Saving Zoe the baby burro

It is wonderful how a few words with a new acquaintance can lead to an incredible story. Last week at a car dealership we happened to meet Richard Gardner. We talked about the fires burning locally, and it turns out that the flames were sparking the forest around his home and he had to evacuate all of his animals. He rescues burros and has a menagerie of critters in his care.

Richard proceeded to tell us the most heartwarming story about a baby burro named Zoe.

The story began in August 2013 when the Gardner’s adopted three burros at the BLM Palomino Valley Center. As the winter arrived, they realized Lexi, one of the burros, was pregnant.

Lexi’s foal arrived in April, and they named her Zoe, which means life in Greek. Zoe needed plasma infusions on day two and by day four, she was walking on the toes of her hind legs because of a wound. The wound was around the pastern bone, which reduced her flexibility.

The emergency vet splinted her legs to stabilize the tendons and treated the wound.

Dr. Ian Lafoon at Large Animal Veterinary Services took Zoe to his home for further treatment. Unfortunately, her condition did not improve and amputating her foot was necessary.

Equines cannot survive with just three legs so Zoe would need a prosthetic in order to survive.

Getting a prosthetic for Zoe was a major decision, because they wanted her to have a normal life. After researching the procedures, Richard and his wife decided to proceed. They drove 1,400 miles to the Rocky Mountain Equine Hospital in Sheridan, Wyoming where Dr. Ted Vlahos would operate on Zoe.

The first surgery went well and Zoe was able to put weigh on the prosthetic. Sadly, the other foot developed the same problem necessitating amputation of her other hind foot. To everyone’s relief her second surgery was successful.

Zoe has become the princess of prosthetics, and she is surviving and flourishing with her two new rear legs. You can see Zoe in all of her glory on the Facebook page; Saving Zoe the Baby Burro. The moral of this story is, kindness never fails.

IN NEED OF

Bleach and cleaning supplies for our kennels.

Cat food for our furry guests.

Aluminum cans. If you have cans to pick up, give us a call (775-423-7500) and we will come get them. You can also drop them off at CAPS.

Everyone to sign up for the AmazonSmile program. The details are below.

SHOUT OUT TO

East of Egypt for picking up garage sale items. A big bark of thanks to you!

The Multiple Sclerosis Society for picking up garage sale items. A pooch smooch to you!

COME SEE US

CAPS is open, by appointment only, for adoptions, SNAPS, and food pantry. We cannot accept volunteers until further notice. Call 775-423-7500.

DON’T FORGET

November Pet Holiday: National Adoption Month

Register in the AmazonSmile program, a website operated by Amazon. Customers enjoy the same selection of products, low prices, and shopping features as on Amazon.com. The only difference is that when you shop on AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com), the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to the charitable organization selected by you.

You can donate directly to CAPS on Facebook by just hitting the donate button. You are our guardian angels, and we thank you for your support!

CONTACT CAPS

CAPS’ mailing address is P.O. Box 5128, Fallon, NV 89407. CAPS’ phone number is 775-423-7500. CAPS’ email address is caps@cccomm.net. Please visit the CAPS website (www.capsnevada.com) and Facebook page (Churchill Animal Protection Society). Be sure to “Like” CAPS on Facebook because we are likeable.

CAPS is open to the public on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Kathleen Williams-Miller is a CAPS volunteer. Contact me at jkwmil@outlook.com.