Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Monkey is Found Alive


As I was filling a bunny bottle with water late this afternoon I was sweet talking Baby Thunder who was keeping me company. I heard a muffled goat sound right above me! I was sure I was imagining it, then I talked to Baby Thunder again and heard the little bleat again. My heart leaped but I was still cautious - but what else could it be? The hay mow was above me, and I knew it was filled with bales - but there was a live goat up there. It must be Monkey! I ran in the house and called Matt, who, as luck would have it, decided to get tires tonight. He had an hour wait in front of him, then an hour ride home. What to do, what to do. For some reason I poured a jug of water, climbed up to the hay mow, then realized I could barely climb over the mountain of bales with two hands and legs. I started climbing and lost the jug as the bales shifted and my feet fell into holes between the bales. The bales are up to the ceiling so I had to dislodge a bale to climb down the other side. The only way down to the floor, where I heard the voice, was a space against the wall. I slipped and slid with, incredibly, Holly and Izzy, climbing behind me (loyal dogs, or very curious). I got down to the floor and wondered how in the world I was going to get to her - but I just had to. There was some space in the corner where I could stand and pile bales behind me. I called her name and heard a murmur, and pulled bales away. I thought surely the whole mountain will come down on us, but they were piled so thick and high the weight held the bales together. But that made it harder to pull them away near the floor. It took some doing, with dogs sitting on bales beside me and panting on my neck, but I was able to reach her head. What a sight - those little black horns and tufts of curly hair sticking out from under a bale. My little Monkey. Her eyes were dazed but open. She looked pretty good considering she was buried under all that weight for three days!!! Now what to do with her. I pulled hard on both horns and she started to move. More pulling and she was free from her prison. After I hugged and loved on her a bit, I started pulling her limp body over the mountain of hay, back the way I came. It was quite a struggle, with my feet going down in between bales and Monkey bumping along. I got her out on the grass and stood her up. She fell back down limp. I ran to get her some water, and when I came back she was standing up! She drank a WHOLE GALLON of water! I got her some oatmeal, bunny pellets, and, her absolute favorite, dry cat food. She nibbled a little, then lay down exhausted. I sat with her a couple of minutes, but then I had to leave her to let the sheep out to graze and watch them. When last I checked, she was lying under the wool sorting table, nibbling on the greens around her. I am so thankful to have my Monkey back. She wasn't eaten by a mountain lion after all. I've discussed with Matt how important it is to check the barn for animals then close the barn doors before offloading hay. Now to find Barack Obama...

5 comments:

  1. Anonymous7:57 AM

    Oh thank goodness!!!!!!!!! I am so happy for all of you. Give Velvet an extra handful of kitty food for me!

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  2. Glad you were able to find her in time, prolly without water wouldn't have made it to much longer.

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  3. Anonymous1:43 PM

    It sounds like a miracle to me. You were in the right spot at the right time to here her cry.

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  4. I'm so glad you found her!
    Several years ago the hay guy parked a loaded hay wagon in my small barn. The wagon barely fit. There was NO room to get by it. Same story, missing sheep, where could she be? 2-3 days later, I hear her bleating in the barn. Had to crawl under the wagon to get to her. The guys didn't make sure all creatures were out before they closed the doors. Men!

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