By Joshua Robinson – 

Two stolen goats have been returned to their owners after they were found at an RSPCA rehoming centre.

Pygmy goats Nanny McPhee and Raven were stolen, along with two other goats, Nibbles and Nancy, from a yard in Oakenshaw, West Yorkshire, overnight on 7th/8th October 2023.

Millie McKenzie, who runs the yard where the goats live, said: “These goats lived together in a herd of 14 goats and we fed them on 7 October before putting them to bed – split between two sheds – and our gates were closed and locked. When we came to feed them the following morning, these four were missing.”

“One of the girls who comes here was 13 and was absolutely heartbroken, particularly due to her close bond with Nibbles who she’d hand reared from birth.”

The worried owners immediately launched a campaign to find them, distributing leaflets in the local area, and offering a reward for their safe return. The theft was reported to police and officers checked local CCTV.

Millie said: “We joined every possible animal group online to try to find the goats but there was no news.”

Two goats were abandoned in Kirkburn, near Driffield, East Yorkshire, on 14th January. Police were called to the scene when the goats were found wandering in the road and officers called the RSPCA for help.

RSPCA officers managed to find a private yard that could take the goats into care before they were moved to the charity’s Millbrook Animal Centre, in Surrey, in April, which was the only site with facilities for farm animals with space for the pair. Whilst there, the search began for a new home, with staff unaware that the goats had been stolen six months earlier.

A girl from the yard spotted a post on the RSPCA’s main Facebook page appealing for a home for two goats, Pip and Squeak, on 17th July and recognised them.

The family contacted the team at Millbrook, where the goats were being looked after, and arranged to go and see them. Finally, they were reunited with their long-lost pets. On 20th July, they went to collect the goats and returned them home.

Millie said: “It’s so amazing to have Nanny McPhee and Raven home where they belong. They’ve settled back in happily and have slotted back into their daily routine.”

“We’re heartbroken that two-year-old Nibbles and Nancy, one, are still missing and we’d like to appeal to everyone to share their poster and help us track them down so we can have our whole herd back together again.”

Anyone with information about Nibbles and Nancy should call 07424 572600.

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