Stories of Program Horses...

 

 

Hope's story of restoration and healing!

pics to come soon!

Hope when she was rescued in mid April of 2010.

Hope was one of 8 horses that was rescued from a home in Livingston County, MI. She was the one of the bunch that was the worst off. She came to us this thin, walking rack of bones with no light in her eyes. The attending vet said she was very near death. (3 other horses on the property were not so lucky) It was one of the worst  and largest rescues we had ever been involved in. Hope came to HNI in April. She had her teeth done by an equine dentist, and was treated for sand, parasites and ulcers. She gained over 65 lbs in the first few weeks. Once up to a good weight she was sent to a foster farm with an elderly horse and pasture so she could eat up some green grass and rip and tear around and build up her muscles. She then returned and was adopted in early September 2010! Wow! What a difference!

Hope in mid September 2010!    Wow!     What a difference!

pics to come soon!

 

Carrots Story…

Carrots came to Horse North Rescue as a very thin 22 yr old Paso Fino gelding. He was an owner surrendered horse, who had been purchased only 9 months before. We had planned to get him and a pasture mate from the downstate location but the other horse went down and was euthanized the day  before we could get there. One other very thin horse was on the property and was being returned to the original therapy program from which they were all purchased. (We found out later because of her severe malnutrition she sadly had to be euthanized.)

  

Carrots was thin and it took him over 3 hours to eat his pellets. At that rate getting his weight up would be a major challenge. He had such a hard time eating his food and munching on his hay our first call was to our equine veterinarian to schedule to have equine dental work done. His teeth were awful with over ¾ of a inch difference in height from one side of his tooth to the other. No wonder eating was so difficult. Horse jaws slide sideways when they chew. They don’t chew like humans. If jaw can’t slide side because it uneven… they can’t grind/chew their food.  Without his teeth being done he wouldn’t get the nutrition he so desperately needed.

It was disclosed when we picked him up that he had an old hip injury. Our second call was for the farrier. His feet had just been done. The trim was uneven, all the angles were different from foot to foot and his one back foot had too much extra toe which was malformed and caused more strain on the old injury. His back leg was also swollen and we wrapped it daily for a while until he got his strength back and the swelling went down.

We also used some supplements  for ulcer control. In our experience it is common to have ulcer and digestion problems with horses who have been starved.  Horses are designed to graze/chew all the time. When they chew the chewing stimulates them to salivate and the acid in their stomach is then neutralized. If they are not fed frequently enough the acid can build up and eat at that stomach lining.

We began feeding him up with our pelleted feed, giving him the supplements, we had his teeth and feet done and we began to watch him flourish!  Two months later Carrots was a different horse both physically and emotionally.

 Carrots is one of those horses  who has touched our heart with his sweetness. And to think what could have happened to him if we had not taken him! What would his pastures mate have been like? If we could have gotten there sooner could we have saved her too? I am sure they too were awesome horses.

  We discovered Carrots was a awesome therapy horse and began to use him with Madison a wheel chair bound teen  with a genetic disease called Dystonia. Carrots was unflappable. Even with her motorized wheel chair zipping around he was happy to let her lead him all around the arena.

Carrots two months after intake…

 Carrots is one of many horses that have come through the doors of Horse North Rescue and Placement Program. He still resided in Northern Michigan. Though winters are harder on him because of that hip, he is worth the extra. This is one of those horses who is worth his weight in gold and deserves to live out his golden years… after giving so many of his years to help all the kids he has.  

 

Pumpkins Story…

Pumpkin came to Horse North Rescue when she was about 5 months old. She was taken as result of an animal control and veterinarian referral. It really was a sad situation because the older man who had her was suffering from Alzheimer’s.  His care taker was supposed to be ensuring he was cared for and should have been also making sure the horses were being properly cared for.  Needless to say it didn’t happen.

Pumpkin and three other horses came in at the same time. We were told Pumpkin had been moved off the farm by someone else and then was brought back. During this time something happened to her and 1/3 of the nasal bones in her face were smashed. It was said to have happened in the horse trailer… but no blood was found in it. So we will never know what really happened.

 

Needless to say Pumpkin was wild and had not been led or handled at all. The veterinarian had to remove the smashed bones and stitch her face back together. She was also full of worms and it took multiple treatments to get rid of them.

Because she had no bridge to her nose we were limited as to what we could do with her but yet we had to handle her and it would be months before she may be able to where a halter. So we kept her stalled and taught her to lead using a neck rope. We began touching her and handling her feet.

Six to Eight weeks later we had the veterinarian remove the stitches. He was pleasantly surprised that the cartilage in her nose in her nose was firm. Finally she could wear a halter!

 

Pumpkin was with us for almost a year before she was adopted by one of our volunteers and her momma as far as she was concerned. She has learned ground work and has developed into a very nice tempered little girl. She has struggled with lameness off and on with her back leg. It is hard to say with the lack of appropriate care her mother had while being pregnant and nursing what the long term effects may be for her. She is small for her age but is a normal healthy yearling now running and kicking up her heels with the rest of her herd.

We always wonder if Pumpkin will be a late bloomer.  She has been half the size of other horses her age.  In the winter of 2009-2010 she grew a full hand in 2 months!!! Way to go Pumpkin!

 

 

Princess' Story…

Princess came to us as a 2/3 yr old filly that had never been handled.  She came with a group of horses to our rescue as an animal control and veterinarian referral.

Princess did not know how to lead, had never been loaded in a trailer. She did not know how to pick up her feet and to further complicate things she had a horrible leg wound that according to the veterinarian had gone at least 8 weeks without being treated. She also was exposed to two stallions and one was her father.

When we brought her home we had to access all that was going on with her. We taught her to lead, began ground work with her, we taught her to pick up her feet. We also began treatment on her leg (which took over nine months) and we had the veterinarian ultrasound her to ensure she was not pregnant.

 

Above: Princess leg before and after...

Over the course of a year with lots of volunteer time and help princess healed, she has learned to trust humans, learned groundwork and was started under saddle. In the fall of 2009 she was adopted.

 

Above: July 2009                                                 Princess late fall 2009 with her new mom!

 

Velvet's Story.... Velvet came to us through a volunteer who found her laying in a field. Upon checking back on her it disturbed the volunteer that the horse still was not on its feet. She inquired about it with the property owners and found out that the horse had been laying out for 3 days. They left her and were not giving her anything for pain. No vet was called. She was just being left there to die! They discussed the mean ways they could dispose of her. It was appalling! The upset volunteer kept checking back and told the people about our program in hopes we could do something about this mare. The horse didn’t belong to the property owners, they were caring for it for someone else. (Yikes!!!) Our volunteer asked how to contact the owner about Velvet. In talking to the owner we discovered she didn’t have the knowledge or experience to care for this animal and no money for vet bills. She agreed to donate the horse, and it was very obvious to all of us involved no one else there had any intention of helping Velvet at all. They said the coyotes were starting to come up and nip at her! This was a very hard situation for our many volunteers, the vet, and the farrier. These people had no compassion or concern for Velvet. Not an ounce of empathy for her obvious pain. Needless to say we all met at the property and prepared her for the move. The vet felt her slim & only chance of survival was to get her out of there! Our concern was she was too far gone for us to really help. But, Velvet had that look in her eye. She had responded to our volunteers, and with as much pain as she was in, she still tried! The following day when she was more stable she was moved to her rescue foster home. The first few nights were touch and go. We thought we were going to lose her or would need to put her down. But, she still had that sparkle in her eye. She was eating everything in sight, drinking etc. We watched her around the clock, checked on her, got her food, water and got her up occasionally. Velvet had numerous open pussy wounds on her that needed to be treated. One was 2 inches long and about 4 inches deep. We had to clean it 3 times a day with a peroxide/water wash and flush the puss out of it. It had gone untreated for so long that it may have gone septic. This was likely the reason the mare was down to begin with! Her blood work came back. It indicated she had not been getting food for quite some time. Her body had used up its fat reserve, and had started on her muscle. With a human that takes 3 weeks. ( So how long for something the size of a horse with out food? ) Velvet seems to be progressing. She is getting up easier, still wanting food and water, and nickering for cookies! She is on the course to rehabilitation. She still has a long road ahead of her, and the out come is not yet known. But we are all rooting for her, and she is trying with everything she has. She hasn’t given up so neither will we. After all this she will deserve a good home to live out the rest of her days. I think of the scripture from Proverbs: “The righteous man cares for the needs of his animal.” I think “needs” are more than just the physical ones, they need our compassion too. For all who have been involved in Velvet’s rescue & the fight for her recovery... Thank You! She has shown us all that love can give them the will to fight! No matter what the future holds, she is a special horse who has touched the heart of many!

Velvet's nasty wound! This is the wound that almost ended this horses life. It was very infected! When we got to her she had many open sores but this was by far the nastiest! It was at least 2 to 3 inches long, and was almost 4 inches deep! It had to be flushed out numerous times a day. After almost 3 weeks it is now almost completely healed.

Brushed, and treated... Here is Velvet brushed & wounds treated.

Wandering the yard....  She was looking SO good!

Velvet was with our rescue for nearly 9 months before she finally became tired of fighting. Her wounds had healed, her weight was maintained, and she was loved and she was full of personality. But because of the wound going septic it was believed that that is what caused an aweful case of founder. Months later as her feet grew out she had so much abcessing that took place that the bottom of her feet looked like swiss cheese. We cleaned and treated her feet twice daily and put her in boots to keep them clean.

Eventually all the volunteers and Velvet agreed it was time to say good bye to our big wonderful lady. This was a hard thing for so many of us... as we had nursed and cared for her for many months. But in the end she had the look in her eyes of peace. We had to remind ourselves that she didn't die alone and scared in a field as she once had been left to do. But she passed on surrounded by many who loved her... And for that even though it was hard on us all we know that loving her... it was all worth it.

 

Alegre’s story…

Alegre came to Horse North Rescue from another northern Michigan rescue. They struggled with getting weight on him, his feet did not grow and he only required trimming every other time the farrier visited, and he was abscessing because he was always struggling with founder.

He was brought in and accessed. We suspected an ulcer because he was thin and had no desire to eat. Anyone with horses knows they LOVE to eat…  Our veterinarian drew blood on him and he was slightly anemic.

We began ulcer treatment and giving him a blood builder. After a month he finally began to develop an appetite. As his stomach healed and he began to get his nutrition his feet began to grow, and grow and grow. He went from not needing a trim every other time a farrier came to needing trimmed every 4-6 weeks because he had such hoof growth.

He went from being a finicky slender horse with feet that did not grow to a easy keeper with normal hoof growth.

After nearly a year Alegre is up to weight, has healthy hoof growth and is finally sound. He was adopted in the fall of 2009.