Charity dares hockey fans to 'Goat Canucks Goat!'

For $35, Goats Canucks Goat will send a goat to a needy family in Africa.

For most Vancouver Canucks fans every win in the playoffs is another step closer to hoisting Lord Stanley's Cup.

But for the owners of the website Goat Canucks Goat, each win means a little more. It's asking Vancouver fans to buy a goat for a needy African family every time the Canucks win a game.

Danny Nagtegaal says the idea came from a conversation with his brother Joel about why men grow their facial hair during the playoffs.

"We were talking about the playoff beards and the goatees and he started talking about goats and goatees. It sort of started from there and then blew up basically," he told Canada AM on Tuesday.

While their goal started small – four goats in each of the four rounds – the initiative has grown exponentially since it began two years ago.

So far, more than 18,000 goats have been donated to families overseas since the website began two years ago. Each animal costs $35, with donations measured through its goat-o-meter.

The animals are not only a source of income and protein, they also restore hope in families torn apart by poverty and war, says Ida Mutoigo of the Christian Reformed World Relief Committee.

"When you have an animal it is a sign of some kind of wealth and sort of serves as a bank account. It provides some security for the family and some hope for the future," she said.

This season, a total of 98 animals have been sent to Africa.

With the Canucks the favourite to clinch the coveted Stanley Cup playoffs, Nagtegaal hopes more people will log on to the website and donate.

"It's amazing how fast it grows once people hear about it again," he said. "I think we can get out into the thousand-range and I'd love to push for that."