12-day-old goat missing after Vancouver Island farm's 'snuggle' party
Tiny Nigerian dwarf goat believed to have been stolen during event on Saturday
The owners of a farm on Vancouver Island say one of their baby goats was stolen during a snuggle event at their home over the weekend.
Rebecca and Justin Dault hosted the event at Yellow Point Farms in Ladysmith, B.C., on Saturday afternoon, opening their property so families could meet, hold and play with their goats.
Rebecca said they realized one of their tiny Nigerian dwarf goats was missing after the crowd had gone. The animal was only 12 days old.
"We just feel violated and feel like we can't trust people now," Rebecca said on Monday morning. "We were working so hard to get it to this point, where we open our farm up ... so it was really tough to take."
Rebecca said she counted about 50 guests during the event between 1 and 3 p.m. She said the goat couldn't have wandered away from the pasture and that it's unlikely any predators were around, given the crowd.
The missing kid weighs about six pounds. Rebecca said she can't think of why someone would take him, aside from his fur.
"He's a very rare, uniquely coloured one, so maybe because of that. Maybe the person just didn't want to let it go. They're so tiny that maybe it just fell asleep in their arms ... or maybe it was pre-planned because it's a very unique and beautiful goat," she said.
"We have goat yoga and other events and everyone jokes about a 'kid-napping' and stuff but we can't believe this has actually happened."
The goat has blue eyes and a gold-coloured coat with dark moonspots, as well as a strip of white fur on its left side. It still needs its mother's milk and had already been claimed for adoption.
Rebecca said the kid's mother has been wandering around the farm bleating since her baby went missing.
The Daults have filed a police report.