Chelsea Man Takes Pet Cow To California For Eye Surgery

CHELSEA, MI -- Mike the cow’s future’s so bright, he may need shades. While a 2200-mile journey for eye surgery in California failed to restore the 7-month old cow’s eyesight, the calf had the trip of a lifetime, and can expect to live a full life without fear of slaughter at an area rescue farm.

Dan McKernan, 28, who operates the Barn Rescue sanctuary on his parents’ Chelsea farm, told the Detroit Free Press the trip was still worth its $7500 price tag.

"After the surgery, I decided to take my time to get back home," McKernan told the Free Press. "We stopped in Malibu, and I took him to the beach. That was pretty cool. He could feel the sand and smell the ocean and hear the waves. (I was) trying to trigger those other senses."

McKernan, who enlisted the help of animal ophthalmologist Dr. Allison Hoffman in Pasadena, Calif. drove Mike back to the farm in Chelsea, where Mike now has a companion-in-waiting - a calf named Dan Jr. Original Dan (McKernan) plans to introduce the pair soon, according to a post on Twitter, and will post video of that sweet occasion as soon as it’s available. Mike seemed in good spirits after the trip as seen in Twitter posts where he’s celebrating St. Patick’s Day.

McKernan uses “sponsorships” to help fund Barn Sanctuary, and animal lovers interested in helping the cows, pigs, ponies and birds at the farm can visit a Patreon page to lend support.

>>>For complete coverage of this story, visit the Detroit Free Press.

Photo by George Phillips/BWP Media/Newsmakers.