Pregnant goat gives birth on animal control truck in Riverside County

A pregnant dairy goat recovered near Perris gave birth while riding inside a Riverside County animal control truck, officials said.

The mama goat was being driven to the San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus when she delivered two babies during the course of the 25-minute ride Wednesday afternoon, John Welsh with the Riverside County Department of Animal Services said in a news release.

The delivery surprised Animal Control Officer Abel Buenrostro, who found the goat and loaded her onto his truck, KTLA reported.

“I thought to myself, wow, this is crazy,” Buenrostro, a seven-year veteran officer, said in the release. “That’s a first time for me a goat gave birth on my truck.”

He added that he knew the goat was pregnant when he picked her up, but didn’t know how far along she was.

“I guess she was ready to go once we started driving,” he said.

Buenrostro said the goat likely got loose from her owner and did not think she had been dumped.

“When I opened my truck compartment, she was such a sweetheart,” Buenrostro said. “You could almost see it on her face: I’ve got my babies.”

A makeshift bed was made for the mama goat and her babies in a quiet location in the shelter, and the goats were expected to be relocated to shelter’s shaded barn area in the morning, Welsh said in the release.

If an owner was not found, the trio would be put up for adoption, he added.