# A Very Special Goose.....



## Lin Hansen (Jan 9, 2004)

Hi Everyone,

Thought you would all enjoy reading the following story. There actually was a short news video clip about it on AOL news, but I know from experience, that if I provide that link, only AOL users will be able to access it....so, if anyone out there can find the video clip on this that can be viewed by everyone, it would be great if you could provide it. I may be lucky in finding things here at the forum, but on the real internet, it was a no go.....Here is the print version:


http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1899638

GOOSE BEFRIENDS ELDERLY MAN WITH CANCER

FERNAN LAKE, Idaho Apr 27, 2006 (AP)— A northern Idaho man diagnosed with terminal cancer says a usually cantankerous goose that befriended him on his walks has helped him live past doctors' predictions. 

"I'm 73," Bill Lytle, a two-time state legislator, told the Coeur d'Alene Press. "And I'm not ready to die." 

After retiring as project manager for the Bunker Hill Mining company, Lytle and his wife of 52 years, Myrna, moved to Coeur d'Alene, where Bill became one of the founding members of a walking club called the Lake City Striders. 

Then last fall his skin turned yellow overnight, and doctors diagnosed pancreatic cancer, giving Lytle only months to live. But Lytle continued his walks, having to cut them down to two miles at a nearby lake, where he met the goose who has inspired him to keep going even when he wasn't feeling well. 

"I have to keep walking or I won't make my next December," Lytle said. 

The goose, called Mr. Waddles, is a feral domestic goose, a biologist with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game said, offering no explanation for the relationship that has developed between the goose and Lytle. Myrna has thought about that as well. 

"I wonder, why would that one goose attach himself to Bill?" she said. "I think he knows he's sick. I think animals can sense that." 

The goose, about 30 pounds with a red beak and red feet, approaches Lytle when he calls and rubs its head against his arms. But it snaps at anyone else who gets too close, including Myrna, their daughter, and Bill's hospice aide. 

"Sometimes he walks around me, sometimes he walks beside me," Lytle said of the near-daily meetings the two have. "I rub his neck, and the top of his head and down to his back. Every time I came down, he just kept coming out. I think it's pretty nice, that he'd always come to me." 


Information from: Coeur d'Alene Press, http://www.cdapress.com


Linda


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hi Linda, 

Thank you for sharing this heartwarming story of this man and his friendship with the goose. It really does make you wonder what animals know, feel, think and why sometimes these strange inexplicable bonds develop out of nowhere.

I tried to find a link to the news story for non AOL members and this was the best I could find:

http://ap.lancasteronline.com/4/friendly_goose


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## TerriB (Nov 16, 2003)

Wonderful story of a chance connection. Too bad anecdotal evidence of animals' capabilities is usually discounted. Thanks for sharing this intriguing occurrance!


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Hi Linda,

Oh, that is such a bittersweet yet, heartwarming story. Quite interesting connection between man and bird. Thanks for sharing!


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## Mistifire (May 27, 2004)

Stories like this make me wonder how people can think animals dont have feelings or emotions. Such a sweet story.


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