PULLMAN – The owner of an apparently lost goat is being sought by the WSU College of Veterinary Medicine.
The young goat was brought to the university by landowners who found it on their property near Airport Road on Dec. 17. Attempts to locate the owners have been unsuccessful, so the university is making a public appeal via the news media.
The animal is in excellent health and is quite friendly.
Those who think the goat may be theirs are asked to call the WSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital’s Large Animal Section at 509-335- 5377 to describe the animal and claim ownership.
Like the nation’s other 28 veterinary colleges, WSU often finds itself with animals that have wandered away from their owners, were abandoned, or were seized by law enforcement. Finding the owner or, in some cases, a new home for an animal is both costly and time consuming.
In the recent past, WSU had to find new, legitimate owners for two alligators seized by local law enforcement.
In the meantime however, the university feeds and houses the animals.
Abandoned animals are regulated under the Revised Code of Washington, Chapter 16.54. The law stipulates the definition of an abandoned animal and the length of time and methods of disposal. An abandoned animal could even go to a sheriff’s sale and be sold to new owners, though this portion of the law is rarely used.
