Ten years ago, I helped feed Magnolia her first bottle. And last week, I was present as Magnolia took her last breath.
When I first met Magnolia, she stood on wobbly legs and stared at me with the gentlest eyes.
Born a twin to a male calf, she would never get pregnant and was of no use to the dairy farm.
We brought Magnolia home to Animal Place, where she bonded quickly with Shelby, another calf. Magnolia was the kindest cow.
She welcomed every new cow with open hooves. Even our shyest, Azalea, allowed Magnolia into her circle. If you ever came to an event and met the cows, she would be the first I’d introduce you to.
I hope you will bear with me as I navigate asking for your help.
I want you to know that we did everything possible to help Magnolia, but something struck me during that six-hour vigil.
There was something that would have been helpful in those final hours – bigger gates.
Magnolia went down in a back pasture. We tried to get Magnolia up using our large animal sling and tractor. She was given fluids, calcium, steroids, epinephrine, B-vitamins, and every opportunity to stand. But she just couldn’t.
The nearest gate is barely wide enough for our small tractor to squeeze through but wasn’t large enough for our veterinarian’s truck to get in. And it would not have been large enough for our trailer.
I hope you will consider a donation – of any size – in memory of Magnolia to install two gates at this location and help replace 8-10 other gates with larger ones.
Every replacement would allow an emergency vehicle, like a fire truck, or a large trailer access to pastures with animals. To purchase and install each gate will cost $250 per gate.
This includes the raw cost of the gate and equipment to remove posts.
