After Surgery UpDate on Buddy!

Buddy was getting prepared for surgery by Dr Christine Murray and Dr Bill Walker so everything would go well for Buddy's eye to be removed.  It took about an hour but all went well. 

Buddy was sedated and relaxed now.

Now Buddy looks like a wounded war horse! 

Poor Baby!

He still seems to be having some pain but we are hoping it will all get better in a day or two. Hos bandages should come off in a few days.the stitches will be taken out in 2 weeks.

He looks so pitiful!

We put a hay bag in the stall so his head will stay up and eat hay It is unnatural for a horse to eat like this but eating lower could cause bleeding though the eye socket. Buddy walked up to the hay bag and sniffed it. It has alfalfa orchard hay in it. He didn't take any. He stepped back. I pulled a little hay from the bag and offered it to him. He took it and ate it but still didn't go toward the bag. I pulled some hay part way out of the bag, then he walked forward and started nibbling on it. He may never have seen a hay bag before, He figured it out! Tonight he is resting comfortably in the stall. 

We still have a few concerns. Is his eye the only damage his did to his head? We hope it all subsides in a day or two. If not, we may have to look into a deeper injury. We are hoping not and keeping out fingers crossed. Keep your thoughts and prayers coming!

   Thank you all. WE are Rescue! YOU are Rescue, too!

Buddy Update!

Buddy needs his eye removed. 

Dr Murray and Dr Walker are a team. Sadly, eye removals are becoming more common. Buddy has been here at SaveTheHorses less than 24 horse and he must think we are the meanest people trying to look and clean his eye. I hope he knows we are trying to help him. Everyone is giving him lots of love. 

He can not open his eye. It is painful and he stands uncomfortable. His eye will be removed Friday, August 29 at 3 pm. 
His eye is not repairable and he will feel so much better when it is not in pain. He is being given anti pain medications to keep him as comfortable as possible.

We will post after the surgery. Say a prayer for him.
Thank you for your thoughts and good wishes.

WE are Rescue! Thanks to YOU!

Help Our New Buddy!

This guy is in serious pain.

When he arrived yesterday, he was stressed. It was hard to tell if it was from pain or from traveling and being in a new place. He slowly circled in his stall and put his lip up and over to the side with the bad eye. We gave him some anti inflammatory medication. It did help a bit. He nibbled at the hay and grain we tried to offer as comfort to him. He even refused treats. 

He somehow injured his eye. The owner had veterinarians at Southern Crescent Equine in Newnan GA had been trying to save his eye. SaveTheHorses has worked with Southern Crescent veterinarians before of critical cases so again they suggested to the owner to call us. I offered to help with the cost of removing the eye which was quoted at $700.00. I asked the owner how much they could come up with and explained we could help raise money to help. We would rather help people keep their horses. It is always a first choice. So I was surprised the declined and said they didn't want Buddy any more. Maybe dealing with the eye was just too hard. Our first thought is he will end up on Craigslist, not treated and slaughtered. 

We planned on cleaning his eye out but just touching near the eye makes Buddy tense. Our veterinarian should be here later today to see what is under that mess. Sedating him will make it much easier on him and on all of us. 

 Thank you for your compassion and generosity.
 WE are Rescue!
It does take all of us to help these needy horses! 

Jon Michael give love to Dixie Kitten. 

It has been 11 months since we agreed to bring in Thoroughbred Dixie Kitten, a former race horse and long time brood mare. She didn't have any value to most people because she was in poor shape nutritionally and had severe founder. Her owner was paying board to keep her at a local farm but he moved out of state for his job. The local farm told him of Dixie's condition and wanted to have her euthanized. After all, she was used up. She had a 3 year old baby at her side and had lost a baby not long before we were called. 

She is a very sweet mare. She is one of everyone's favorites. She is also a heart breaker. We have worked so hard trying to keep her comfortable. There are days when she is down more than she is up. There are days when she walks around and seems like we are helping her get better, then she lays down and seems like it is hopeless. 

You can see the crack where frequent abscesses break out

Same on this foot, asbcesses often.

We had a few sets of radio graphs done to compare if our time and efforts, along with very tender loving care, have helped. Dr Ken Marcella, Dr Kerri Porter and Dr Christine Murray have seen her, blocked her feet and made great suggestions as to how to help Dixie. Farrier John Stikes and barefoot trimmer Jan Hester have trimmed Dixie's feet. We have wrapped her feet, soaked them, cleaned them, picked them and put on numerous products to help.
She gets well, or at least seems better then gets such terrible abscesses she goes down again. 

Are we making her suffer? Do we value life so much that we block seeing the suffering? It is such a hard decision to make. We want the best for Dixie. Want her comfortable. Believe me, this is a serious discussion at the barn and a serious discussion with myself at 3 am when I lay there weighing the options. Euthanasia is a serious choice, no turning back. 

After 11 months, we had hoped for more progress. We are not giving up yet. We have spoken with the Vetrixinc company, provider of extracellular matrix (ECM) technologies about injection Dixie's feet with the matrix. They helped SaveTheHorses rescue horse, Chevelle, who we brought in from Louisianna after he was hot by a car and was at animal control in need of help. The Vetrix people are consulting with veterinarians and we are hoping she may be a good candidate and that is provides us the miracle we are hoping for! Say a Prayer for Dixie.