By Mark Maynard
Kentucky Today
ELIZABETHTOWN, Ky. (KT) – Houdini, perhaps the most famous goat in Kentucky history, has a new home.
The large white goat, who was named Houdini because of his uncanny ability to avoid traffic and officials while wandering along a stretch of Interstate 65 for years, will spend his remaining days in Meade County.
Houdini suffered a broken leg in a traffic mishap last October and was placed in the care of Hardin County Animal Care and Control.
Houdini who had an accident on the Interstate last October is getting a new home at Broadbent.
Judge-Executive Harry L. Berry appointed a six-member committee to examine and vet options for Houdini’s home.
The committee unanimously recommended Broadbent Wildlife Sanctuary in Guston, Kentucky, and Berry quickly signed off on the transfer.
Broadbent, founded in 2002 by former Kentucky state legislator Mary Ann Tobin, is a 4,600-acre site in Meade County.
“We are honored and excited to offer Houdini sanctuary for him to live out the remainder of his life,” said Broadbent General Manager Scott Hornback in a press release. “We are accustomed to hosting high profile animals and animals who require specialty care. I assure his fans that he is in good hands and our 25-member staff will love and care for him like every other family member in our care.”
Houdini is still undergoing limited treatment and rehabilitation, according to Hardin County Animal Care and Control Veterinarian Dr. Jessica Perpich.
Houdini’s aggression and desire to be out of captivity has made it difficult to treat him, Perpich said.
Understanding that the goat had his own following, including a Facebook page with 37,000 members, the committee set five key criteria for selection of Houdini’s new home.
“We felt it was imperative to ensure each potential recipient maintained a sound animal treatment record, Houdini would be within 50 miles of Hardin County to ensure his fans could visit him, maintained a plan for the long-term sustainability of his environment, proper protocols to ensure safety to him and his new owners and that the new owners maintained experience with like livestock,” said Hardin County Deputy Judge/Executive Daniel London. “Broadbent fully and exceptionally meets these standards.”
The community provided funding and in-kind donations to offset the cost of his care, Berry said.
Broadbent Wildlife Sanctuary said it will schedule tours that will include meeting Houdini.
