Squirt's Mom
07-29-2011, 07:53 PM
Hi ya'll,
My sister-in-law bought a mare about 5 years ago who was supposed to be about 13 yrs. old. She was very thin and the man they bought her from said she had sand in her gut was why and that she was under treatment, which they continued when they got her home. The treatment didn't seem to help and she kept losing weight. Their vet who was "treating" her finally said she had a rare parasite, so she was treated for that as well but continued to decline.
About 2 years ago, she collapsed and I thought she was done for but she got back on her feet finally. I called a different vet and had him come out to see her. He looked in her mouth and asked how old she was, and I told him around 15-16. He looked at me and replied, "Try over 35!" She had two back teeth and her front were worn down so she was slowly starving to death. We put her on a senior feed and alfalfa pellets, both of which dissolve into mush with the least bit of moisture.
All last spring and summer I moved her around the property to the greenest grasses, the youngest grasses, and our neighbor allowed her to graze on their land as well. Thru the summer and this past winter, I made sure she has had food she could eat easily - mashes of alfalfa, grain, apples, cooked sweet grain with whole oats....basically anything she liked and could eat. She had gained about 300 lbs back and while not fully filled out, she looked and acted much better.
The last couple of months, she has really slowed down and her weight is falling off again. I checked her mouth yesterday and her back teeth are all gone and the top front are down to the gums. I can tell her legs are hurting, arthritis I'm sure.
So, tonite I told Mark it was time to do something for Baby. :(
Carolyn and the kids are at the lake this weekend and we want to give Carolyn a chance to say goodbye to Baby if she wants to. But we don't want them here when it's done. So, sometime soon, we will be letting Baby go home to that Great Pasture across The Bridge. I know Crys is eagerly awaiting her arrival as she loved the horses so much.
It won't be the same without this sweet old dame around the place. Even in her sad state, I can still see the proud, beautiful creature she once was.
Until her final day, I will continue to take her to the best stands of grasses and feed her special goodies she has come to look forward to each evening.
I will miss her calling to me in the mornings.....Brick will miss kissing her face.
My sister-in-law bought a mare about 5 years ago who was supposed to be about 13 yrs. old. She was very thin and the man they bought her from said she had sand in her gut was why and that she was under treatment, which they continued when they got her home. The treatment didn't seem to help and she kept losing weight. Their vet who was "treating" her finally said she had a rare parasite, so she was treated for that as well but continued to decline.
About 2 years ago, she collapsed and I thought she was done for but she got back on her feet finally. I called a different vet and had him come out to see her. He looked in her mouth and asked how old she was, and I told him around 15-16. He looked at me and replied, "Try over 35!" She had two back teeth and her front were worn down so she was slowly starving to death. We put her on a senior feed and alfalfa pellets, both of which dissolve into mush with the least bit of moisture.
All last spring and summer I moved her around the property to the greenest grasses, the youngest grasses, and our neighbor allowed her to graze on their land as well. Thru the summer and this past winter, I made sure she has had food she could eat easily - mashes of alfalfa, grain, apples, cooked sweet grain with whole oats....basically anything she liked and could eat. She had gained about 300 lbs back and while not fully filled out, she looked and acted much better.
The last couple of months, she has really slowed down and her weight is falling off again. I checked her mouth yesterday and her back teeth are all gone and the top front are down to the gums. I can tell her legs are hurting, arthritis I'm sure.
So, tonite I told Mark it was time to do something for Baby. :(
Carolyn and the kids are at the lake this weekend and we want to give Carolyn a chance to say goodbye to Baby if she wants to. But we don't want them here when it's done. So, sometime soon, we will be letting Baby go home to that Great Pasture across The Bridge. I know Crys is eagerly awaiting her arrival as she loved the horses so much.
It won't be the same without this sweet old dame around the place. Even in her sad state, I can still see the proud, beautiful creature she once was.
Until her final day, I will continue to take her to the best stands of grasses and feed her special goodies she has come to look forward to each evening.
I will miss her calling to me in the mornings.....Brick will miss kissing her face.