April 21, 2004 – September 9, 2021

Eulogy by Susan Wagner

Charlotte, a beloved Pygmy Goat who was part of our family here at Equine Advocates, passed away on Thursday night. She was 17 years old.

We acquired Charlotte and another Pygmy goat named Tuffy towards the end of 2009. It was the first time we had goats here at the sanctuary. They were a lovable and playful pair and everyone here fell in love with them.

However, at the time that she came here, Charlotte had a large dropped udder that needed to be dealt with in order for her to live a normal and healthy life. In 2010, we sent her to Cornell University Hospital for Animals where she underwent a radical mastectomy and a complete hysterectomy as the vets there also found several abnormalities in her reproductive tract. Charlotte did extremely well after her surgery and continued to live a long and happy life. I had been told by a vet that the average lifespan for Pygmy Goats is around 14 – and she lived well past that point. It was last year that her arthritis started to worsen. She had been on the medication Meloxicam which her vet had prescribed to help with her arthritis.

When Tuffy passed away several years ago, we acquired two other goats to keep her company – Jakey and Cello, two Nigerian Dwarf Goats who are brothers. They had been rescued by the Catskill Animal Sanctuary and we adopted them. Charlotte absolutely adored them.

On Thursday night, Charlotte seemed to be listless and not herself. As we could not get a vet to come to the sanctuary, we wrapped her in a blanket and drove her to an emergency clinic that was 30 minutes away. However, by the time we got there, she had passed peacefully and quietly in the back of the car.

Charlotte was the funniest and most adorable goat I ever was around. The Main Barn is just not the same without her. I know I speak for everyone here in expressing how much she will be missed.

Photo by Marissa Russo