Ontario barn fire kills 900 goats, causes $2 million in damage

CTV London/Windsor: 900 goats perish A devastating fire in Elgin, Ont. destroyed a goat operation. Gerry Dewan reports.

An early morning barn fire has killed nearly 900 goats and caused up to $2 million in damage at a family farm near St. Thomas, Ont.

OPP officers were called to Donkers Goat Farm in Southwold Township at around 1 a.m. on Saturday to find a barn on the property engulfed in flames.

Smoke continued to billow from the damaged barn this afternoon as firefighters sifted through the rubble.

Cranes and tanker trucks were seen working to clear debris left from the blaze.

The Donkers Goat Farm has been owned and operated by Ed Donker and his father Leo for the past 22 years.

Ed told CTV London that he is devastated by the blow the loss presents to his farm.

“It’s such a vibrant, exciting industry and so to be hit so hard, it’s really devastating right now, I’m still in shock,” he said.

“Every animal seems like your pet and it’s really hard to lose all 900 milking goats. It’s hard to explain, it’s like losing a pet,” Donker added.

With more than 1,200 goats at its facility, the Donker farm was one of the largest goat farms in the area, selling goat milk and cheese to vendors across the province.

Police say an investigation into the cause of the fire is currently underway and the Fire Marshal’s Office has been called in.

In an interview with A-Channel News in 2009, Ed revealed that he had recently converted his cow milking business to a goat farming facility due to instability in the farming market.

“It was a stagnant business, there was no more milk needed and on a good year, everyone had too much milk,” he said in that interview.

The Donker’s found that goat farming was a much more stable and lucrative business.

“They are a lot friendlier, they are easier to handle and you don’t have to worry about the finances as much as you have to with the dairy industry,” Leo Donker explained.

Donker said there was so much demand in the goat farming industry in recent years that he was planning on expanding the size of his facility in the next two years to hold 1,700 goats.

While those plans have been put on hold for now, Donker says he will be back in business.

“I’ll have to start small and see what I can start with. The reality is I’m still going to be in the goat industry because I’m very passionate about it,” he said.

With a report by CTV London's Gerry Dewan.