Forever Home Donkey Rescue

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.