Bubblegum
The dog charged past me and squeezed under the gate into the goat pen. I called after him, but the sweet, responsive animal had suddenly turned into a vicious beast with a lust for blood. Ignoring my calls, he raced towards the herd of peacefully-grazing goats. They had no warning. He tore into the herd, snapping at any animal near him. The goats panicked and bolted for the barn as I ran towards them. The dog set his teeth to the youngest and weakest goat in the herd, a kid named Victory. Vic’s dam ran with the herd away from the pair of struggling animals to the relative security of the barn. I stopped near them, not sure just what to do. Suddenly, Bubblegum, a black Nubian doe appeared behind the dog. Her head slammed into his hip and he whirled away from Victory to face his new threat. Snarling dangerously, he lunged at the larger animal’s throat. Bubblegum jumped backwards, but was unable to evade his follow-up attack at her rear leg. She screamed in fright as he sank his sharp teeth into her thigh. He pulled brutally on her leg, threatening to rip it out of socket. Unable to think, I screamed for help as I kicked uselessly at the dog. Bubblegum wrenched her leg free of his fangs and started to run. He chased after her, his teeth clapping ferociously. I continued screaming as I trailed the two animals, kicking the predator whenever I got within range. Every time I made contact, he let go of Bubblegum for a moment. But she was bleeding. And she was bleeding a lot. The predator had tasted blood, and nothing was able to penetrate the fog his crazed mind was in. He never turned on me. No, he would continue after his current quarry for now.
I heard shouting and realized that help had finally come. My mother was next to me in an instant, and she tackled the crazed canine. He snarled and growled as she pinned his throat and mouth to the ground. My dad came, and the two of them wrestled the dog into the bed of the truck, where the shut the camper top to lock him in.
I found Bubblegum outside the barn, torn and bleeding. Her ears were shredded to ribbons, her udder ripped in several places. Her legs were covered in gashes and there were bite wounds on her sides. Her rear leg had been pulled out of socket. But she had survived, and she would heal. Victory didn’t have that kind of courage; she didn’t have the strength to fight the battle Bubblegum had just fought. Had Bubblegum not have been willing risk her life for a herd mate, Victory’s life would have ended that day.
Afterward: Bubblegum finally lost her battle with chronic founder in 2009. She never lost her will to live, and she fought until the very last. Her incredible courage is a tribute to her amazing life, where she defied death on multiple occasions and battled to the end.