When Helena Lundblad got the call asking if her she would take in an orphaned baby goat, her answer was (obviously) “yes”!
She had never taken care of a goat before— but as the founder of a nonprofit animal rescue named Magical Creatures of Hamukua, taking in animals in need is simply a part of her job.
The tiny goat was found all alone at a campsite, and her mother was nowhere in sight. She was only 4 lbs and her umbilical cord was still attached, so she definitely needed some help. Although the goat was young, she seemed to be in good health— but, little did anyone realize, that was sadly not the case.
“I have never taken care of a baby goat before […] When I picked her up, she looked perfectly fine,” Helena told The Dodo.
The tiny goat was named Janice and she immediately became a part of the family. As far as everyone knew, Janice had been healthy— but it soon became apparent that she couldn’t walk very well on her own.
Upon closer inspection, Janice’s hooves seemed to be giving her some trouble. Helena wasn’t sure what had happened or what to do, so she immediately brought the goat to a vet for help. “My head is spinning. I have no idea what is attacking her hooves!” Helena wrote in an Instagram post.
Helena started doing some research and realized Janice’s feet had been burnt. She hypothesized Janice had been trying to keep warm at the campsite and had jumped into a fire pit by mistake.
“She must have jumped into their fire pit, at the camping spot,” Helena told the Dodo.
“All legs got burned. It was a miracle her whole body didn’t catch on fire,”
“I brought her to the vet, he couldn’t really do much, but she’s gonna lose at least one hoof,” Helena said.
Unfortunately, the vet was right, and Janice did lose a couple of hooves and was fitted with prosthetics soon after.
The little goat had trouble adjusting to the change, but, luckily, hope was on the horizon— and it was in the form of Helena’s two family cats!
Joey and Chandler Bing, as the two felines were named, immediately took a liking to their new roommate. Janice wasn’t quite up and about yet, so the cats would lay with her and offer warm cuddles and company.
It seemed that as Joey and Chandler comforted Janice, the little goat became strong.
It was almost as if those kitties knew exactly what they were doing, and their company gave Janice the strength she needed to keep fighting through her difficult recovery.
“I would just carry her [Janice] with me everywhere, but if I had to leave the house for just a few minutes, I would put Joey down next to her and when I came back, he was always there.”
“He just stayed with her.”
Joey, Helena’s black panther kitty, took a particular interest in Janice.
Joey never left Janice’s side, and he watched over his little buddy like a hawk. Soon enough, the two animals were completely bonded, and now they’re inseparable best friends.
In an amazing way, it turned out that kitty cuddles and bonding were all that Janice needed to heal. Soon after the kitties started caring for Janice, she tried walking… and was with complete success!
Walking soon turned into running— and with two cats cheering her to victory, Janice shocked everyone with her recovery!
I am always amazed by how intuitive and caring cats are. Whether it’s a human, fellow kitty, or another animal in need, they always seem dedicated and willing to help.
When Janice first lost her hooves, no one was sure how the little goat would react. Luckily, with the help of Joey and Chandler, she made the recovery no one thought possible.
Hear their heartwarming story below!
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