As we were driving down the highway on the way to K's horse class, Kevin and I spotted an obviously injured Canadian goose. We pulled over to the shoulder, grabbed a towel and cautiously walked up to the goose while the children watched us from the van (they are used to our crazy ways by now). The last thing we wanted was for the goose to panic and run onto the highway so we worked together to calm her down and got her all the way over to the barricade on the outside of the shoulder. She sat down and didn't move or hiss at us. It was as if she understood we meant her no harm. Kevin was able to gently wrap her in the towel, avoiding her mutilated wing and scooped her up into his arms. We placed her in the back of the van and continued driving to K's class. We knew that someone at the ranch would know of a safe place we could take her, after all, the ranch was a safe haven to us.
Once we arrived at the ranch K ran off to her class and Kevin asked around about our goose. One of the ranch owners knew of a wild animal sanctuary not too far away and got Kevin in touch with them. Kevin explained the situation over the phone and verified that it was a "no kill facility" (we have rescued quite a few wild animals in various states over the years and have learned our lesson), then he told us the situation, let us say our goodbyes and took our goose to the sanctuary. Of course we all wanted to go, but we knew it was the right thing to do, she was in pain and needed immediate attention.
Kevin called and updated us towards the end of K's class. The people at the sanctuary were taking care of her. They said that once she recovered they would release her back into the wild at a nearby pond. She won't be able to fly with one wing but she will be safe there (she could go out onto the pond and be safe if a predator comes) and among her fellow Canadian geese. While Kevin was at the sanctuary he met a rescued rooster in need of a good home. He fell completely in love with him. He wanted to bring him home with us and start our dream of our own rescued animal sanctuary (Hey, we have already started it with our 5 cats and 4 dogs!), but that's another story for another day.
I chose to name our fragile goose Bethany, after Bethany Hamilton. I know she didn't need a name but it helped me to accept the situation and to stop worrying about her fate, knowing she was in good hands. I have a tendency to worry about anything and everything. By giving her the name of a strong and admirable female I could envision her living out her life fully, safe from predators or hunters, even with an amputated wing. Another fitting name would have been Rechenka after the injured goose who shows Babushka that miracles can really happen in Rechenka's Eggs. Our goose blessed us by allowing us to help her and giving my children a reminder of how important compassion is. They will be receiving this book for Easter this year and I have a feeling they will make the connection.
I know I shared this quote before but it is one of my favorites and so dear to me:
"Not to hurt our humble brethren [the animals] is our first duty to them, but to stop there is not enough. We have a higher mission: to be of service to them whenever they require it." - Saint Francis of Assisi
Oh and on the way back home this happened:
Little L came down with the stomach bug that has been running through our family. He fell asleep on the way home but woke up just before we got to our house. When he came inside he couldn't make it to the bedroom and crashed on a lamby in front of the play kitchen. Kevin set him up with a makeshift bed and nurse Nara came to be with her sick little guy.
