Why Gout Gout Ran From Kindness

Once abandoned and left to fend for himself, Gout Gout, the rooster, became very good at it. Everywhere he turned, there was something to fear: a predator, a barking dog, harsh voices and nowhere to feel safe. And so, with every frantic flap of his wings and every desperate leap of his craggy feet, he lived up to his name: fast, determined. And almost impossible to catch.

Those trying to help him found themselves in a relentless chase as he darted through paddocks, driven by fear and the instinct to survive. Not yet understanding that the kindness pursuing him had come not to harm him, but to offer him the safety he had long been denied.

Because to Gout Gout, it felt no different from everything he had been running from before.

And who could blame him?

His hunger told one story, written in the sharp line of his protruding keel bone; his legs, painfully affected by scaly mites, told another. Neglect had left its crusted mark, the kind that does not disappear overnight.

But now, Gout Gout has found sanctuary, and his story can begin to change.

Already he feels the softness of our words as his eyes gently close. But the sound of our fingers sifting through in his grains rouses him. His beak dips hungrily as he searches out the most delicious seeds to fill his empty belly.

With time, patience and gentle care, along with medicated treatment, we trust he will come to learn that this world is different.
That not everything needs to be feared.

And that sometimes, what follows you is kindness.