Goat Gives Birth to a “Half-Human Half-Pig,” Locals Believe it is Cursed
It was recently reported that in the Philippines, a goat gave birth to a very odd looking creature, and people are pointing out it looks like some kind of “half-human, half-pig” monstrosity.
The poor animal more than likely is suffering from some kind of health problem, that causes it to resemble a not quite right human infant, and a very large one.
40 year old Josephine Repique, a farmer was shocked to discover that her pregnant goat had given birth to the unusual animal, on her lush green, small farm in Sultan Kudarat.
The farmer had to call in a vet to help her goat give birth, so he performed a caesarean section and managed to pull out one healthy baby. Unfortunately the other one came out looking much different from any baby goat you’ve ever seen.
It was born without fur as you can see, like a human being, and it features pale, shiny skin, looking sort of like that odd sea creature that became popular a while back.
(Image credit: abc.net.au)
It is claimed that some of the locals believe the animal to be cursed, or like a sign of something, which was kind of comedically encapsulated by this caption on an image, “A goat has given birth to this bizarre creature – which locals think may be cursed.”
You’ll notice the different baby goat is much larger than its sibling, another strange factor to consider in trying to figure out what in the world this animal is.
“Nobody knows what it is,” Repique said. “But it’s not a goat. It’s scary. We’re all wondering why it happened and if it is bad luck.”
As you’d expect, experts consulted about this believe some kind of genetic mutation is more than likely responsible for the baby goat’s strange lack of fur, abnormal size, and Majin Buu similarities, if you know about the fictional creature. This isn’t to make fun of the baby goat in any shape or form.
(Image credit: dragonball.wikia)
A figure from the Institute of Animal Science of the University of the Philippines, Dr. Agapita Salces said “It is a possible case of genetic mutation. It is also possible that the mother contracted a disease called Rift Valley fever from mosquito bites and this caused the impaired development of the infant.”
Is it really likely that Rift Valley fever is to blame for this, is it known to cause animals to be born without fur like this? It does not seem to be linked to that particular symptom, it looks more like something that people are really traditionally concerned with when it comes to livestock, and an easy answer for an official to give to explain this.
To cover all bases in figuring out the root cause of such problems in animals, people should probably look at whether or not the mother of the baby goats had a nutritional deficiency, or whether or not she was exposed to carcinogens or chemicals known to cause birth defects.
It’s common to blame genetics for problems like this, and sometimes it is provable and very solid and evident that a disease is caused by a certain gene or a lack of a gene because it can be measured. But if a gene cannot be concretely proven to be linked to a certain birth defect, or the birth defect isn’t passed down multiple times through the generations, that may not be the cause.
Chemicals, nutrition, and genetics are probably the three most important factors when it comes to determining how birth defects in animals or people happen.
Hopefully this poor big bald baby goat will become healthier as he or she grows into an adult. It is unclear whether or not the baby is suffering from health problems associated with its strange appearance.