With extremely broken hearts, we regret to inform everyone that we have really horrible news … Thursday morning we woke up to finding our beautiful and amazing Cookies and Cream had passed away! We are ABSOLUTELY DEVASTATED! As it says in this video, “A Beautiful Girl Makes a Beautiful World!” And without her, our world is CRUSHED!
Cookie was only seven years old (almost eight), VERY well cared for with very healthy foods, herbs, minerals and vitamins. Her coat was shiny, appetite was good and she showed NO signs of any distraught whatsoever. In fact, we have cameras in their barn, so we can check them regularly and she was up at 10pm Wednesday night for her regular nighttime snack of fresh grass hay to help keep them warm. We are in absolute SHOCK and DESPAIR!
The vet came and reviewed all of her behaviors, foods, shelter, weather and did an exam. There were no apparent reasons, so we suspect she had a heart attack (which I am finding out can happen with no signs). Goats generally live until 8-14, so we had hoped she would make it to 14 like our JellyBean did. We cannot believe this happened!
We don’t have kids, so our girls are our babies! And I am very ill and homebound, so these girls are my children, best friends and my joy in life. In the face of my daily life of losses, unbearable pain and isolation, they have always been here for me to snuggle and literally wrap themselves around me with their complete and unwavering LOVE! Their desire to be with me and love me have given me reason to fight another day, so they would never experience losing their Mommy.
“The Adventures of Pumpkin and Cookie” has been the only thing left in my life that I could do from time to time. Posting photos, GIFS and videos gave me GREAT JOY and PURPOSE IN LIFE! … Now that’s GONE!
I don’t know how I will cope! But I do know that right now, I have to focus on my only purpose today and that is to comfort my precious, sweet, loving, one-in-a-million baby, Pumpkin and help her through this grief as much as I humanly can.
My husband Wayne and I have taken turns being with Pumpkin all during the day since Cookie passed, giving her love and helping her through her sheer loss. When the sun goes down, we sit with her in the barn until it becomes too cold for us, then we tuck her in and she goes to sleep. We check her regularly on the camera to make sure she is OK.
We replaced the large igloo with one that is smaller and won’t feel as empty. We put some of our clothes in there for familiar scent and lots of straw. She has been very tired and yesterday she wouldn’t eat her hay or broccolini (which is not normal at all), but we were able to get some grass hay pellets, pumpkin seeds, apple cider vinegar water, cabbage, flax seeds, a tiny bit of organic no sugar peanut butter and little organic popcorn down her.
Pumpkin and Cookie were inseparable! Never did they let the other out of their sight! If one went around a corner, the other would cry out loudly and in a panic to find the other! They grazed together, napped together, took sun-baths together, slept together and ate together. Though Cookie was mostly in charge, even when she was done grazing, she graciously layed down and waited for Pumpkin to finish. They were partners, best friends and sisters (not by blood), together 24×7. Pumpkin is lost. There are NO others like this DYNAMIC DUO! We are beside ourselves in GRIEF!
We knew one would eventually pass before the other, but we had NO idea it would happen this soon! So now we are faced with looking for another companion for her to snuggle with and take adventures with. There is NO OTHER like Cookie! She can’t be replaced! And bringing another goat onto our property is very scary to us! Pumpkin is our baby and we will take every precaution to get the healthiest, friendliest buddy possible. We will also make sure SHE is happy with the goat and do what SHE wants. We will keep you all informed.
Thank you all for allowing us to share our Cookie and thank you for showing us how much you care! She was SO SPECIAL! Our hearts are BROKEN FOREVER! Please keep Pumpkin and us in your thoughts and prayers.
“If you were a goat, where would you like to take a nap? On the hard ground or a soft, cushy bench where Mommy stores her lounge chair pads and pillows? Ya, me too! I feel like I am floating on a cloud! I am Princess Pumpkin and life is good!”
Love, Pumpkin
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UNBELIEVABLE!! Two years ago, Snickers had stopped eating, was having tremors, couldn’t walk and her heart rate was 200! We took her to the ER and they brought in a cardiac specialist. They said she would not live without a pacemaker, due to a very severe heart condition.
Yet, even doing an MRI or giving her sedation would most likely be fatal. They also said even if she got the pacemaker, it wouldn’t resolve her seizures. They suspected she had either a brain tumor or brain injury (when she fell off the couch), as well as cancer.
She already hadn’t eaten for a couple of days, so they suggested we let her go. I told them I wanted to bring her home for a couple of days and let her say goodbye to Grammy. I also wanted to see if I could make her better, even though they said there was no way she would get better.
I also consulted 2 of my other vets and got the same prognosis. I wasn’t going to allow her to start starving to death, because that is inhumane and torturous. So, we had drawn a line to give me time to see if I could make a difference.
I gave her supplements, enzymes and probiotics through a syringe, carried her around and held her up while she went potty. Within a day and a half, she wanted to eat something! I took her to my amazing vet and he agreed whatever I was doing was helping, but this fatal heart condition is not treatable and he cautioned me that she still probably didn’t more than a few weeks. So, put her on a super healthy diet and because she wouldn’t eat her beloved vitamins she used to beg for, I had to keep giving her a few in a syringe and in her water. Most of all, So, we decided to love on her every day like it was her last!
Two years later, she is still here with us and running around like a puppy! We have to keep her calmed down or her heart rate goes to 200 and it stops and she stops breathing. I have to do heart massages several times a day and often CPR. Between her seizures, heart failure, passing out, dementia, low eyesight, blood sugar drops and needing to be fed eight times a day, she is a TON OF WORK!! But she wags her tail every morning and is happy to be alive! As long as she is happy, I will do my best to care for her!
Needless to say, my vet is astonished she is still here! All the facts pointed to her not having a chance. But doesn’t he know? She is Snickers the Mighty Super-Dog!
Comic strip from 2015. Click on the above image to enlarge.
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Pumpkin Pie is my sweet Nigerian Dwarf Goat, we just call her Pumpkin for short!. Pumpkin is not only gorgeous, but she is incredibly smart, hilarious and sweet! I have enjoyed her so much that I have made lots of videos of Pumpkin and couldn’t resist sharing them with the world!We have clips of her doing everything from plotting a mission impossible escape to jumping and sliding down the slide to pottying in a litter-box! She’s a hoot!
Not only that, Pumpkin and her sista’ Cookie have written a book, The Adventures of Pumpkin and Cookie: Cookie Doesn’t Want to Be a Goat! Pumpkin encourages Cookie to be herself and be proud she is a goat and children learn a great lesson. Moreover, Pumpkin and Cookie are out to help other goats find loving homes like theirs by selling the books to raise money for animal rescues and other non-profit organizations!
Pumpkin’s favorite treats are … you guessed it! Pumpkin seeds!! She also likes green apples, celery, black oil sunflower seeds and alfalfa pellets.
She is such a cuddle bug! I have had friendly and loving goats, but she is incredible! She adores kisses all over her face! I can’t get enough of her and she is always asking me to come outside for a visit. She talks and talks to me through the windows when I am inside. We have two lounge chairs on the patio. She gets on one and puts her head on her Princess Pumpkin Pillow then takes a nap with Mommy! She would sleep in my bed with me if I let her! She is definitely a Momma’s girl, here to give me love and joy!
As you can see, Pumpkin is quite the gal! But she doesn’t really know how famous she is. All she knows is that Mommy is very ill and mostly home-bound due to Multiple Sclerosis and Lyme Disease. So she greets me every day with lots of bleets, hugs, kissies and will cuddle with me for hours!
Pumpkin brings me so much joy that I can’t help myself but tell the world how amazing she is!
It’s true! Pumpkin and Cookie are on their way to stardom!
Check out their brand new Facebook Page! Enjoy this page for hours of fun for your kids, grand kids and yourself! Find lots of pictures, videos and hilarious conversations between the adorable Pumpkin and Cookie!
Go on lots of journeys, as Pumpkin and Cookie plot a Mission Impossible Escape, show off their jumping and sliding skills and many other shenanigans! You won’t believe how cute and intelligent these babies are!
Come with me on a journey of where and how Pumpkin and Cookie became a part of our family. Enjoy!
We decided it was time to have some babies in our lives! I scoured all the nearby Nigerian Dwarf Goat farms to find just the right ones. We drove around looking and looking for people who raised these precious creatures with care and lots of love.
Then I found Black Forest Rascals online. I was watching their page as they added pictures of their babies as they were born. I feel in love with this red and white doe immediately! I knew she was just what I was looking for. After what I had been through with losing our miniature horse, I thought it would be very appropriate to have a baby with similar colors – red and white paint with blue eyes.
I sent them an email and we hopped in the car to go see her and some others south of us. Sadly, the owners didn’t get my email until the next day. Apparently, someone else came in the meantime and said they wanted this little baby!
But I had my heart set on her. I just knew she was meant to be. The next week, we went down there to visit the farm. Just before we left, the owner, Deb told me on the phone that she talked with the person who had said she wanted her and she said she would pick another if I really wanted her! Wow!
Of course, we got there and there was still no doubt she was going home with us! It was love at first site for her and Daddy, too! The only hang-up was that she was super shy. With my experience with my late Oreo, I know that when they leave the farm shy, they usually stay that way. They need to be worked with as infants.
Deb and her daughter Alison love their goats, take very good care of them and take the time to socialize them. Without hesitation, they offered to commit to working with her until we were able to pick her up at 8 weeks old! Yay!!
Long story short, we still needed another to go with her, we couldn’t decide until one of them jumped up in my lap and made herself comfortable. Next thing we know, she jumps in Wayne’s lap! So SHE chose us!
Watch the video above for a story-book look at our journey!
Thank you, Lil Forest Rascals in Black Forest, CO for raising healthy, happy and loving babies! www.LilForestRascals.com
We are so glad the goats were evacuated before the Black Forest Fire reached Lil Forest Rascals. But our hearts go out to you for losing your home, out-buildings and cattle to this horrific fire in June 2013. The fire burned 16,000 acres, over 500 homes, killed 2 people and many animals.
Got to see this precious baby today! Remember her from my page with the pink sweater? Yep! I loved on her today! And I met an amazing gal, Jennifer and her family from GTO Ranch! Thank you Jennifer! What a blessing!