WILLIAMSBURG — Life with Pigs, a local animal sanctuary, recently rescued Huckleberry the lamb, and after some medical issues, Huckleberry now needs the community’s help.
Ryan and Mallory Phillips adopted Huckleberry after seeing a Craigslist posting.
“He was on Craigslist a week before Easter that he was for sale. He is what they consider a meat lamb. He was actually an ideal candidate for someone looking on Craigslist for a lamb to eat. He was the right age for when that would happen. In the ad, they were hoping that he would go to a place where he wouldn’t be eaten. We were able to convince his owner that we wanted to rescue him for our sanctuary,” Ryan said.
As Huckleberry settled in, the two noticed his calm and loving demeanor. He instantly bonded with Annie, the sanctuary’s blind dwarf cow, and the two became inseparable.
The Phillips’ began to notice that Huckleberry was having some medical issues and had a vet come out to take a look. Huckleberry ultimately was diagnosed with bladder stones that required surgery and two lengthy stays at North Carolina State’s veterinary college.
“We noticed that he was kicking a lot. It is something that happens frequently in sheep and goats, but it’s not quite typical for his age. The fact that he wasn’t neutered yet was also a concern. The stones basically block his bladder and within 24 hours, his bladder could rupture and kill him,” Mallory explained.
Ultimately, the stays at the vet and his surgery have cost the couple over $5,000.
“He’s pulled through and has rejoined our herd. At this point, he seems to be in a fairly stable place, but it was touch and go for such a long time. We were ultimately prepared to lose him,” Mallory said.
Huckleberry will need to be monitored for the rest of his life. He has also been put on a specific blend of hay that is geared toward helping care for his specific illness.
“He’s now prone to developing these stones at any time. There is not a well-developed way to deal with these kinds of stones in farm animals. As I’ve researched and spoke with different universities on the best preventatives, one of the things we have to do is really balance the minerals that he gets in his hay. That specialty hay has doubled our feed cost,” Mallory said.
The couple is reaching out to the greater Williamsburg community for financial help towards Huckleberry’s care.
“We run Life with Pigs like this is our family. Part of us knows that we’ve spent over $20,000 in vet bills this year, but we want to do anything we can at any time for our animals,” Ryan said.
Donations towards Huckleberry’s care are accepted on the website, as is the opportunity to sponsor him on a monthly basis. For more information, visit lifewithpigs.com.