Babies and Goats

Babies are usually born after about 40 weeks in their mothers' wombs.




This baby was born after only 28 weeks, which is early for the U.S., and extremely early for Zimbabwe. She weighs about 2.5 lbs.




Her mother sits and sleeps next to the baby warmer day and night, just as you would expect.

Her mother is also HIV positive. This brings a dilemma. Should the new mother breast feed her infant, increasing the infant's chances of contracting HIV, or... what other option is there?

This mother, like most rural Africans, cannot afford "formula" milk, so as is the case for many infants of HIV positive mothers, this young baby must either drink her mother's breast milk or starve, a decision in which this infant will have no say, but will profoundly affect her life.

It is for babies like this that Karanda Hospital has a "goat program." Goats are raised and given to HIV positive mothers, who then feed their new infants exclusively goats' milk to reduce the risk of HIV transmission.

So far the program has been supportably significantly by donations to the TEAM missions organization, but recently funding has become much more of challenge. A full grown goat sells for $25, raising a baby goat even less. I can't think of a better place to give.