Post by fototropic on Dec 27, 2005 20:58:03 GMT -5
Some of you may (or may not) remember a thread I posted on the CBER board about getting "in deep with an old OTTB mre". Well, I had the second vet check today. She passed, with a few reservations. Her lungs are absolutely clear. I haven't heard a single cough since I got her off that nasty round bale. She is eating an excellent quality baled hay and doing just fine. The vet gave her lungs a clean bill of health; no heaves!
Next, we thought she might have something neurological going on as she was pretty weak in the hindquarters. Well, at probably 150 pounds heavier, she no longer falls down trying to take a corner at the trot - she actually did fall down 2 or 3 times just trying to trot through the corner of the pasture. She was that weak. Now she plays, slides to stops in front of the fence, wheels, bucks, jumps, and takes corners on a run. The vet says that her right hind quarter isn't symetrical with the left and she seems a bit stiff and just a bit shorter with the right hind. But NO neurological signs. I can't tell you how relieved I am.
But the best part is that she is so happy now. When I met her she just stood with her head hanging down all the time; taking no interest in anything around her. Now when she's just standing in the pasture, her head is up, her ears pricked. She notices sounds at our neighbors and always looks when she hears the door of the house open. The first time I brought her home, she got out and went home on her own. A couple of weeks ago, I had the gate down and she got out. She headed down the driveway. About halfway down she stopped, looked back at me, then turned around and came back up to me on her own.
In the spring when she's had more time to rest and gain weight and muscle, we'll do some more investigative work to find out what's wrong with that right hind if it's still a problem but the vet thinks it will likely be managable, at least for the light riding that my daughter does. Maybe some chiropractic or hock or stifle injections. I had decided that I would keep her regardless of what the vet said, so this is icing on the cake. That's our Christmas miracle.
Pam
Next, we thought she might have something neurological going on as she was pretty weak in the hindquarters. Well, at probably 150 pounds heavier, she no longer falls down trying to take a corner at the trot - she actually did fall down 2 or 3 times just trying to trot through the corner of the pasture. She was that weak. Now she plays, slides to stops in front of the fence, wheels, bucks, jumps, and takes corners on a run. The vet says that her right hind quarter isn't symetrical with the left and she seems a bit stiff and just a bit shorter with the right hind. But NO neurological signs. I can't tell you how relieved I am.
But the best part is that she is so happy now. When I met her she just stood with her head hanging down all the time; taking no interest in anything around her. Now when she's just standing in the pasture, her head is up, her ears pricked. She notices sounds at our neighbors and always looks when she hears the door of the house open. The first time I brought her home, she got out and went home on her own. A couple of weeks ago, I had the gate down and she got out. She headed down the driveway. About halfway down she stopped, looked back at me, then turned around and came back up to me on her own.
In the spring when she's had more time to rest and gain weight and muscle, we'll do some more investigative work to find out what's wrong with that right hind if it's still a problem but the vet thinks it will likely be managable, at least for the light riding that my daughter does. Maybe some chiropractic or hock or stifle injections. I had decided that I would keep her regardless of what the vet said, so this is icing on the cake. That's our Christmas miracle.
Pam
