If you’ve been following my blog over the past year and half you might know that I have a thing for goats. I don’t know what it is about them – the way they sound, their disposition, the way they can climb up to high places – I just think they’re great.
So I was psyched to get one for my birthday from my bf’s sister and brother-in-law. Yes, it’s another post about what I got for my birthday. I guess I’m feeling reflective and grateful.
Of course, I couldn’t have a goat in my Brooklyn apartment, and I don’t own a patch of land in the country to keep one. This four-legged friend will be going to a family who really needs her. Through Heifer International, anyone can purchase a goat (or other farm animal) that will be symbolic for one person and real for another.
According to Heifer:
Goats Are Great for Families
The gift of a dairy goat represents a lasting, meaningful way for you to help a little boy or girl on the other side of the world.
Goats can thrive in extreme climates and on poor, dry land by eating grass and leaves. The gift of a dairy goat can supply a family with up to several quarts of nutritious milk a day – a ton of milk a year. Extra milk can be sold or used to make cheese, butter or yogurt. Families learn to use goat manure to fertilize gardens.
Goats often have two or three kids a year making it easy for Heifer recipients to pass on the gift of a goat to another family in need. This great investment allows our partners to lift themselves out of poverty by starting small dairies that earn money for food, health care and education.
Gifts from Heifer or similar organizations make great holiday presents – especially for the people in your life who don’t want or need any ‘things.’ Here are some other great orgs that offer symbolic gifts:
mosquito nets, books, baby chicks, soap
threatened & endangered species like polar bears, snow leopards, monarch butterflies
protect an acre of rainforest
plant a tree, adopt an acre, adopt a jaguar
buy an NYC tree
provide seeds, help prevent AIDS, provide gender equity training
