Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Boo Has The Jail House Blues

My regular vet came out on Wednesday. He was scheduled to come out and give shots to many of the horses at the barn, so I called his office on Monday and told them I wanted him to bring his radiograph and take x-rays. Boo was still having trouble chewing, although he was trying. The pad under his chin was softer (it had been hard and swollen before), and I couldn't detect any foul order on his breath. Dr. "S" looked him over and did a lot feeling around on the outside of his jaw before he went to look inside his mouth. It seemed like Boo was still sore, but not as sore as on Saturday. His pain was more localized.

Our barn owner has been wonderful about taking on the brunt of the work from this. She gives Boo his soaked senior feed and hay cubes. She has hung a water bucket in his stall so that we can better monitor his fluid intake. She gives him his bute morning and night. Yesterday I was down in Salem visiting some dear friends and she sent me a text to say she had hand-grazed Boo and he was chewing on both sides of his mouth. Previously he had been using only the right side.

We started turning him out in the round pen for a few hours every day. He's still not able to join the other horses in the pasture. When I went out today he was anxious to graze and was acting very much like his old self. I fed him a few hay cubes that hadn't been soaked and noted that he was indeed chewing on both sides. I could clearly hear him grinding on the left side and he didn't appear to be nearly as sensitive. We will continue to give him slop for the rest of the week. On Saturday it will be 2 weeks since his injury, and we may try soaked hay at that point. I'll give him another week and then I'll longe him to see how he is in the halter. Finally, if he does well with the longeing, I will see how he does in the bridle. All in all, I am planning to give him about 3 weeks time from the injury date before I try to do anything at all with him. I'm hoping I won't need a followup visit with the vet.

So I would say things are looking up even though Boo is in horsey jail.

4 comments:

  1. I am glad to hear he's feeling better. My fingers and toes are crossed that he continues with his recovery!

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  2. After all of this...you still don't know wxactly what happened do you!!! I tell you these "kids" of ours can be worse than our real kids at getting into trouble! Getting ready to head down south the 1st of Nov...I still have 3 bags that I never got unpacked from the move up here LOL guess I have a head start on the packing!

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  3. OH!
    I am so sorry to hear of this for Boo...will go and read up..been mising out, too blame busy..but that is changing now.
    Thanks for the sentiments to me about the move...moving come with so many stresses.
    The mare seems very calm.

    She has a massage onj Friday..she is still ailing some from the summers fall on the road.

    Hope your Boo's results are good.
    KK

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  4. So glad he's doing better. Still no idea of what the injury was?

    I took a year to let my mare recuperate from a strained stifle. Like you, I was concerned about the long-term health of the horse. She resumed jumping and turned into a great teacher for young riders.

    Hugs to Boo and Bay from me, and a nuzzle from Phantom.

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