Ray, the Most Beautiful Christmas Goose


This is the story of a Goose named Ray who was rescued from a dismal situation. She was born without eyes and had a condition called angel wings. She languished in a pet store for months until Shanti, a kind person, rescued her and brought her to River's Wish.

We set Ray up in a grassy yard with predator proof netting and six foot fencing surrounding the area. She had a kiddy pool to splash in. Volunteers would spend time with Ray. One of her favorite things was being held and letting her neck curl around someone's shoulder. Still, we were concerned for Ray's happiness because she was alone. And while the weather was nice during the summer and fall, we worried about her comfort in the winter. Winters can be very harsh in the Inland Northwest.

I called my friend Christine who works at Harvest Home Animal Sanctuary in California. Christine is very knowledgeable about birds and their sanctuary cares for a wide variety of birds. Christine discussed the possibility of Ray moving to the sanctuary with the director, Karen. They agreed that they could welcome Ray to their sunny California oasis. I was thrilled. Knowing that Ray would have sunny weather year round with many 'birds of a feather', gave me deep gratitude.

Getting Ray to California took some work. Eventually we were able to make it happen, just before Christmas. This is what we shared on facebook at the time of the transport:

Ray will be spreading her wings toward a new life, a beautiful life, a deserving life, this Christmas time. Something special is happening between two sanctuaries this Christmas. You may recall Ray the young blind goose with angel wings who was brought into our refuge last summer. Ray enjoyed her summer with a predator proof, grassy yard and a pool to splash in. But once the cold weather began to hit our part of the country it was evident that we needed to seek a better climate for this special girl. In addition to this, Ray was pretty much alone with the exception of a few hens. Ray needed a goose friend, the sun and a pool to play in year round. Our friends at Harvest Home Animal Sanctuary in California had one lonely goose, had sun and had a pool. Now the trick was getting Ray there. As luck has it Sue Anderson is going to the west side and will take Ray with her and will have Dick Green drive Ray from Seattle to Santa Rosa, likely on Christmas day.
This afternoon we took Ray to get her health certificate. Dr. Luther McConnell at the Animal Clinic of Spokane gave her a thorough examination and she passed with flying colors.
The next leg of Ray's journey will be driving her to Seattle and sending her on her way to sunny California. We will update you on her journey and her new life in the sun, with a friend, splashing in the water. This is the kind of Christmas Goose that we wish for all.

Ray made her trip successfully, thanks to the efforts of so many. It was obviously the right move for Ray, because the day after she arrived there, she laid her first egg!

We tune into Harvest Home http://harvesthomesanctuary.org/category/animals/sanctuary-animals/geese/ to see how she is doing. She is happy. She is joyful. 

Thank you Harvest Home, Karen and Christine, for giving Ray the very best!



Comments

  1. The world is a far better place for good people like these...Thank you :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. The world is a far better place for good people like these...Thank you :-)

    ReplyDelete

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