Some things are so sad, it hard to understand how or why they happen. We picked up Gertrude, aka "Trudy" yesterday. She had been with her family for 17 years & the neighbors had complained to the sheriff & livestock inspector enough that the family was given an ultimatum..... either put her down or give her up. She's old & thin, but the worst thing is for some reason the tendons in her right front leg have contracted so much, that she has no use of that leg. She is balancing on the fetlock which is sorta like a wrist or ankle. The hoof is pointed to the rear. It is an open sore on the part that slides on the ground. The people had not doctored it or protected it at all. The spots on her body are bed sores, raw, open & with proud flesh on some of them, also never doctored.After we got her in the trailer, which wasn't easy, I called one of our Vets on the way home, & she said she would wait for us, although it would be past office hours by the time we got there.
The first thing she asked was, why we weren't euthanizing her? She already knew the answer, but guess she ought to ask anyway. I told her we don't do that, if there is a chance. She took x-rays, & there is obvious bone damage in her foot, from chronic foundering. But nothing is broken or out of place. She is going to show the x-rays to Dr. Taylor at the Equine Surgical Clinic in Gilbert, & see if he thinks the tendons can be stretched or cut. This is really out of my area of knowledge, & I will have to rely on the Vets to make the decisions. Nancy wrapped the leg, so it wouldn't be in the dirt & gravel, & we brought her home. Left her in the trailer overnight, it was dark when we got home, & there were 18 other equine that were upset that supper was being served late. We fed & watered her, & she did just fine, although she was ready to get out this morning. She walked with us to her pen, beside Sha'ba & has had a busy day, investigating her pen. She is alert & involved with what's going on, so I hope there is something they can do to help her walk a little better.
Speaking of Sha'ba he gave us a little scare a couple of days ago. He wouldn't eat & was running a temperature. He had a runny nose a couple of weeks ago, don't know if one has anything to do with the other, but I started him on antibiotics & he's back to normal now. I use unsweetened applesauce to give ground up pills, & he will almost suck the syringe wrong side out, he REALLY loves applesauce.......!!!!
Tula is still not giving up without a fight. Terry says some days she is cooperative & other days she isn't. I would imagine one day she will give up the battle, I just hope Terry has the patience to keep working with her.
Molly is now officially our cute little mule. I talked to her former owner for quite awhile, & got all the details of her stomach damage, surgery & recovery. The woman really went above & beyond the call of duty to save this little $55.00 auction purchase, & I'm glad she did. We'll delay taking her to Gilbert to see what is going to happen with Trudy. I want to make sure her pot belly isn't a result of the fistulas & surgery.
Today was "trim" day. Both Lucy & Pepper didn't need trimming which is great. They were our, every 5 week trims for over 3 years. Jenny has taken over that job. She is really walking much better now, I just wish she appreciated Katie's efforts a little more. Jenny is big enough & strong enough that she is a handful if she doesn't want to do something. We put her in the cross ties & she still was "difficult". We finally put a stud chain on her, which I hate to use, but I also don't want anyone getting hurt. Molly got her dainty little feet trimmed, & she really did good. I don't know if she has been trimmed before or not, but as long as John played with her nose & gave her a treat occasionally she stood fairly still, except for some "baby" squirming. Cisco got his first trim in about 5 years. He ran off when I put the halter & lead rope on him, John caught him & brought him back, & then he behaved like the gentleman he is. Katie said his legs are pretty tight. I would imagine his years as a roping donkey, left some residual damage to his legs.
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