SalsPage

Thursday, 9/19/01 - We went to visit Sal. We were pretty sure from his description, that we would not be able to take the horse. We were afraid there was more to his problems, and that he would appear very sickly. We saw a horse that, besides looking to be starved to death, and having an ear infection (possible fungus that had not been treated), an abcess in his foot, and a stone bruise on another foot.... he seemed to be a lovely horse that really wanted to live.. The photos below are from when we visited the farm. It was a rainy cloudy day, and although you can see how skinny he is, it is not quite as easy to decern where his bones stick out as some of the later photos. I did notice that he must have been out in the pasture for some time. His manure was green and very runny. I measured his weight with a tape. He was 912 lbs. His owner thought he may have ulcers. But stated he had never coliced before... which seemed very strange to me.

DAY 2: Sunday, 9/22/01 - I saw Sal waaaaay down in the field and put on my boots to go get him. I grabbed my camera too, as it was nice and sunny out. He had made friends with our 11hand pony who is foundered, and right now, just about his speed. I took the photos shown below. I brought Sal up for breakfast. He ate really well. Because I dont know what/how often he was being fed before, I am taking it slow with him right now, giving him 2 lbs. of pellets and 2 lbs. of sweet feed. Next week I will up this a little if he seems to be o.k. I set him back out in the field. Later in the day, I kicked all the horses out of the paddock and locked it up. I raked the paddock clean, limed the stall area and set up a hay feeder. I fetched Sal and brought him up. He ate dinner, and then I brought him out to soak his abcessed foot in a betadine and epsom salt soak. He stood there like a champ.. never once moving or shuffling. I was proud of him. After about 15 minutes, he pulled his foot up, but not out of the water. He didnt want it back in, so I pulled the bucket away. He was VERY sore after this. I put him in the paddock, so he could rest without the other horses bothering him or making him run.

Two Weeks After Sal Arrived: Friday, 10/05/01 - Gave Sal a bath today. What a good boy. Lunged him too! He did great! Was feeling so good I even got a buck out of him!. You can certainly tell he is feeling better! See the photos below! I decided doing a daily improvement page was getting a little too difficult, so I will periodically update this (once every two weeks) for your viewing! I remeasured Sal on the tape, but didnt see much difference... something I knew only photos could show! I dont see the definition in his ribs and his hind quarters are starting to fill out. I feel this is a great improvement for only two weeks!

Four Weeks After Sal Arrived: Tuesday, 10/23/01 - Sal is doing sooooo well! Today we are starting him on a weight builder mineral supplement. I have been lunging him twice per week right now to start rebuilding his muscle tone. After he regains a little bit more top wieght, we may start him with a light rider. He is mixing very well with the herd. When I go to the fence in the morning.. I barely have to lift my voice and call "Sal" and he whinnies and runs to the fence for me to take him out. He has been an absolute joy to have around and his progress is very fullfilling!

Thursday, 10/25/01 - We started Sal on a weight builder supplement. He gets 4 oz. twice daily, and we are feeding him less sweet feed, as per the supplements instructions. We are also getting in a load of alfalfa hay just for him, to help build up his back area. The farrier was out today too! He said Sal's feet look great, and there is no more evidence of the abcess he arrived with! YEAH!

Tuesday, 10/30/01 - We may try to give Sal a work out today. We are going to have to heavily pad him to prevent any rubbing, because his backside/withers are still very knobby. He is doing great lunging, however, its just not enough to get the muscle toning he needs. The weather is perfect for training this week (mid 60's) and now is probably the best time to try him out, since his soundness is not at issue anymore. We will keep you posted!

Saturday, 11/04/01 - Well, we tacked up Sal today! We werent sure if he was ready for weight or not, but he was deemed sound, so we thought we would give it a shot. I tacked him up and put a quilted pad, followed by a 2" fleece pad, and then a 1" fleece pad and an english saddle. I lunged him for about 10 minutes and felt he was acting a little squirrely (i.e., feeling too good for me to ride!), so my husband got on him and he rode out like a dream. He walked and trotted him (at Sal's own pace) throughout a free 12 acres without incident. He did beautifully with just an egg butt snaffle, although my husband is alot stronger than I am so we'll have to figure out if this is the right bit or not for him.

Tuesday, 11/27/011 - Sal looked a little lazy in the morning, but ate most of his food. Later at the afternoon feeding, volunteers Katrina & Erika came out to help feed and groom. We brought Sal out of the field. He was stumbling and akward and most definately in need of some medical attention. He appeared to be delirious, strange. I contacted our vet at 4:30 p.m. Erika & Trina kept Sal moving slow and steady and even got him to drink a bucket of water.. The vet arrived around 5:15 p.m. Sal looked to be getting worse by the minute. He was. The vet indicated he was suffering from toxic poisoning. Possibly from a plant he shouldnt have eaten. He was given a number of intravenous fluids. Dustin (another volunteer), showed up to assist. It took three of us to hold up Sal's head. After three hours of working with him. We decided to see how he would do overnight. We locked him in a well lit paddock right outside my window. I checked on Sal every hour throughout the evening. He did not acknowledge my presence. He slowly, stumblingly, walked the perimeter of the paddock, sometimes bumping into the stall, sometimes into the fence. The vet arrived the next day around noon. He checked his gums... they were red... no improvement.... then Sal urinated and we knew what needed to be done. His urine was full of blood and his kidneys had shut down. We laid Sal to rest on Wednesday, November 28th. No animal has taken over my heart and my life the way Sal did. I will never forget him and will love him forever. I worked so hard with him. He made me so happy and taught me so much. His name was Make a Salute ... and he deserves to have many.