Blind goat stolen from Alberta animal sanctuary

WETASKIWIN, Alta. — An animal sanctuary south of Edmonton is offering a $10,000 no-questions-asked reward for the return of a blind goat named Daisy.

Melissa Foley, founder of the Farm Animal Rescue and Rehoming Movement near Wetaskiwin, said the sevenmonth-old goat had her eyes and tongue eaten by crows shortly after she was born, which has left her with many special needs.

“If we can’t get somebody to bring a blind goat forward for $10,000, I honestly don’t know what will make it happen,” Foley said. “That’s a lot of money for us and that’s something that we are going to have to deal with, but Daisy is worth it. We will do whatever we can to get her home.”

Foley said Daisy vanished Sunday night from the rescue group’s property about 10 minutes outside of town.

Neighbours told her they saw a vehicle they didn’t recognize at the home and heard dogs barking, then found the gate was closed incorrectly.

Foley said Daisy gets by with the help and companionship of her best friend, a sheep named Merlin, who has been blind since birth.

But Daisy struggles more, Foley said, because she had her sight and then lost it.

“She has a lot of maladaptive behaviours where she will get spinning in circles and screaming and she hurts herself, so we have medications and routines and things she needs 24 hours a day to keep her happy with the life that she has.”

Merlin hasn’t been himself since Daisy disappeared.

“Crying a lot and baaah-ing,” Foley said. “Just a little bit off.”

Foley is asking for the public to be on the lookout for the goat.

Searchers have been out since the animal disappeared and they planned to start knocking on doors in Wetaskiwin on Tuesday. The Canadian Press