zakar
07-12-2010, 03:28 PM
The last time I was here my horse had a catastrophic injury to himself. How he got it I don't know. We never will. He was put to sleep one week after it happened. I will do my best to get through this and tell you what happened. He fell on or hit his head on something and crushed in his forhead. He was an arab so it was very noticible. He seemed to be doing fine he was up on all 4 feet and walking around and eating and doing normal horse things. I called the vet out and he said he looked like he was going to be ok if he didn't develop any nurological symptoms. Well he never did anything that wasn't normall for him. Which made things harder in the end.
At the end of a week he started developing issues that the vet couldn't see but I knew that he wasn't doing well. He would act collicy but wanted to eat. Then he started developing air pockets in his throught. I called the vet out imediately when I felt the air pockets. He said the only thing we can do now is take him to A&M to get an exray and see exactly what is going on. I asked the vet if he still thought it was worth it and he said yes but just don't get your hopes up. He is still functioning normally bodily. I loaded him up and drove over 3 hours to get his x ray one way. I had been up all night watching him and I knew it wasn't good. We got there and they were the nicest people in the world. They went to take him back to do the x rays but he wouldn't go without me. As long as I stood there he was fine. So I stayed in the x ray room while they took the pictures. They said they had never had a horse stay so complient with things going on like that. When the pictures came out it wasn't good.
You may want to skip this part. Scroll down to where it says you can read this. He had crushed his skull into the crainiel area around the brain. It did not touch his brain. But the air he was breathing in was going into the air space and allowing irriversable infection to set in. The air pockets in his throught were from the air invading into his skull and going down his neck and his throught. I knew then it was over. The thing is that they didn't know why he was still functioning at all. They said he should have been dead on impact. Every horse they had ever studyed on or seen either lived or died imediately. They had never seen anything like this. I asked if he could make the trip home to be uthenized and they said yes there is no reason he can't. He has made it this far. So I drove him home another 3 hours.
My dad had a friend dig a hole next to his favorite tree and when we got there the vet was on his way from an emergancy. I took him out of the trailer and let him say goodby to everyone. Then the vet got there and it was time. The vet came prepaired because he knows my horse well. He knew this wasn't going to be easy. Why you ask. Because his mind still worked. This horse was smart even in the end. I had tied him to the trailer to clip some of his mane and tail. I was just gone for a minuite or less. He was gone. The vet got there to put down a horse that was running for the last time. He loved to run. When he was done he came to me. I told him it was time. We walked to the hole I told him bye. Vet did his thing and he said this should be quick. Wrong again. He woudn't go down. I told him it was going to be ok. That I was going to be ok. The vet got another shot and gave it to him and he was gone.
There is usually some physicall jumping when a horse is put to sleep and some snorting as they take their last breaths but not for him. He was just gone. I then cliped his mane and tail and walked to the house while my dad stayed to see him barried. Things havn't been the same without him. He was either the life of the party or the disaster of it one. Things have been rather quiet around the ranch without him. He would paw at gates just to hear them I think.
***You can start reading here. He was a great horse all the way to the end. He was my horse and everyone knew it. And he let everyone know it. He lived an extra week to let me say goodbye. And he left an impression on everyone there that night.
At the end of a week he started developing issues that the vet couldn't see but I knew that he wasn't doing well. He would act collicy but wanted to eat. Then he started developing air pockets in his throught. I called the vet out imediately when I felt the air pockets. He said the only thing we can do now is take him to A&M to get an exray and see exactly what is going on. I asked the vet if he still thought it was worth it and he said yes but just don't get your hopes up. He is still functioning normally bodily. I loaded him up and drove over 3 hours to get his x ray one way. I had been up all night watching him and I knew it wasn't good. We got there and they were the nicest people in the world. They went to take him back to do the x rays but he wouldn't go without me. As long as I stood there he was fine. So I stayed in the x ray room while they took the pictures. They said they had never had a horse stay so complient with things going on like that. When the pictures came out it wasn't good.
You may want to skip this part. Scroll down to where it says you can read this. He had crushed his skull into the crainiel area around the brain. It did not touch his brain. But the air he was breathing in was going into the air space and allowing irriversable infection to set in. The air pockets in his throught were from the air invading into his skull and going down his neck and his throught. I knew then it was over. The thing is that they didn't know why he was still functioning at all. They said he should have been dead on impact. Every horse they had ever studyed on or seen either lived or died imediately. They had never seen anything like this. I asked if he could make the trip home to be uthenized and they said yes there is no reason he can't. He has made it this far. So I drove him home another 3 hours.
My dad had a friend dig a hole next to his favorite tree and when we got there the vet was on his way from an emergancy. I took him out of the trailer and let him say goodby to everyone. Then the vet got there and it was time. The vet came prepaired because he knows my horse well. He knew this wasn't going to be easy. Why you ask. Because his mind still worked. This horse was smart even in the end. I had tied him to the trailer to clip some of his mane and tail. I was just gone for a minuite or less. He was gone. The vet got there to put down a horse that was running for the last time. He loved to run. When he was done he came to me. I told him it was time. We walked to the hole I told him bye. Vet did his thing and he said this should be quick. Wrong again. He woudn't go down. I told him it was going to be ok. That I was going to be ok. The vet got another shot and gave it to him and he was gone.
There is usually some physicall jumping when a horse is put to sleep and some snorting as they take their last breaths but not for him. He was just gone. I then cliped his mane and tail and walked to the house while my dad stayed to see him barried. Things havn't been the same without him. He was either the life of the party or the disaster of it one. Things have been rather quiet around the ranch without him. He would paw at gates just to hear them I think.
***You can start reading here. He was a great horse all the way to the end. He was my horse and everyone knew it. And he let everyone know it. He lived an extra week to let me say goodbye. And he left an impression on everyone there that night.