My horse is really not doing so good (medical warning)

MerryAnvil

MerryAnvil

Bushwoolie
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Update:

Sad news. Dusty suddenly collapsed today and wouldn't get back up. Her condition worsened dramatically from there, and there was nothing the vets could do for her. I made the decision to put her down so she could slip away painlessly. She went quietly, not a sound nor a movement, and I kissed her goodbye. The vet was very kind and has offered to make a beautiful presentation with locks from her mane and tail for me to have. I decided to donate her body for their research, as hers was an unusual case and they think they may be able to learn from her so they might help other horses like her in the future. There is no sense in wasting her, since her body was but a vessel and her soul has moved on.

She's in the golden pastures of heaven now, suffering no longer, and I bet she looks beautiful with her wings. Thank you so much for your support, it really meant a lot to me.

---

My horse Dusty got a wound on her flank last weekend and we've been treating it at home since the vet came on Monday. Yesterday evening she started showing several signs of tetanus (third eyelid sticking out, spooking at everything, refusing food and water, etc) and the vet decided to then be like 'Oh yeah sorry you were supposed to be giving her penicillin twice a day. Oops, I forgot'. When I asked her if it could wait until tomorrow (it was completely dark outside) she said 'No she might have tetanus give it to her ASAP'. It's rare, but apparently even if the horse is vaccinated (she got a booster when the vet came out to treat the wound) they can still become infected.

We had to make a dash to the local farm store to get syringes and the penicillin, but I've never given an IM shot to a horse before and I couldn't get the full dose in her (it wasn't helping that it was dark, cold, windy, and she was spooked). We're going to try and take her to a vet hospital this morning but if it is tetanus, we won't be able to afford treatment and it would be kinder to put her down before she goes into the last phases of it ans suffers a lot of pain. There is a very small survival rate for horses with tetanus and it's an extremely painful and expensive recovery period that we just can't afford. We're barely scraping by as it is.

I'm so scared and heartbroken and frustrated even though I know there was nothing I could have done differently to have prevented this. We checked her pen top to bottom and I have no idea what she managed to cut herself on. I followed the vet's instructions, even asked them if I needed to keep any antibiotics on hand and they said no. Dusty was a rescue who's already been through so much and now because of a freak accident and the negligence of our vet, I might lose her. She's the first horse I've been able to bond this well with, and she's so young and just started her saddle training. This is awful. Please, if you could, keep Dusty in your thoughts and prayers.
 
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dakotadarkhooves said:
My horse Dusty got a wound on her flank last weekend and we've been treating it at home since the vet came on Monday. Yesterday evening she started showing several signs of tetanus (third eyelid sticking out, spooking at everything, refusing food and water, etc) and the vet decided to then be like 'Oh yeah sorry you were supposed to be giving her penicillin twice a day. Oops, I forgot'. When I asked her if it could wait until tomorrow (it was completely dark outside) she said 'No she might have tetanus give it to her ASAP'. It's rare, but apparently even if the horse is vaccinated (she got a booster when the vet came out to treat the wound) they can still become infected.

We had to make a dash to the local farm store to get syringes and the penicillin, but I've never given an IM shot to a horse before and I couldn't get the full dose in her (it wasn't helping that it was dark, cold, windy, and she was spooked). We're going to try and take her to a vet hospital this morning but if it is tetanus, we won't be able to afford treatment and it would be kinder to put her down before she goes into the last phases of it ans suffers a lot of pain. There is a very small survival rate for horses with tetanus and it's an extremely painful and expensive recovery period that we just can't afford. We're barely scraping by as it is.

I'm so scared and heartbroken and frustrated even though I know there was nothing I could have done differently to have prevented this. We checked her pen top to bottom and I have no idea what she managed to cut herself on. I followed the vet's instructions, even asked them if I needed to keep any antibiotics on hand and they said no. Dusty was a rescue who's already been through so much and now because of a freak accident and the negligence of our vet, I might lose her. She's the first horse I've been able to bond this well with, and she's so young and just started her saddle training. This is awful. Please, if you could, keep Dusty in your thoughts and prayers.
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My old horse buddy did hurt himself but had a heart issue and he collapsed and it worry some I stayed with him all day and petted and loved on him. He did pass but he was a rescue horse nearly 27 years old and I had him for 5 wonderful years and I know how you feel.

I keep good though for your mare in my prayers. Just try and relax a bit if you can making her sense your nervous could make her more nervous. I really hope you don't lose your horse I sincerely know how it feels.

I had to make a call on my great dane two summer ago he was just so sick and old. I know your mare is not but hang in there. There got to be a little hope and a little faith it will be ok,

:xmashug::xmashug::xmashug:
 
Ology said:
My old horse buddy did hurt himself but had a heart issue and he collapsed and it worry some I stayed with him all day and petted and loved on him. He did pass but he was a rescue horse nearly 27 years old and I had him for 5 wonderful years and I know how you feel.

I keep good though for your mare in my prayers. Just try and relax a bit if you can making her sense your nervous could make her more nervous. I really hope you don't lose your horse I sincerely know how it feels.

I had to make a call on my great dane two summer ago he was just so sick and old. I know your mare is not but hang in there. There got to be a little hope and a little faith it will be ok,

:xmashug::xmashug::xmashug:
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:xmashug:Thank you Ology. I really appreciate the advice and kind words. I will try to stay calm for Dusty's sake, and try to accept whatever the outcome may be.
 
dakotadarkhooves said:
:xmashug:Thank you Ology. I really appreciate the advice and kind words. I will try to stay calm for Dusty's sake, and try to accept whatever the outcome may be.
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All you can do sometimes is just love them and let them know they are not alone.
I just lost to of my baby chick I raise and love but they knew I loved them and I am here for my other to.

Again love and light to drive the darkness away and have faith it will be a better day!
 
:cry: I just hate it when innocent animals are hurting. I would definitely find a new vet. I would honestly sue mine if anything happened to my pup because of their negligence. I really hope that Dusty gets better. If it comes to the worst, make sure to give her love as she goes. :xmashug:
 
Ology said:
All you can do sometimes is just love them and let them know they are not alone.
I just lost to of my baby chick I raise and love but they knew I loved them and I am here for my other to.

Again love and light to drive the darkness away and have faith it will be a better day!
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Tak said:
:cry: I just hate it when innocent animals are hurting. I would definitely find a new vet. I would honestly sue mine if anything happened to my pup because of their negligence. I really hope that Dusty gets better. If it comes to the worst, make sure to give her love as she goes. :xmashug:
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Thank you both. I really appreciate it. Luckily some good news, we took her to OSU which has a very nice vet program and there's still a chance we can get it under control. The tetanus isn't at the most critical stage yet. So...we'll hope and pray that she stays standing, eating and drinking. If she does than her chances of recovery are better.
 
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Thank goodness I will keep her in my though and prayers and just hang in there it sounds like she a fighter.
 
Tetanus is terrifying, but with a good vet and good luck, your horse can pull through this. I saved a calf with tetanus once. She belonged to my neighbor. They were going to shoot her, but I convinced them to let me try to work with her and after 5 days of rough road, she pulled through. They made her a pet, and unlike the other calves, she was never butchered but lives to this day as their cherished friend. Caught early, as you've done, Dusty will hopefully make it. We're all pulling for her and you!
 
evilbunnyfoofoo said:
Tetanus is terrifying, but with a good vet and good luck, your horse can pull through this. I saved a calf with tetanus once. She belonged to my neighbor. They were going to shoot her, but I convinced them to let me try to work with her and after 5 days of rough road, she pulled through. They made her a pet, and unlike the other calves, she was never butchered but lives to this day as their cherished friend. Caught early, as you've done, Dusty will hopefully make it. We're all pulling for her and you!
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That's an awesome story, thank you so much for sharing! Dusty was a rescue that came to one of the people at a boarding stable we were at for awhile. He was a 'horse flipper', meaning he'd get horses for free and then turn around and sell them. She was so underweight and pregnant at only 3 yrs old, and when she foaled, she had a tiny little paint baby who was also malnourished. We bought them both for $300 a little after she gave birth. Dusty was a good mama, she kept the other horses away from her baby and yet let us get as close as we liked (my sister, who ended up getting the foal, used to lay next to her when she was tiny). They were both infested with worms when we got them and the baby almost didn't make it, we had to go out daily in knee-high mud and medicate them both for it. But they both pulled through, and put weight back on slowly but surely. Tumbleweed (the foal) just recently had a growth spurt, we thought she was stunted due to the malnutrition but nope! She's just a late bloomer and is now as tall (possibly taller) as her mama.

Dusty's vet seems to think that she has a good chance, they put a drain in the wound and put her on antibiotics and are keeping her in a nice, quiet, secluded stall so she won't have to suffer the loud noises (since in horses at least they start to have issues with loud noises and sudden movements). They were all really nice, telling me about their own horses and listening to mine, complimenting Dusty on being a good mom, saying that she's really pretty and a good horse. They weren't somber about it either, they were joking around and smiling and it made me feel better about the whole situation. This morning we called and she's still standing and eating, just having a bit of trouble drinking but that's less concerning than the eating because they can always do IV fluids.

Thanks for your support, I really appreciate it!
 
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Positive, cheerful surroundings are just what she needs. I'm sure she's getting the best care, and hope she makes a quick recovery.

My big mare Stormy had a similar backstory. She was literally starving, but still took excellent care of her baby, a little filly named Strawberry. They belonged to my neighbor. He meant well, but really had no money to feed them and winter had set in early. They had no grazing, no hay, no feed... nothing. A year previous Stormy had gotten out and joined up with my little herd of ponies and while her owner fixed his fence, she stayed there with us. I tried to feed her very well, because even then she was thin. Long story short he fixed the fence and took her back. So then a year later here she is with it cold as hell and no food with a baby to feed. I guess she remembered that she got good food at our house, so she broke out and brought her kiddo down the road to our house, opened the gate and rejoined my little herd. When I found them I fed them and took them home. Next day they were back. I took them home. Next day... yep. The fourth day I suggested maybe they could just winter with my herd. My neighbor agreed. Come spring he took them again, and I wept over it. Then his dogs, also very hungry (and whom we tried to keep food out for) went berserk and killed all my rabbits, over a dozen. This wasn't the first time something like this had happened and I threw a fit. I know he felt bad about it but I was so angry I yelled at him and told him he was cruel to keep animals he couldn't feed. And to my amazement, he told me he wanted me to take Stormy. I was delighted, though still devastated over the loss of all my rabbits (over a dozen, in the past his previous dogs had killed some of my dogs in their pen, goats, a pigs, it was awful). That was four years ago. Stormy is huge and sassy. She is so beautiful now (even skinny she was lovely). Sadly for Strawberry, he still has her and tried to breed her. Her colt lived a month. I know it's because Strawberry was malnourished as a filly, she'll probably never be a viable brood mare. Nor should she be. I wish I could get her too. I keep offering to buy her, but he doesn't want to let her go. One day though, she'll be mine. I just have to be patient and willing to go the mile for her.

That was a jumbled mess. Heh. Shows how my brain works. Or doesn't work. :p
 
Sad news. Dusty suddenly collapsed today and wouldn't get back up. Her condition worsened dramatically from there, and there was nothing the vets could do for her. I made the decision to put her down so she could slip away painlessly. She went quietly, not a sound nor a movement, and I kissed her goodbye. The vet was very kind and has offered to make a beautiful presentation with locks from her mane and tail for me to have. I decided to donate her body for their research, as hers was an unusual case and they think they may be able to learn from her so they might help other horses like her in the future. There is no sense in wasting her, since her body was but a vessel and her soul has moved on.

She's in the golden pastures of heaven now, suffering no longer, and I bet she looks beautiful with her wings. Thank you so much for your support, it really meant a lot to me.
 
dakotadarkhooves said:
Sad news. Dusty suddenly collapsed today and wouldn't get back up. Her condition worsened dramatically from there, and there was nothing the vets could do for her. I made the decision to put her down so she could slip away painlessly. She went quietly, not a sound nor a movement, and I kissed her goodbye. The vet was very kind and has offered to make a beautiful presentation with locks from her mane and tail for me to have. I decided to donate her body for their research, as hers was an unusual case and they think they may be able to learn from her so they might help other horses like her in the future. There is no sense in wasting her, since her body was but a vessel and her soul has moved on.

She's in the golden pastures of heaven now, suffering no longer, and I bet she looks beautiful with her wings. Thank you so much for your support, it really meant a lot to me.
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From one who has had to watch a equine friend pass on to the next place too. I am truly deeply sorry for your loss and will keep you in my prayers.
 
dakotadarkhooves said:
Sad news. Dusty suddenly collapsed today and wouldn't get back up. Her condition worsened dramatically from there, and there was nothing the vets could do for her. I made the decision to put her down so she could slip away painlessly. She went quietly, not a sound nor a movement, and I kissed her goodbye. The vet was very kind and has offered to make a beautiful presentation with locks from her mane and tail for me to have. I decided to donate her body for their research, as hers was an unusual case and they think they may be able to learn from her so they might help other horses like her in the future. There is no sense in wasting her, since her body was but a vessel and her soul has moved on.

She's in the golden pastures of heaven now, suffering no longer, and I bet she looks beautiful with her wings. Thank you so much for your support, it really meant a lot to me.
Click to expand...

I'm so sorry to hear this. Poor Dusty must have fought as hard as she could. I sincerely believe she'll be waiting for you somewhere wonderful and you'll be together again one day. It was generous of you to donate her body. They may well save many horses in the future with what they learn from her. Take care of yourself. I am sending you a ton of hugs!
 
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