Getting the little jenny is moving along, they want to bring her down here Wed or Thur.  I just got a message from someone else that the jenny has been seen by a vet & it was recommended that she be euthanized.  I'm sure by now most people know my opinion about euthanasia unless there is absolutely no option left.  

I know that vets a  lot of times are quick to recommend euthanasia as a quick easy fix to the problem when time & on going effort could make a lot of difference.   Unless there are x-rays there is no way of really knowing what the inside of her feet look like.  I am waiting to hear back from people that supposedly know the vet, so we'll see what I can find out.  

Boaz has once again, shown his affinity for going on a walk-a-bout.  Wasn't here at feeding time, so John headed one way & I headed the other.  I left the gate open when I went out with the golf cart, just in case, everyone else were in their pens.  I went up the road quite a ways, headed back & who did I see doing a "burn-out" turn into the driveway...........????  At least he knows where he belongs, he just has wanderlust.......!!! 

John walked the complete fence line of the 30 acres & didn't find any hoof prints inside the fence, but did find a bunch of them outside the place where he got out last time, & John fixed it.  It's in a bad spot because it's right at the edge of the 15 foot high bank of the big wash, impossible to put up a post that will be sturdy enough to discourage a determined donkey I guess.  John did a quick fix & so far Boaz is staying home.  John says the permanent fix will take most of the day, & he hasn't had time yet. 

This morning John noticed a tiny little pile of diarrhea in Aaron's pen........hmmmm....!   Not unusual for 5-7 day old foals to have diarrhea while their system adjusts to being on their own, rather than relying on momma's body to take care of him.  They also eat momma's poo to get the probiotics into their gut, which we caught him doing yesterday.  Time for Pepto Bismol or Keopectate.  I had to get in touch with Kathy at Longhopes Donkey Shelter in Colorado to find out how much to give him.  

When Georgette & I went up to Longhopes in Aug, they had a little 5 day old foal, with diarrhea & she got Pepto Bismol, so I figured Kathy would know, & she did.   So now John & I will be on poo patrol for a day or so.  This is why we are never bored........!!!! 

Wish I had a camera tonight when I went out to do chores.  Aaron discovered rearing & kicking out to the side as you run past something.  Ruthie was laying down & he attempted to jump over her.  Didn't go too well, he hung up & then had to try to figure out how to get all 4 legs on the same side of Mom.  A lot of squirming & wiggling & a very mellow Mom & he was off running again.  

Ruthie has finally come off of "guard" duty, or at least she isn't quite as on guard as she was.  Even came over to me to be petted tonight.  While I was petting her I felt a nudge, turned around & there was a cute little face wanting to participate. I kept scratching on Ruthie & reached back with the other hand & scratched his back & neck.  I think I have a friend for life, he seemed to think it was great.  

He's 4 days old & the difference between him & Tucker is amazing.  They were both born on a Tuesday, & Sunday morning John was hauling Tucker & Mocha into 24 hour care in Tucson.  He stopped on the way one time, because he thought Tucker had died he was so still.  This time is a much more fun experience, so far. 

Aaron is twice as big as Tucker was, John picked him up this afternoon to move him out of Daisy's pen, he was laying down & didn't see a reason to get up.  I asked John if he carried him all the way to his pen.  He said no, he's heavier than he looks.  He actually looks pretty sturdy. 

Heard from Julie, she said to use the pictures however I wanted to so here goes:

This is a sample of what Ruthie had to put up with the first couple of days, lots of eyes wanting a baby of their own I guess

Who wouldn't want one of these for their very own

 

Finally got those long legs operating effectively

Momma loves her little man..!!!!

Ruthie has been very good at letting the other donkeys & Rusty the mule, know that their admiration isn't appreciated.  Poor Daisy shares a fence at feeding time & isn't allowed on that side of the pen without being met by a huffy kicking momma.....!!!  Last night John didn't get the gate closed in time, the baby went in, momma went in with a vengeance & Daisy tried to chase the baby.  Not sure  if Daisy was trying to steal the baby or thought he was the problem.  Either way, John hustled around & got everyone where they needed to be before someone got hurt.  

Can't keep calling him baby, although I could call him Habibi, which is Arabic for baby.  But his name will be Aaron.  We had a family out here to see the donkeys a couple of months ago, & one of the men was having a birthday.  His Mother asked if we would name the baby after him.  I asked what if it was a girl, but of course there is the Irish spelling of Erin, so everything was covered.  

This morning he was acting a little funny with his mouth.  I would imagine he is cutting his first 2 teeth, they show up within a few days of them being born. 

This is a link to a story about the sanctuary, where Diega was before one of the board members took her to Phoenix.  I hope they can make some changes that are long overdue, & make sure the first & foremost goal, is to make sure the animals are well taken care of.  It looks like there are 145 animals on a 7 acre property.

I was up there a few years ago, when there were actually more animals & was really surprised that they didn't look crowded.  I figured they would be standing nose to tail, waiting for someone to move a few steps, so they could move.  But they actually had more room than I expected.  I know some of the animals were kept in barns, which I didn't see.  Don't know if they ever were outside or not.  Some of the horses were in small individual pens, I was told they went out in an area that looked to be about 1/2 acre, but I don't know how often. 

I just hope this is a good thing for the animals.

Julie & Joe stopped by the day after the baby was born & Julie took some great pictures.  I'm waiting to hear back from her, so I can put them on the blog, I'm sure she won't mind, but wanted to ask her first.

Ruthie is really protective & we still haven't got our hands on him.  I thought after a couple of days she would be more receptive, but so far she doesn't see a need for us to be part of their little family, so I guess we'll have to get pro-active.  He's definitely livelier than Tucker was, during the day they get the 6 pens on the west side & he takes full advantage of being able to run from one end to the other.  

Looks like there's another little girl in the pipeline that might be coming out to stay with us.  Right now she's up in Phoenix with some nasty, nasty feet.  Her name is Diega & she's only 2  1/2 years old.  Not sure when it will all happen, but soon.  

This is front feet, don't know how they could get that bad in 2 1/2 years.  She also has a lot of proud flesh on the wrapped leg. 

We also might be getting another mule for Rusty.  He doesn't care for the donkeys at all, so is by himself now with Jack gone.  There is a large rescue in northern Arizona that is going thru some big long overdue changes & one of them is downsizing.  This is where the jenny is coming from & when we were e-mailing back & forth, I told them they might as well throw in a mule for Rusty.  Wonder what it will be......???

R.I.P. JENNY BIG GIRL

The vet just left, & John is digging.  Unfortunately he's getting very experienced at getting the hole just the right size.

The vet drew blood on Buddy Brat & Cisco & we decided to take both of them into the clinic, to have Buddy's sarcoid taken off his sheath.  The clinic has a new freezing machine that Dr. Megan said would be perfect for Buddy's little match head size growth, but they don't take it into the field.  And in order to get an endoscope done on Cisco, we have to go to the office, so we'll just take them both at the same time.  She agreed that a lot of the swallowing problems Cisco is having could definitely be caused by being used as a roping donkey.  And the endoscope might not even show anything even if they manage to get it down his throat, which might not happen.  

Then it was on to Jenny for evaluation.  I unwrapped her foot, & on examination, Dr. Megan said she could feel swelling clear up above the coronet, & that we had lost some of the hoof integrity on either side of the abscess area.  There was very little doubt that the foot was not going to get better.  I was surprised the material that I thought might be cartilage that was sticking out of her foot, was just more proud flesh.  She said proud flesh on lower legs & feet, can behave in lots of weird ways.  

Jenny was the first one that I couldn't stay with, we had just too much time & effort together, & she was still healthy & happy, just couldn't walk very good.  John stayed with her & said he was petting & talking to her when she went down.   She was going to be euthanized if we hadn't taken her 5 1/2 years ago, & she had over 4 years of relatively good life, so I guess I will have to be satisfied with that.  

Good-bye my big girl.....!!

WE GOT A CHRISTMAS BABY, AFTER ALL......!!!

When John went out around 9pm last night to let everyone out, he saw a new little guy in Ruthie's pen, on the ground & still wet.  

This was this morning just about dawn

Right before John went out last night the donkeys were braying.  As soon as they got out of their pens they surrounded the pen, gawking.  This morning they were still gawking, when they came in from Burroland.

This was the first time he laid down, finally ran out of gas I guess.  Looks like a little boy, from the little glance under the tail, Ruthie "allowed" me to look.  Had to be quick, she is very good at going between anything she thinks doesn't need to be close to her little one.  Looks like he will be about the color of his older brother, Ruger, a light tan.  

We are waiting for the vet to show up to see Cisco about not being able to eat hay without quidding, Buddy has a sarcoid on his sheath & of course Jenny.  When I saw the baby last night I thought of the old saying about, a door not closing without another door opening, or however it goes.  I hope this little guy has a better life than Jenny's has been.  She's never given up, which really makes this hard to face.  

Merry Christmas to everyone & their "fur" babies........!!!

John has got a new project to keep him busy.  When my Mother moved out here with us this summer her very nice Lincoln town car came with her.  Because the donkeys love to inspect & dismantle just about anything we decided it should be in the garage unless it's going someplace.  

I noticed the other day, the pillow in the back seat, had a couple of small holes in it & the missing pieces were laying on the seat........Hmmmmmmm.......!!!!  

A couple of days ago John was going to unload some apple treats from the trunk, & not only found a hole in the bag, but found mice poo too.  Grrrrr....!!!  Finally found the small live trap used when the feed room got inundated with the little monsters awhile back.  

So far his count is 3, 1 little girl, & 2 boys.  When I say little I'm not kidding, these are tiny tiny little mice. They are only about 2 inches long, John is trying to figure out how they are getting in the car.  As small as they are it certainly wouldn't take much of an opening for them to have free access.

He is hauling them over to the chicken pen.  We figure they are probably beating him back to the garage.  That's what happened when they were using a tree limb to get in the air conditioning opening in the feed room.  In fact one time John was walking back to this side of the wash, & a mouse, (we figure it was the one he had just released in the chicken pen) ran across his boot, headed back to the feed room.

At least they aren't pack rats, thank goodness.  They can completely destroy the wiring in a car, no one can figure out what the fascination for the wiring is, but that is what they usually chew up.  Even people living in town have trouble with pack rats. 

This was Jenny big girl this morning while her foot was soaking.  Ears up & willing to chase me down for a treat.  It is so difficult to think that unless we can figure out something to help her, Wednesday will probably be her last day.  She is in excellent health, only 12 years old & still goes out with the others.  But she just has one good foot left & unless there is a light at the end of the tunnel for her, I see no reason to continue to torture her.  She does not enjoy being soaked & wrapped & all that goes with it, even with treats in the offering.  If this is going to be her life, I think it might be time to let her go.  There isn't a more stubborn person on the planet than I am, when it comes to my animals, & I'm am more than willing to fight the good fight.  But not at the cost of her not having quality life.

Ruthie is still hanging onto her little one.  

I'm not sure how it is positioned, this morning she had more bulging on the right side.  Lysa thought she saw it moving, but I didn't see it.



Right now Boaz's knee is acting like it might actually heal over.  We've been working on it almost a year.

 January 2012

 1st debridement

 2nd debridement

 

December 2012

I don't know if it will actually completely heal, but it is certainly headed in the right direction.  It will always be a scar, hopefully with enough elasticity to not crack open because of being on the knee.  It doesn't seem to bother him at all, certainly doesn't slow him down.  Most donkeys prefer to "mozy" along, Boaz doesn't mind running with or without a reason. 

I'm afraid we're coming down to decision time with Jenny.  This is not all proud flesh as I thought.  Some of it seems to be cartilage.  I don't think cartilage outside the hoof wall is going to work, especially when the coronary band is as fragile as hers is. 

I got on the internet & at first thought it might be lateral cartilage, but that's suppose to be behind the coffin bone.   Of course no more coffin bone than she has left, maybe it has shifted to the front, who knows, I certainly don't.  I do know that it is one messed up foot.  The material isn't bone, I do recognize it as cartilage, like the cartilage at the end of a rack of ribs. 

The vet is suppose to be here next Wednesday to take x-rays.  The last ones taken in October I think, looked about like the ones taken in the spring, no shifting. 

She is still willing, no make that insisting to go out with the other donkeys & roam all over the place, so she has quality of life, but at what cost?  I don't mind taking care of her as long as the ears are up & the eyes are shiny, but I really would like to see something that would help me think there will be better times for her in the future. 

The hoof re-section is just about completely grown out, & if she hadn't popped an abscess above it, she would be on her way to being just one of the gang.  But the abscess started months of getting worse, developing into chronic infection that is probably in the coffin bone again. 

BREAK-IN

Well, John can't remember if he didn't latch the hay barn gate or not.  But the barn ended up with as many donkeys & of course Rusty the mule,  in it as could fit around the stacked bales of hay.  Well except for BlackJack blocking everyone else from getting to the bale of alfalfa we feed the chickens.  John put it between the hay & the side of the barn, & there was only room for the "early bird", especially if he stands cross ways. 

Only about half of them would fit inside, so the rest were milling around outside waiting for their turn.  John ruined that, when he saw what was going on.  They all scattered when they realized they had been caught, except for BlackJack, he wasn't leaving the alfalfa without a fight.  He's a bluffer, so as soon as he figured out that John meant it, he left with as much dignity as he could muster.  

Now John is clipping the gate again, although he thinks he probably left it unchained.  Usually we don't bother unless we have a precocious gate opener on the property.  Thelma was the last one, & she could open all types including the gate to the house. 

God obviously has a sense of humor.  Over the last couple of days it has rained, tried to rain, threatened to rain, & the sun has shone.  Want to take bets when it rains?  If you're first guess is at chore time, BINGO.......!!!  Oh! it hasn't been a downpour, just enough drizzle to be irritating.  I'm not complaining, we need 4 inches of rain to reach our pathetic average of 11 inches a year.  But drizzles "ain't" going to make it happen.  My choice would be a steady downpour thru-out the night.  A couple of nights like that would really make the spring flowers happy. 

We finally put away the fly masks for the season, at least I hope we won't need them again.  They were pretty rough on them this year, the more boys we have, the more replacement fly masks we need.  There are still 2 or 3 out there somewhere, that John couldn't find.  I'll go ahead & get in touch with Renee at Colorful Equine even though it's winter.  I'm sure she stays busy once the flies show up in the spring.

Couldn't get the vet out here until the day after Christmas, so Jenny & I are back to soaking & working on proud flesh & popping antibiotics.  Don't know that the vet will have any better ideas, but we'll see.

When the vet comes out I'm going to run an idea past her & see what she thinks.  Cisco was at a roping school, & was loaned out to the students to take home & practice on, until he mentally shut down & would no longer react to anything around him.

He has never brayed, when he tries there isn't much noise unlike most of the others.  I am wondering if his throat was damaged, from being roped?  I'm sure they weren't real careful to make sure he didn't get injured.  We've had him about 12 years, he's about 20 years old & my thought is, he could have scar tissue that is changing size, shape, etc.  I don't know if that's possible, but I'm going to ask. 

RAIN, RAIN, RAIN

I'm always amazed when the weatherman gets it right.  They said rain & we actually got 3/4 of an inch of rain overnight. 

Needed the rain, BUT, the vet was suppose to come out this morning to check Jenny, pull blood on Cisco & Rusty, & probably removed a growth from Buddy Brat's sheath.  They called & cancelled, can't use x-ray, etc when it's raining.  Besides wet donkeys aren't going to be the most pleasant patients. If there is anything a donkey hates worse than being wet, it's being touched when they are wet.  Really puts them in a cranky mood........!!!   

Cisco actually choked yesterday morning on a piece of carrot.  I sure hope we can find out what is wrong with him.  So for now, he will be getting animal crackers as a treat, rather than carrots.  

Also have a problem with the ACTH test for Cushings for Rusty.  It seems right now they are not manufacturing the testing material according to the vet.  It can be compounded, but of course compounded medicine is usually more expensive.  She suggested trying Rusty on a low dosage of pergolide & see if it helps with his exuberant hair growth. 

Both Pepper & Daisy are on 3mg of pergolide a day, which I get in 1.5 capsules.  Too high a dosage to start out on, so she was going to figure out a good starting dosage & let me know.  

We talked about the fact that Jenny seems to be walking a little more comfortable & the drainage from the foot is almost gone.  I haven't put a sugar/dyne poultice on for over a week, & am only soaking her foot twice a week in epsom salts & betadyne.  She thinks it might be time to see how much proud flesh we can get off & use a pressure bandage.  She was also pleased that the hoof wall growing in at the coronary band looks to be good growth.  She said because of where the proud flesh is, the new hoof growth will basically push the proud flesh off the foot as it grows.   Not sure I want to see that.  

Ruthie is still bagging up, as they say, but no other changes.  I keep remembering with Mocha, that she didn't even look pregnant, but Tucker showed up anyway.  Ruthie usually hangs around the house & pen area, but this morning when John went out, she wasn't to be seen.  He took off frantically to find her.  She was down below the house vacuuming up mesquite leaves that blew off in the horrible wind that accompanied the rain last night. 

I HATE proud flesh........!!!

 I hope you don't expect this narrative to be very technical, because I don't do technical, I do much better breaking it down to what I understand, which is as simple as possible.......!!

This is what Jenny's foot looked like this morning after I worked a little with scissors & a rag.  I hope the 3 bones in her foot stay inside until the hoof wall has time to grow down.  They are suppose to be sitting one on top of the other, with the triangle shaped coffin bone on the bottom.  Because of chronic laminitis the velcro that is suppose to suspend the bones inside the foot no longer attaches to the hoof or if it does I'm sure it is hit & miss.  Perhaps in a few areas, but nothing like it's suppose to be.  

When they did the hoof resection in April, they removed about half or a little more of the coffin bone to get rid of the massive infection, & did a  regional perfusion of antibiotics.  Since late this summer we have been fighting an abscess & whatever accompanies it.

She goes out with the other donkeys & although she walks pretty "easy" on that foot, as in almost 3 legged lame,  she goes over to Burroland & seems to do wherever she wants.  The vet doesn't want to take off the proud flesh because she afraid the hoof might collapse.  My theory is, with the proud flesh taking up so much room, how can the hoof wall grow in?   It is drier than it was, & there is actually some good looking hoof wall growing in from the coronary band.

But I've wondered for quite awhile, what happens if behind the proud flesh the bones are jumbled & no longer in line because there is nothing to hold them?  From the info I get, no one really knows...........!!!  Or if they do they aren't sharing with me..........!!!! Sigh!  Maybe I'll find out something when the vet is here Friday.

This is Boaz's knee with it's usual covering of dirt.  I think of dirt as another type of scab, because if you put anything on it that is wet and/or sticky, this is what it ends up looking like.  We have managed to eradicate the proud flesh, BUT, the area is large enough that getting it to completely heal is a challenge.  There is no good tissue only scar tissue, which hopefully will eventually fill in.

Boaz didn't think much of me looking at his knee, & the camera making "funny" noises.  He is such a neat donkey & would make someone a wonderful companion.  I hope if I can get his knee to where it doesn't take daily care, someone will look past his scars & see what a rough diamond he is.

Ruthie was even more suspicious than Boaz, at the camera sounds.  She wouldn't stand still at all to let me take time to try to get a picture of her growing belly.  It's suppose to get colder here in the next few days, & I've been telling her to not have that baby now, to wait until it warms up a little.  John is still "groping" her every morning & there have been some changes in the last few days.  Her "floppies" aren't as floppy as they were, although they aren't full.  She's had about as much experience at having a baby as I have, so I will rely on her to do what she needs to do.  I just hope the little guy doesn't come into a world of 15 degrees, like we've had a couple of mornings this week. 

Five Generations

Good grief, we need to get together & take a better picture before Hunter gets grown.  Cut off part of Mother & JR is looking down at Hunter, & his hat hides his face.  There's my "little" boy Rod, that weighed 4# 1 1/2oz when he was born, he's grown a little over the years........!!!! I just got this off his Facebook page.  I also got this picture of a "real" race car.  

This is a 1977 Oldsmobile from years gone by.  I actually drove this car out here one time.  One of the pleasures of living out in the boonies, you can have a lot of fun & not get caught.....!!!! LOL

Rod's Facebook Page:    If you would like to see some of the other race cars.  The black & white car is our grandson JR's.  I need to send Rod a picture of our first car from 1969.  It was a 1957 Chevy that got rather badly abused, couldn't even recognize it by the end of the season it was on it's top more than the wheels, I think.....!!!! 

All the donkeys are doing pretty good right now.  Rusty has settled down to being the only mule, although I know he would like a buddy.  I'm still holding off on getting in touch with some of the other rescues to see if they have a likely candidate.  I'm sure there is one out there that really could use a new home.  

Jenny is not putting much weight on her bad foot, but it does seem to be drier & the proud flesh isn't getting any worse.  Courtney is suppose to come out Wed to trim & the vet is coming out Friday to evaluate.  I wish she would cut the proud flesh off, if nothing else it's interfering with soaking & anything else I might want to do & is in the way of any new hoof growth. 

CHEYENNE MET HER MATCH TODAY......!!!

Well, well, well, I guess I'll have to change my little story about how Cheyenne can back up any animal on the property & does, if there is food involved.  She becomes a little kicking machine, until the chosen one, backs up & finds something else to do.  She's always gotten away with it, even with the mules & Max the horse. 

This morning when John was letting everyone out, Cheyenne ran in Daisy's pen looking for morsels of hay, like Daisy was going to leave anything, but I guess there is always a chance.  Boaz wandered in to see what she was doing & she proceeded to double barrel kick him with her tiny little hooves.  John said he backed up a few feet, just stood there, looking at her for a few seconds.  Made up his mind, walked over picked her up by her neck & shook her.  John said her back feet were still on the ground, & when he yelled at Boaz he dropped her.  Poor little thing, she isn't use to being so mistreated.  John checked her over & gave her a treat, but I have an idea she'll be a little more careful with Boaz in the future.  He obviously doesn't put up with her nonsense....!!! 

YIKES.........I'm really getting behind.  This time of year is when I do a newsletter for Christmas.  I know, a lot of people HATE newsletters at Christmas, but that's the best I can do.  Besides I don't talk about who is at the top of their class, or has a new job  that pays twice what the old one did.  Like that's going to happen in our economy right now.....!!!  Or talk about people that unless you know them, really doesn't make a lot of sense.  I look at John he looks at me, & we ask, "who are they talking about"?  Anyway I talk about the animals & what they did this year it's usually more interesting than than what people do anyway.  So far I haven't gotten started.  But I have good intentions & nothing planned tomorrow, sooooooo.......!!!!!

The vet is coming out next Friday to test Rusty the mule for Cushings.  He is getting hairy & I don't remember him doing that before.  I have all my information printed out to back up my request for an ACTH test rather than the Dex test for Cushings.  Some vets are coming around to the idea of one blood draw & no threat of laminitis & using the ACTH test.  But it is vital that it be handled properly.  The last one I had done, had to be done over...........the lab didn't do it right.........!!!!!   Hmmmmm........as I recall we had a discussion over why in the world I wanted that rather than the gold standard Dex test..........!!!

While she's out, I'll have her draw a CBC on Cisco.  He's just not right.  We had his teeth done, but he still eats like he's got something going on.  We were going to haul him in for an endoscope, but since the vet was coming out for other animals, decided to get a CBC & see if it tells us anything, then we can do the endoscope later.  Buddy Brat has a small sarcoid on his sheath. I've been putting Equaide on it & it is holding it's own or getting smaller, but won't hurt to have it looked at.

And last but certainly not least is Jenny big girl needs to be re-evaluated for her foot.  We're still soaking, & poulticing, & fighting proud flesh.  I don't think it's any worse, but have no clue if it is getting better.  The proud flesh drives me crazy, which is actually a pretty short drive..........but the vet says we can always take care of it later, we need to try to take care of the oozing.  I don't see how the hoof wall can grow correctly, if it's got this blob of "stuff" in the way.  It does look like we are getting some hoof growth at the coronet, but below that what happens, when the growth reaches the proud flesh? 

So if I don't update for a few days, don't be surprised.  Patti left me with a "dummy" blog to play with.  I got into it a couple of nights ago, & I think it will be easier to set up another dummy blog than to try to straighten that one out.  It's amazing how much damage one person that doesn't know what they are doing, can do........!!!!!!  LOL

Just got a call from Mocha & Tucker's Mom.  You might recall that they also took in Missy the Great Dane someone dumped in our area.

It seems that during the night Missy knocked down the fence & attacked Tucker.  He's OK, but has a gash on his side, his ears have been chewed & he has some bites on his hind quarters, poor little guy.  She also killed the ducks & geese.  Missy's been there for a couple of months & none of us have any idea what happened to set her off.  Like January said we don't know her history, so we'll never know, but obviously she shouldn't be around other species, don't know about dogs.  January said she got into a fight with one of their other dogs, over food, but that's different.

She's already checked with a Great Dane rescue in El Paso & they will take Missy.   I feel terrible about this happening since I was responsible for putting Missy into that home.  As they say, no good deed goes unpunished, & in this case the ducks, geese, & poor little Tucker pay the price. 

This afternoon we  picked up Ellyn & Dick in Sonoita & headed out to do the home study for Pancho & Ruger "ie" Lefty. 

It's almost perfect burro country, about 3 acres of hilly rocky ground with a nosy Arab mare & 3 dogs.  So we headed to the other side of Sonoita to pick up the boys from their foster home.  Sonoita is basically an intersection out in the middle of grasslands, so going from one side to the other isn't very far.  In fact as a crow flies they are probably less than 2 miles from where they were.

Their foster mom has changed her days at work, & actually was home today.  Probably a good thing, since Pancho had a different type of day planned I guess.  Dick & Ellyn even got to tug & pull as we tried to get Pancho in the trailer.  For a little guy, he certainly was determined, but so were we.  Ruger was just a goofy little guy, pretty much ready to "go along to get along".  

We got them in their pen, & they got busy exploring the new territory, basically ignoring people, dogs & the silly mare.  She's a beautiful Arab mare, very friendly, loves people............BUT.........once the donkeys hit the ground, she totally focused on them, almost ran me down.  I tried twirling a rope to back her up, & obviously she had never had that rather "rustic" training method used on her, since it didn't even faze her........!!!  So I made sure I was close to a bush or tree, just in case, she came flying thru again.  

The dogs went out in the pen with the donkeys & everyone seemed to get along just fine, & before we left the mare & the donks had touched noses thru the fence, so I think they'll fit right in. 

Ruthie, John & the neighbor's dog Boofer entertaining visitors at the Open House this week-end

The weather was great, we didn't have as many people as we have had in other years, but everyone seemed to have a good time,  & the donkeys got lots of attention.  One man brought his own apples, which were a huge hit with the "fur" kids.  Jenny got to the point where she wouldn't take timothy pellets, if that's all they had to offer.  When the man brought out the apple, she had no problem taking that.........!!!! 

I want to thank, Linda, Georgette, Ian, Patti & Mae for all their help.  Couldn't have done it without you guys.  Besides we don't ever see enough of ya'll, it makes a good time to visit in between people coming to see the donkeys.  

Ruthie started yelling as soon as she saw people & Boaz learned to trot from one side of his pen to the other, as the people moved along.  Most of the people were more than willing to give him more treats or pet him, which he figured out real quick.  

One woman came that was here a couple of years ago, & got Tula to take a treat from her hand.  I think over the years Tula has done that 3 times, always from a woman.  But she wouldn't do it this time.  

I got a big surprise, when I looked up & saw a friend from Missouri, Ellyn & her husband Dick.  Ellyn was our bridesmaid when we got married 51 years ago......!!!  They've been out here before, but we didn't know they were coming this year.  They've gone on quite a few adventures with us, picking up donkeys or hay or whatever else we're doing.  They are more than willing to jump into the fray, so to speak.  Tomorrow they are going to go with us to do a home study for Pancho & Ruger.  If the home checks out, which I think it will we'll go pick up the boys & haul them to their new home, which is pretty close to where they are being fostered.  The people are horse people so they know what shelter & fences means,  I'm sure there won't be any problems.   

You might notice the blog looks a little different...............FINALLY.........!!  I have been ready to do some changes with the blog for a LONG time, but didn't know how to do it & was afraid to mess up what I already had.  After we got thru with the Open House, got the animals fed, & had something to eat ourselves, Patti, worked on my blog to bring it into the 21st century, so to speak.  I doubt that it will ever be "nifty neato", but it looks a lot more interesting now, & she showed me some things I can do to make it better.  

Everyone was glad to get out of their pens tonight, but I would imagine tomorrow they will be expecting more Open House with people.  It doesn't take them long to settle into a new routine, especially if food is involved, but I'm sure when the gates open, they'll be more than happy to head out for a day of munching on the mesquite trees. 

OPEN HOUSE TOMORROW

John & I are running around like chickens with our heads cut off, trying to get ready.  Well actually right now he's running around, & I'm goofing off on the computer.......!!!  All that organizing gives me a "low back pain", so I am taking a well earned break...!!!  

I think everything is falling into place, so we should be ready by tomorrow morning.  Did find out a couple of the volunteers aren't going to make it, so the rest of you guys are going to probably be pretty busy.  If anyone in the area would like to come out for a few hours, I'm sure we could use you.  If it gets busy, I'll probably recruit from visitors that I know.......!!! LOL

Of course we aren't the only attraction going on.  The Cascabel Community Fair, (for 20 some years it was a Christmas fair, till "PC" raised it's ugly head)   will be jamming out with music, food, lots of booths with homemade one of a kind treasures.  It's about 12 miles north of us & is well worth the effort to go see what's going on.

I'd like to go, but I would imagine I'll be busy.................!!! LOL  At least I hope so. 

 

 Moogee hasn't figured this move out yet, thank goodness

Well, I think Boaz & his partner in crime BlackJack are trying for a world record for losing fly masks.  It's become a daily occurrence for Boaz to come in without a mask.  John has spent a LOT of time looking for them.  I even went out this morning looking, hoping a different way of searching might turn at least one of them up............NOPE 

A nice couple that came to visit this summer, obviously thought some of the masks needed replacing, & sent 5 brand spanking new ones.  Two of the ones Boaz lost are those, & I refuse to put another new one on him.  This morning I went thru the masks I have laying on the sewing machine awaiting repairs from a hard summer & picked out the one easiest to fix.  Now it's out there too, & I guess I'll dig out another one tonight to put on him tomorrow.  I could get in touch with Renee at Colorful Equine, but if I can get thru this year with what I have, I'll order a supply of masks in the spring for next year. 

It wouldn't be so bad, but he is one that really needs a fly mask, because of habronema damage below his eyes.  When he comes in without a mask, his eyes are all watery.  You'd think by almost December the flies would be gone, especially after a couple of nights earlier this month of 19 degrees.  But there are still plenty of them flying around.

The weather this week-end for the Open House is suppose to be sunny & in the 70's.  Last year it was cold & miserable, so Mae said she would bring hot apple cider this year.  I called her & told her as warm as it was going to be, hot cider probably wouldn't be as appreciated as it would have been last year.  

This afternoon John FINALLY got the concrete poured for the rubbermaid water trough to sit on.   Lysa & I have been after him for a year, & he kept saying he'd get to it.  I think we'd given up or maybe he was just waiting for us to quit harping about it.  When we went out for chores tonight, someone had gouged a couple of divets out of it.  Donkeys don't miss anything & if it can be messed up or even better, totally destroyed, that's what will happen.

I'm having a hard time adjusting my feed.  Jack ate over half of the mush I mixed up each feeding.  So far I'm mixing up too much every time, so I put what's left in the refrigerator till the next feeding.   I don't want to not have enough, but at the rate I'm going that's not going to be a problem.

Rusty seems lost, he just stands around usually around the pen area.  Boaz didn't have a shelter in his pen, so we moved Daisy to Jack's pen, down by her girlfriends, Frijolita & Tula.  John took the corral panels down between Daisy & Boaz, so now not only does he have a shelter, he also has the largest pen.  I hope we can find Rusty a mule buddy. 

IT DOESN'T GET ANY EASIER.......!!

When John went out this morning, Jack had crossed over the Rainbow Bridge.  John had checked on  him around 3am.  He was laying down, sitting up on his breastbone, got up & came to John.  That in itself was unusual behavior for him, interaction with people was always on his terms. 

Without a necropsy we'll never know for sure what happened, but I feel it was something that had been going on for awhile.  He was as usual until yesterday afternoon, so whatever it was, hadn't been a burden to him, which is good.  

When Jack first came here with John

In April of 2004 Jack's owner called & said if we didn't take him he would shoot him, because Jack had recently gone blind in one eye & was too spooky.  I think even then he didn't hear well, which was probably part of the spooky part, especially if you came up on his blind side.  That never changed, you come up on his blind side without yelling, & there were going to be fireworks, hopefully away & not towards you. 

We called him "WooWoo" Jack, that's the sound he made when he was anxiously waiting for his mush.  And if you forgot & headed towards the 4 pens below him without feeding him first, he really let you know it.  

Over the years he mellowed although he was always a mule because of being used as a tool, rather than being treated as a team member, probably all of his life.  He was born on a ranch May 5, 1982 & I doubt that he ever established a relationship with anyone.  But he learned to mug people that came out on tours for treats.  We always warned them that he would "slime" their hand because of lacking many teeth.  He was always chewing a quid of hay or weeds, & would work it down to the front of his mouth, & delicately "hack" it out, so he could accept their offer.  We'd tell them the story & they all would stand to watch him work it out & spit & most were more than willing to get "slimed"

I hope in some way we helped to make his retirement years good.  He roamed the property with his buddy Rusty the white mule, & could do just what he wanted to do.  I hope it was enough.

Now Rusty doesn't have a buddy, he doesn't care for the donkeys & they don't want to be around him.  Who knows maybe a little mini horse or mule will need a new buddy soon. 

Managed to get the bird & it's accompanying goodies cooked & ready at the same time......!!!!  It's been so long since I "did" Thanksgiving, I wasn't sure I could get it done.  I actually had some down time in the morning, which was a surprise.

This is a picture I took of Laura, Olivia, John, Boaz & a little bit of BlackJack in the background, as they were getting ready to leave.  They were here for 3 days & really were a lot of help.  Olivia wants to be a vet, & from what I saw she will be a good one.  

Speaking of Boaz, I got a call this afternoon from a neighbor to tell me one of the donkeys was out & about down by her place.  I went out & told John Boaz was out.............!!!!  Didn't even have to think about who it was......Ha!  John said this morning Boaz came in "flying low" & braying from Burroland & ran in his pen, like he was late.  Now we think he was probably out & ran to catch up.

Anyway we went out with the golf cart, & there he was in the wash headed for the San Pedro River bed, hesitate to call it a river, since it very rarely has water in it.  I jumped out to try to head him off, & told John to take off towards home & I'd run him down the road, towards the gate, that John was going to open.  

I started down the wash, & when I got close to him, he jumped up the bank, which wasn't an easy jump.  As he was scrambling up the bank, & I got closer to him, he lunged up the bank & took off like someone had set his tail on fire.  Usually when a donkey is running they run along with their head turned to one side, bopping along at a pretty good speed.  He had his head down & running as fast as I've ever seen one run.  I tried to run up the bank to keep up with him, which wasn't a real brilliant idea, I fell in the process.  Of course he was still "picking them up & putting them down".  When I got to the road, John was still there, & said Boaz leaped past him, ran over to our fence & went thru like it wasn't even there.  Hmmm, last time he got out which hasn't been too long ago, John went down to that area & fixed where he thought the problem was.  Obviously not.........!!!!  But in the process Boaz showed John exactly where the fence had dragged the post on the bank, down into the wash, which made the existing fence about 18 inches high.  Didn't even slow him down.......but John shut off Burroland for the night & has plans for fixing the problem tomorrow.  Why do I think that Boaz is going to end up showing John every weakness in his perimeter fence......!!!! LOL

While we were down there we noticed Jack the mule laying down in the wash.  It looked like he was just rolling.  But tonight when he came in, he was acting like he was in pain, John came in & said he thought Jack was colicing.  He has gut sounds, but has his tail out away from his body & acts like he trying to pass gas.  He is so hard to work with, although I did manage to get Colic Relief down him.

This is later & no change in Jack, I can't really say he is acting like colic, but without a vet it's beyond my knowledge to know what else it could be.  He seems to be in pain & is actually letting us work with him, which is unusual for him.  I even gave him a shot of banamine.  We quit giving him vaccinations years ago, because he would just explode if the needle touched him.  He didn't even move when I gave him the shot.  Banamine is a good pain, inflammatory medication & is often given for colic.  As usual if anything is going to happen, it will happen on a week-end or holiday.  Although we now have a mobile vet, she lives about 50 miles away..........SIGH  The clinic up at Gilbert always has students or interns working with them & they live just across the road from the clinic in a house.  Don't know if the clinic owns it or not, but it's certainly convenient.

 My idea of heaven would be a local clinic with at least 3 vets in the office, that lived close to the clinic.  They could take turns being on call, so there would be 24/7 coverage.  Unfortunately I don't think there would ever be enough business in this area to justify such a clinic.   

Took a picture of Jenny's foot this morning.  I know to most people it looks really icky, but it actually is looking pretty good, well except for the proud flesh.  The sugar/ betadine poultice  seems to be drying out the drainage.  I hope it continues to improve.

 This morning John had his first cataract removed.  I guess I was so thrilled with mine, he decided to try it.  He already says things are much brighter, that's what I first noticed too.  

Our son, grandson, & great grandson will coming out from Tucson for Thanksgiving this year.  I have "squirmed" out of fixing dinner for years, but guess it finally caught up with me.....!!! LOL  Hope I can remember what to do.  Actually it isn't the "what to do", it's getting it to come out "on time".  I use to do this for large groups when John was in the Air Force, but I've gotten out of the habit..........!!!   Mother wouldn't want to go out to eat, so it started out I was going to cook for the 3 of us.  But you know how those things go.  We are even adding Laura & Olivia her daughter, that are here this week volunteering.  Olivia wants to be a vet in a few years, & they like to go to different rescues & sanctuaries away from home to volunteer.  They are really good help, I hope I can find enough to keep them busy.....!!!  

Yesterday I went to town & brought home sacks of feed in the pick-up.  We hauled in the groceries, came in the house, & promptly forgot about the feed.  Looked out a few minutes later & there was a "herd" surrounding the bed of the pick-up, although Rusty the mule was about the only one tall enough to actually "partake" of the goodies.  John went out, tried to run them off, & moved the pick-up to the container where we store feed.  It's up by the garage & guess what he found up there?  Let me give you a hint...........he had also forgotten to close the garage door, where we store the garbage bags to take to the landfill.  The ones that hadn't found the hay pellets in the truck, had found the open door that led to those fascinating  plastic bags that must have smelled good.  John said they had scattered garbage from the container all the way past the hay barn.  I wondered why it took him so long to move the pick-up & unload 3 bags of feed......!!!   He was busy, chasing donkeys & cleaning up garbage....!!

 When we went out to feed Friday night Boaz didn't show up.............hmmmm..........!!!  Boaz has a "nose for news", when it comes to finding a weak spot in the perimeter fence, so we figured he was on a walk about as the Aussies say.

John headed for the wash, which is the usual place if someone gets out, because it's impossible to actually "fence" across the wash effectively.  No tracks & no Boaz.  I went back in the feed room to mix feed & John ranged out further.  It was getting dark,  & since we didn't know how long he'd been out, no telling where he was.

I got the feed mixed, John hadn't come back, so I jumped in the golf cart to go out & see if I could see him from the road.  As I got out to open the gate, here Boaz came trotting down the road.  I opened the gate, he came in & started running & braying, guess he figured out he was missing dinner, ran in his pen, turned around & brayed at me like, "where's my treat"?

John finally showed up & said he never did see Boaz, so we have no idea where he was, & John hasn't been able to find where he got out.

Something killed our last guinea Friday night, just ate the head, which I think is the M.O. of a skunk.  She was "mature" & slept on the ground rather than roosting up high.  We always shut her & the 2 remaining old hens up every night, but whatever it was, pulled the chicken wire & staples loose to get in.  John redid the wire & staples, so I hope it doesn't get in again.  Unfortunately if there is a weak spot in the wire, skunks or raccoons will find it.  One of the hens sleeps in the nesting box, the other one goes up real high on a ledge.  The one on the ledge is probably pretty safe, but the other one, is pretty vulnerable.

Still doctoring Jenny's foot, I think sometimes we go 1 step forward & 2 steps backwards, but she's still interested in going out & doing her thing.  Yesterday I cut off as much of the proud flesh as I was comfortable doing.  John asked if he could help, but he has a weak stomach, when it comes to blood, & with proud flesh there is a massive amount of blood for the amount of cutting you do.

When Dr. Nancy cut the proud flesh off Boaz's knee, she of course cut every little bit she could find off.........but.........she also used a dehorning iron to cauterize it.  That goes way beyond my "pay" grade......!!!   I'm not going there.......!!!   (G)

So I took off what I was comfortable doing, finally had to put a pressure bandage on it to stop the bleeding & left it on.  I'm suppose to soak her this morning, so I'll see what it looks like when I unwrap it.  Dr. Megan says she can deal with the proud flesh later, but we need to get the internal oozing under control.

 I agree, but in the meantime, I REALLY dislike proud flesh.

Thanks Claire & Quilla

(& Gus' chubby little side)

You think these two aren't enjoying their "quality" time with Claire?  Here... they are just one of the herd.  At Claire's house, they "RULE"........!!!!   LOL 

Last night old crippled Pepper was at it again.  He's figured out if he tries to "woo" Cheyenne he might have a chance.  She's only 32 inches tall, so all it takes is  walking over the top of her & go for it......!!!  John wanted to take pictures, but I told him we don't want to embarrass him, as if Pepper ever could be embarrassed.....!!!  He's going into this winter (19 degrees a couple of mornings this week) with a little meat on his bones, & stepping out pretty good on his poor old broken hip & bad knee.  So hopefully I won't have to blanket him, which he hates, because he has to stay in the pens at night.  Otherwise I have no idea where the blanket would end up in the brush.  He's only getting down occasionally.  John's getting good at rolling him over without having to use the ropes.  Pepper just lays there & doesn't try to fight, so John stands between his front & rear legs, (you'll notice I didn't say Tish rolls him this way, I have better sense) grabs all 4 legs & rolls him to his left side, & he usually pops right up.  I have told John, although Pepper doesn't fight & all that, standing between his legs like that isn't a "REAL" good idea, but so far he's gotten away with it.  

The other day John was very upset with Daisy, she stepped on his foot & wouldn't pick it up.  DUH...!!!  I asked John why he didn't throw all his weight into her shoulder to off balance her?  John is great with the animals..........BUT......I really believe it is much easier to work with large animals if you were raised with large animals.  He grew up with 3 very long lived pets, a dog, cat & parakeet, while I ran the gamut, you name it, I probably had it.  I might add opossums do NOT make good pets, raccoons are great fun, but destructive & crows are worse than a 2 year old child. 

I don't want to jinx Jenny, but her foot seems to be doing better, since we've been soaking every other day in epsom salts & betadine, & keeping it wrapped in a diaper with a sugardine poultice.  She's also still getting metronidazole, rectally twice a day.  I swear she walks slower & more crippled when she knows we're watching her.  She's being real good about everything, & I make sure there is a steady supply of animal crackers.......!!! LOL