Botulism~

It seems there's a Botulism outbreak in our area. Carol from the tack store sent me an email saying that there's been some horses that have died from this. From what the Merck Manual states, it's a horrible way for any animal to go.

Merck Vet Manual - Botulism

As I recall, awhile ago, there was a hay supply that was suspected. We had had an outbreak of botulism cases here locally, when exactly I don't recall. I need to check into this further to see if there's a pattern from where the suspected source is. Sigh..... if it's not one thing it's another! Everyone be careful and check it!

Today~

I met an interesting person. Someone that I know I've seen before, but never had the opportunity to talk to. She ended up with a horse that is in her words, "Sorry shape", enough so that she's flaming mad about how poor he is. He has rain rot, skinny and of course blowing his winter coat. So he looks worse then he actually is I'm sure. However, she said she could feel every rib.

I felt bad for her, I know her frustration. The anger at whomever had the horse previously to allow the animal to get in such a state.

I advised her to do several things.
One contact the vet, have the vet come and do an exam on the horse. Two, power pack the horse. Three, Bathe the horse with an astringent type shampoo. Four, put the poor thing on a really easy to digest and palatable grain that's a complete feed. Five, free choice hay. And finally Six, Groom, groom and more grooming. And a possible Seven, perhaps putting him on SMZ's for a bit would help with his skin issues and anything else that may be going on. I would Definitely have his teeth checked also, thinking about it, but I forgot to mention that.

I'm sure she thinks I'm nuts. But I've been there, done that.

She asked me how long it should take to see some improvement. I said, about 6 weeks to 2 months. Possibly more, the longer the horse has been down it seems the longer it takes to bring them back up. And the horse isn't young, so bouncing back may take a bit more doing then just tossing food at the poor thing.

Example:
This picture is about a year old. Taken 3/24/07

(This is NOT the horse in the post above, however.)




This was taken 8/19/2007



Yes, I know, I take REALLY crappy photos, so please don't hammer me for them. I'm trying to get better at my picture taking skills. It's hard when your subject wants to be In your face instead of standing still for that "perfect" shot. : )

WHY do people let their horses get to this state before they find them another home? Are they hoping for a miracle? Are they hoping that hay prices will go down? Simply saying they can't afford it doesn't make sense to me. If you couldn't afford to feed the horse, then, sell it, give it away if need be. Find a temporary home for the poor thing, as in Free lease the horse out. Anything but let them starve!

Which brings up a question. If you came across a horse that was in sad shape, what would you do?
A. Say something to the owner
B. Call the authorities
C. Sneak the horse food
D. Attempt to get the horse
E. Walk away
F. All the above
G. None of the above

And if you chose answer A. How would you approach the owner about it? Would you ask if the horse had a medical problem that led him to be thin and sickly? Or would you use a more tactful route? I'm curious how others would approach this touchy subject. I have been faced with this before.

School? At My age?

I guess I'm going back to college. I'm not sure what I'm going to major in, but, I'll think of something I suspect.

I'm leaning towards Nursing, mostly because there's always a demand for nurses and there's a pretty good school that's quite close by.

I would Love to find a career that involves horses, but I don't know if that's possible. I'm "looking" into a few possibilities, but I haven't settled on any one thing yet. So we shall see.

I "think" I am better with animals then I am with people, but, then again, I am not necessarily good with anything right about now. So we shall see....