Post by aoconnor on Sept 12, 2017 12:56:28 GMT
I'm so sad...bad things can happen fast and furious sometimes.
I had a business trip Wednesday from which I returned Thursday afternoon. I got home and headed to the barn to see how everyone was and get ready for evening chores. My wee little mini man, a 29 inch tall, 28 year old stallion named Choctaw, was laying in the barn aisle with foam coming out of his nose and mouth and very labored breathing. He had congestive heart failure, I knew about that, but wasn't expecting him to pass yet. I rushed him to the vet and we x-rayed his chest. His heart was so enlarged it almost filled his chest cavity, and his lungs were totally full. We made the decision and put him down right then. He would not have survived the night. As sad as I was, I knew he had a great three years with us and I adored him completely. He was my boy, and only MY boy, he didn't like anyone else. Even when putting him down he struck out with his tiny little right leg in protest of someone he didn't know holding his halter. We got a laugh out of that, he was the stallion to the very end. My stallion, my sweet wee man.
So yesterday I went to get my wee mans best girl, Malita, from the pasture to put in the barn for the night. She was a lovely little white mini pony mare, about 35 inches tall and 6 years old. She came to me in February from the sheriffs department as a rescue. She had such long toes when they impounded her that her left front hoof had curled back up and gone through the front of her leg. We worked for months to get her up and moving, and she was enjoying a little time out of the barn yesterday. But something went horribly wrong, and when I went to get her, her left hind leg was dangling from the hock down, broken completely in half but not a compound fracture. It was just blowing in the breeze. Horrible sight, not one I will forget any time soon. So I called my vet and she was here in about 15 minutes, and we put Malita down where she stood, then buried her where she lay.
When it it rains it pours. Since last September, I have lost 7 horses. I'm hoping that going forward, it will be better this next year.
I had a business trip Wednesday from which I returned Thursday afternoon. I got home and headed to the barn to see how everyone was and get ready for evening chores. My wee little mini man, a 29 inch tall, 28 year old stallion named Choctaw, was laying in the barn aisle with foam coming out of his nose and mouth and very labored breathing. He had congestive heart failure, I knew about that, but wasn't expecting him to pass yet. I rushed him to the vet and we x-rayed his chest. His heart was so enlarged it almost filled his chest cavity, and his lungs were totally full. We made the decision and put him down right then. He would not have survived the night. As sad as I was, I knew he had a great three years with us and I adored him completely. He was my boy, and only MY boy, he didn't like anyone else. Even when putting him down he struck out with his tiny little right leg in protest of someone he didn't know holding his halter. We got a laugh out of that, he was the stallion to the very end. My stallion, my sweet wee man.
So yesterday I went to get my wee mans best girl, Malita, from the pasture to put in the barn for the night. She was a lovely little white mini pony mare, about 35 inches tall and 6 years old. She came to me in February from the sheriffs department as a rescue. She had such long toes when they impounded her that her left front hoof had curled back up and gone through the front of her leg. We worked for months to get her up and moving, and she was enjoying a little time out of the barn yesterday. But something went horribly wrong, and when I went to get her, her left hind leg was dangling from the hock down, broken completely in half but not a compound fracture. It was just blowing in the breeze. Horrible sight, not one I will forget any time soon. So I called my vet and she was here in about 15 minutes, and we put Malita down where she stood, then buried her where she lay.
When it it rains it pours. Since last September, I have lost 7 horses. I'm hoping that going forward, it will be better this next year.
I've never had so many losses at once but have had my share, and yes, some were not too pretty. Sometimes it feels like you just can't deal with so much heartbreak but the only answer to that is to not have pets at all. And in spite of the pain of losing them, the joy they bring far outweighs the sorrow at the end. 
