Niña’s Blessed Last Months
It’s been a tough few days here, losing Niña and then Bria the day after. I want to share what happened with each special mare but will first start with Niña. I’ll share about Bria tomorrow.
When Niña came to us in late February, she was shy, underweight and a bit frail. She hadn’t lived with another horse for years. She was vetted the day after her arrival and on the following day, we found her down and unable to get up. After running fluids and giving her time to rest, she did get up, with assistance. After Niña’s blood tests came back and speaking with the vet, we adjusted her feed and added Succeed to the supplements she received and she started to improve and gain weight.
Niña was in our quarantine (QT) paddock for the first two weeks where she would stand by the fence and watch the other horses. She received lots of attention and warmed up to humans.
After two weeks in QT, we opened the gate to her paddock so she could wander about on the two acres surrounding our house, get good exercise, and make friends – but she did not do so. Niña would simply, walk to the gate and stand for a bit but she wouldn’t leave the paddock. We haltered her and hand walked her around the property a few times, and tried to encourage her to go out, but we weren’t going to force her. But then one morning, I went by her paddock, opened the gate, and continued up to Frosty’s Knoll to start soaking hay. I thought I heard something behind me and smiled when I realized she was there. We went up the Knoll and she stood and looked out over the farm (it’s the highest part of the property) for a couple of minutes.
I gave her some scratches and then she trotted down to the fence line at the main paddock and followed it to the far side of the house where I couldn’t see her. I later found her under the “Friendship Tree” with Peggy Sue and Cricket – it really did my heart good!
Niña continued to put on much needed weight and muscle – her transformation in such a short period of time was truly amazing. She was beautiful inside and out. She would go out and graze with her new friends and could sometimes be found just hanging out under the “Friendship Tree” with them. Unfortunately, we found her down again in early March, but after getting some fluids and rest, Niña was able to get up (with assistance). Niña had her 30th birthday in March.
Niña did well throughout April. It was a pleasure to see her trot around here and there. Sometimes, she’d take off and run like she was going to be late for something and she looked so happy. Cricket adored her and they could often be found together.
In early May, Niña was exploring a paddock she hadn’t been in before when she took off, slipped and fell on wet grass, and couldn’t get up. We let her rest for a bit and tried to help her up but we weren’t successful. I called the vet and gave her some fluids and her meds. When he arrived, Niña received additional fluids/meds, and DMSO. Thankfully, after the meds/DMSO took effect, we were finally able to help Niña stand after several attempts to do so.
This past Thursday, Niña went down for no apparent reason while she was up on Frosty’s Knoll. It was like a rerun of the previous falls but sadly, this time, even with help from the vet, we couldn’t get Niña up.
The look in her eyes reinforced what we knew – it was time. The decision to let any of them go to Rainbow Bridge is never easy.
But if there is nothing more our care team can do to help them, and it’s in their best interest, we love them enough to let them go knowing we will see them again someday – and I do believe this.
Many thanks to everyone who helped Niña and cared about her. And even though we wish she were still here, we feel blessed to have had her with us, where she was surrounded by love, if only for a few months.
Sincerely,
Theresa
