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Spirit the Blind Mare Has Arrived

June 28th, 2012

The blind mare, which I named Spirit, is now likely more comfortable than she has been in a long, long time.  Our daughter, Katie, went with me to pick her up today.  It was a good 3 hour trip getting there due to road closures because of flooding from Tropical Storm Debby but we were determined to get her here.  When we arrived she seemed stoic – her head was down and it was like her mind was in another place and time.  I was worried about her injuries and how bad they looked – worse than they did on Saturday.  And there were new, open injuries.  I whispered to her and rubbed on her a bit.  But when I reached up to put a halter on her for the trip home she turned her head into me and stayed there for a few seconds.  I told her she was going home to where life would be much better and different for her.  She stayed close as we walked to the trailer.  She had never been loaded onto a trailer – she was born on the property (2004) where we picked her up from.  She walked into the trailer in less than a minute – it didn’t take much coaching.  Just patience, a calm hand, and reassurance.  But she wasn’t happy once we got to moving – it had to have been a bit stressful for her but she unloaded really well at the rescue.

While we waited for Dr. Ryan Meeks, we hosed her off which she seemed to like.  Then we waited together – he arrived about 30 minutes later.  I will warn you that the photos after the picture after this one are graphic.  Don’t scroll down if you don’t want to see them.  How does anyone allow this to happen?  How ??

Dr. Ryan examined Spirit and said she wouldn’t have lasted much longer.  Her needs have gone neglected for a long time.  She is malnourished and has obviously been terribly beat up, repeatedly, over time.  She has many old and new wire injuries (that were infected), bites, sunburn, open sores swelling, blisters, etc.  Inside of her upper lip she has a wide cut that runs along her gum line which is likely why she isn’t very interested in hay.  She is finally drinking but we’re encouraging her more with electrolytes.

She has no vision in her right eye.  It’s possible that she sees a very small sliver of light in her left.

The puncture wound at her chest is wide and the open wound goes down deep – all the way to her sternum.  Her scars – they are everywhere.

Not surprisingly her feet haven’t been trimmed in a long, long time.  There are many open injures, new and old, on her legs too.

The injury on her nose goes to the bone. Dr. Ryan says we need to keep an eye on this – there may be sequestered bone.  More cuts and scratches all over her face and lots of swelling all over.

Spirit had been through a lot and will wear scars to prove it for the rest of her life – from nose to tail.  Just think about the many times she’s been bitten, kicked, run into things, and how scary it must have been for her.  I was so worried about her during Tropical Storm Debby.  She was on almost 30 acres with about 20 other horses, including studs.  There were also cows, an area with trees, and a lot of debris including barb wire.  Tomorrow she will get a good bath and these injuries will get all cleaned up.  I didn’t want to do too much more to her today but let her chill – she’s had a tough day.  It truly hurts my heart to see her injuries and to think of how horrible her life has been – a living nightmare, 24/7/365.

There are even bites around and under her tail.

Spirit will be stalled for awhile – her injuries will take quite some time to heal and she should not be in the sun – but she will get hand walked often.  Injuries will get cold hosed, cleaned, and treated.  It is a true blessing that she just stands and allows doctoring.  She could be all over the place, pushy, and untrusting but she isn’t.  She’s calm and seemingly appreciative – she likes me to hum to her.  She is resting now and seems to be enjoying just “being”.  There are no others here near her to pick on her or for her to be afraid of.  We can’t say for sure that she will make it but we can say she wouldn’t have made it much longer where she was.  But she is now on the road to recovery.  She is a diamond in the rough and truly does deserve a chance.

Thank you all for caring about her and for helping.  For those that have pledged a one time donation or a monthly sponsorship – we now ask that you follow through.  Spirit has a chance – thanks to all of you.  God bless and I’ll update tomorrow.

Sincerely,
Theresa
Beauty’s Haven Farm & Equine Rescue, Inc.
A 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization
www.bhfer.org

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Blind mare update 7 pm

Additional update soon but for now – she is here and has been seen by Dr. Ryan.
In short – she has been through hell and survived – all of us, including Dr. Ryan – feels she deserves, and has, a chance.  I’ve named her Spirit.

Thank you to everyone that has been praying for this special girl.

Thank you Greg for the beautiful artwork!

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New Star in the Sky Tonight and Orphan Baby Donkey – 05/22/12

05/22/12

It is with a very, very heavy heart that I post this update. Smarty Pants crossed Rainbow Bridge this afternoon. She had been improving, or so we thought. We knew she could take a turn for the worse at any given time. Infection and damage to internal organs had been a concern since day one. While edema in her front legs today had decreased it became significantly worse elsewhere. Dr. Ryan examined her, gave us his prognosis, and ran more blood work to confirm what he suspected and it wasn’t good. Verbatim from Dr. Ryan. “Her body was shutting down – resulting in poor tissue perfusion (blood supply to the muscles). All of this caused tissue necrosis – basically like gangrene. She may have lasted another day or two but it would have been pure hell. No doubt you made the right decision.”

While she surprised us with a short walk on her own in the sling today (with us humans by her) we didn’t know it would be her last. You can see in her eyes she wasn’t feeling well. We would not allow her to suffer – we promised her this from the start.

This little filly that captured so many hearts would have been one year old tomorrow. It just isn’t fair – I don’t know why things like this happen. I don’t understand it. I could go on and on with my thoughts about this but I won’t – at least not at this time. Today has been hell and mentally and emotionally overwhelming. And I’m not feeling the loss alone. My family, including our volunteers, feel it too – we all loved her terribly. We took turns sitting with her and caring for her – even through the nights. We love you Smarty Pants – you mattered to so many but we loved you enough to let you go. We will always love you. Now you fly with angel wings – until we meet again on the other side of The Bridge – know you are in our hearts, always.

And with tears still fresh we welcomed baby donkey. She was very hungry when she arrived and didn’t hesitate taking a bottle. Lacey has been providing some milk and we have milk replacer – the baby will isn’t picky and will drink either source.

Dr. Ryan had a very hard time getting the catheter into her vein in order to run the plasma.

She is currently sleeping – something she needed badly.

She’s had a tough start in life but like Smarty Pants she arrived with light in her eyes that we pray will shine brighter with each passing day. When Pam went to pick her up she found her standing between two pine trees, shaking – we were having a really bad storm. Her mom was off elsewhere. I wonder what this little one thought? But she is here now and she will have a full tummy all night long and she won’t be alone.

And tomorrow is another day. I don’t know what it has in store for us but there is already a void – Smarty Pants had become a part of all of us. We did everything we could to help her and she knows she was loved. She didn’t die in the sand and sun – alone or afraid. She was surrounded by love. While I will never stop believing in miracles and had prayed hard for one with Smarty – I have to think God had other plans for her and we are not to question that but rather accept it. Yes, she would have been one year old tomorrow – a day that won’t come for her on this earth. Each day we had with her was a gift – a blessing. And when I look up to the sky tonight and see a bright shining star I will think of her – I know she knows she is loved. And even though she runs with the heavenly herd she is still with us. She will always be with us. God bless all of you for caring about this little girl – our little Smarty Pants.

Run with the angels sweet girl – we are so very proud of you and how hard you fought for life. You are, and always be, an inspiration to me and your eyes are etched into my heart forever.

Sincerely,
Theresa
Beauty’s Haven Farm & Equine Rescue, Inc.
A 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization
www.bhfer.org

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Smarty Pants and Peggy Sue – 05/19/17

05/19/12

Dr. Das worked on Smarty Pants yesterday. She was amazed at how bright her eyes and attitude are despite her condition. Smarty will need additional treatments.

Yesterday we found Peggy Sue with what we thought were ant bites and she was given some Banamine. Late yesterday evening we found her down and looking like she was colicing – the lumps from the bites had multiplied and looked a lot worse. Checking her over, we found a very piece of wood lodged deep in her neck. It appears that she’d rubbed against the shelter to scratch the bites and that is where the sliver of wood came from. She was so swollen – even her face. I called Dr. Ryan and he advised me what to do. I got the wood out in a quick pull and gave her some medications. She got a good bath and spent the night in a stall keeping everyone awake with her whinnies. She doesn’t like to be stalled. She is better this am.

The piece of wood.

Have a great day everyone. Smarty’s hoist is being modified today and once done it will allow her to move about freely in her sling. We did get her out yesterday for a short walk in the grass and she enjoyed that but tired quickly.

Sincerely,
Theresa
Beauty’s Haven Farm & Equine Rescue, Inc.
A 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization
www.bhfer.org

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Peggy Sue Needs Surgery – 04/07/12

04/07/12

“Hi! I’m Peggy Sue! They used to call me Patty but we decided Peggy Sue suits me more and I like it. I have an injury in my left hip/pelvic area and my right stifle gets stuck. Dr. Ryan says if I go to the hospital they can do x-rays to see what is wrong with my back left that is locked up straight – I can’t bend it. And that leg is a couple of inches shorter than the left. It’s likely an old injury that can’t be fixed but they want to figure out if putting a pad or boot on that foot would help. But we need to get my right locking stifle fixed first. I get stuck sometimes and it takes me awhile to move my body to an angle that allows me to get unstuck. Mommy Theresa asked if the stifle surgery would give me a better quality of life and the vets said yes. So, we want to go for it! Would you please consider helping with the cost of the x-rays and surgery? I’m supposed to go to the hospital this coming Wednesday and have surgery on Thursday. I’m a little afraid, but much more excited!”

“Mommy Theresa says we need another $375 so I can go to the hospital for the x-rays and surgery. Would anyone like to help? I’m only 16 years old – I’d love to spend the rest of my life a little more balanced and without locking up. Thank you wonderful people!”

All donations are tax deductible. No amount is too small. Donations can be called directly into the hospital at 352-237-6151. God bless and have a wonderful weekend!

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Paso Fino Case Update – Mares and a Colic

February 26th, 2012

It was a very productive day at the Paso farm yesterday. We got a couple mares into the barn and got them settled in.  I called Dr. Joan Gariboldi out to treat one of the mare’s (Maraca) that has been in for a few days that appeared to be trying to colic and she had a slight temperature.  Maraca was oiled but as of this morning she still had not passed any manure.  Pam is on her way to transport Maraca here to the rescue where we can monitor her and have Dr. Joan out again if needed.  Pam is a wonderful transporter and we recommend her without any reservations!

Dr. Joan also vaccinated some of the horses and pulled coggins and did a health certificate.  One of the mares left to go to her new home.  Slowly but surely we are making progress.  I was supposed to go back today for pictures but it’s horrible weather and my bronchitis is worse again.  Here are a few pictures from yesterday.

Red got to play in the round pen yesterday and he loved it! And we enjoyed watching him!

One of the available mares – #10.  Not sure of her age yet. A coggins needs to be pulled on her.  She is an alpha mare.

This is Scarlet.  She’s a very sweet mare estimated to be 6 years old.  Coggins is done.

Maraca is now here for monitoring.  She has passed some poop and seems less stressed.  The weather is still horrible.

Hope to feel better tomorrow.  Calling it a day now.  Two of the studs are being picked up in the morning.  Hopefully the rains will subside long enough for them to load without any problems.  Seeing them go is bittersweet but we are very happy that they will have their own human family.  It’s hard for us not to get attached to each one of them – and we do.

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Tragedy at KESMARC – 02/10/12

02/10/12

There has been a horrible tragedy today – a very sad loss of life. A horse and a woman were killed in an explosion at KESMARC. This is the facility where Baby Girl had her hyperbaric chamber treatments. Another woman is critically injured and is in serious condition – she was flown to Shands Hospital in Gainesville.

God bless all of these people and the horses – I ask you all to pray for them and everyone affected by this. This is heartbreaking to me – our Baby Girl was treated like royalty (as were all of the horses) there and the HBOT treatments worked wonders on her injury. This facility and the people that manage it are all part of the successful recovery of our Baby Girl. All of Baby Girl’s caregivers there truly cared about her recovery. I ask everyone to go to their KESMARC Florida Facebook page and let them know others care and are praying for them. Here is a link to the story.

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20120210/ARTICLES/120219982

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Haley and Harley Need Prayers – 01/22/12

01/22/12

I’d like to ask for prayers for little Haley and for Harley. When cleaning Harley’s eyes this morning I saw something new in the corner and felt the need to call Dr. Ryan out to look at it. He took pictures back to the hospital – I should hear back from him tomorrow morning.

And little Haley isn’t doing well. Dr. Jackson was out yesterday and treated her. She definitely has neurological issues but we don’t know why. It could be trauma (it’s thought she may have flipped over backwards) or it could be an autoimmune issue or it could be both. It was hard to get good pictures yesterday – we had the windows in the barn closed. The weather was horrible – it was cold and rainy all day long. Haley pretty much stands in one place all day and looks like she feels bad. I don’t like seeing her this way.

Haley

We’re going to have to move Kami to another paddock tomorrow – she is just too much for Haley right now and is causing her stress which isn’t helping. Her momma is sick and doesn’t feel like playing.

Please keep Haley and Harley in your prayers.

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