great news was that Izzy he was able to learn o walk on all 4 legs! He regained full use of his back legs, and was released with his mother. I couldn't have been more proud of this little guy's spirit. Sadly, the days were cold and Izzy's inital 'run in' with frostbite on the night he was born meant he was susceptible to frostbite much more quickly than his sibling. Izzy again, now walking on 4 legs, endured stave 4 frostbite on his back legs, and he again faced being put down.
Eventually, I was able to convince his owner to allow me to adopt Izzy rather than put him down. As soon as I had full control over Izzy's future, I wisked him away to a vet, who assured me that my decision to save him was a wise one, and that he deserved a chance.
Izzy made incredible progress in his short life; he started his life dragging his back legs behind him, progressed to walking 'club footed' and then with bracing and rehab, he was a happy 4-legged goat, running full steam. The diagnosis of stage 4 frostbite was hard to hear, because it meant that he would lose his backlegs from the shin down.
When his back feet died and he was no longer able to feel them, he proceeded to walk on only two legs; impressing me with his determination to continue moving. Through more rehabilitation and training, I trained him to walk on his back legs, despite not being able to feel them. The reason for this is because when he grows up, he will have prosthetics and must learn to trust his back limbs.
Izzy's back legs naturally seperated along the line of frostbite between the dead tissue and the live tissue. Within two days of each other, the started to 'fall off' and Dr. Meyring surgically assisted their removal to keep Izzy comfortable. It's unbelievable, but Izzy immediately accepted the temporary prosthetics we vet-wrapped to his legs, just 2 days after his second surgery. The little guy has full intention of spending his life on 4 legs.
Izzy's legs are not his only hardship. Each week we seem to find a new hurdle to jump, but his spirit is incredible and he makes it through just as you would expect of a goat; with determination and stubborness.
Izzy will need aditional prosthetics; right now he is 9 lbs, and he may someday grow to be over 200. This fund is to help keep Izzy walking, and will pay for his medical bills as well as future prosthetics. Any additional funds will be used to help other Ranch and Farm animals that may not have otherwise have a chance to live.
Organizer
Rory Clow
Organizer
Steamboat Springs, CO
