Students at The Woodstock Academy are helping a baby goat learn to walk. Nemo, a 5-week-old goat, was born without the ability to use his front legs.
Engineering students built him a "goat cart" to help him get around.
“To actually see this project paying off is awesome," said Landen Kuchy, a senior at The Woodstock Academy, and one of the students who worked on the project.
Nemo found his way to the high school by way of a freshman student, Vayda Payne. Payne's mom co-owns a goat milk soap shop in Putnam, Sparrow Soaps, and Nemo is their newest goat.
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“He was born with a disability called windswept. Most of his front leg joints are locked into place," said Payne.
Without the ability to use his front legs, Nemo is unable to walk on his own. He was using a wheelchair when he was first born, but it wasn't suited for him. Looking for a solution, Payne's mom reached out to the Woodstock Academy's engineering teacher.
"We started emailing back and forth. She sent us some pictures. And then I have an advanced group of four students and I said, 'OK this is your problem - this is what you have to solve, so they just went at it,'" said teacher Peter Sumner.
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The students spent hours researching, designing and building several prototypes. Nemo went to the school for his first fitting last week.
After some adjustments, Nemo tested out his first custom-fit "goat cart" Thursday.
"This one is somewhat adjustable, but I think we can do 3D printing and try to make something that is a little more adjustable that can grow with him so that is our goal," said Sumner. "This is the first prototype to see if it works and then what we can do from there."
The students said they were thrilled to see Nemo test the goat cart and start to walk with it. They look forward to seeing his progress.
