Okay, do you remember this horse? She likes to eat, a lot.
One day I noticed she was laying on the ground. Now, her being a lazy and fat horse, she doesn't normally lie down. So, I went over to her to see what was up. She was laying on the ground groaning. Not good. I pulled on her halter and she slowly got up. She couldn't stand up normally. Not good, again. She acted like she was stiff and didn't want to move. I checked her stomach for sounds. There were sounds, no colic. That was a good sign. Then I tried to move her. She would walk, but she acted like it hurt her.
To make a long story short, she was foundered. How? We have no idea. It's not a bad case of founder, but a case never the less. What do you do for founder? First off, we have to get the weight off of her. At least 300 lbs. Yes, that is 300 lbs. She is way too fat. The next thing we do is to get her to stand in some cold water, twice a day, for about 20 minutes. This helps with the heat that builds up in her feet. Here are some pictures I took today as Hubby had her in the water. Check out the color of the trees.
She is a very affectionate horse.
It's been a few weeks since she foundered herself. She is slowly getting better.
Oh, and I thought I would throw this one in just for you "Slow Dog." We have a pretty sky here too. lol
So for now....
Small Farm Girl,being lazy.
8 comments:
Sorry your horse foundered. good grief - am glad to hear she is slowly getting better. Did you call the vet or farrier? Hope she gets better soon. Bob said we were in for a good freeze tonight. ugh. there goes all the pretty leaves....debbie
Ya debbie, we are getting a freeze tonight. But, I guess I'm ready for it. I'm glad I live in a place that has changing seasons. Iwould get bored of the same thing all the time.
We called a "horse whisper" that could have been a vet but just didn't go to school, if you know what I mean. Thanks for asking.
Foundering is no fun, poor baby. They tend to have recurrences. It's the high sugar/carb content in fresh growth and with all the rain and growth this year and her love of all things green, she must have gone over the tipping point.
She looks so sweet nuzzling your DH. :)
Beautiful spot there. You have a creek on your place! I am beating down the envy monster.
~Faith
I am so glad your horse is getting better...you sure seem to know what you are doing....great pics..we had a heavy frost here this morning,it looked so wintry...
Beautiful! horse, nature - everything is very beautiful
Okay... so, I'm a semi-farm girl. Was around them all the time as a kid, but didn't live directly on one... and none of them had horses. What exactly is foundering? It's my turn to learn something today!
I'm sorry Jenni. Founder is when a horse gets a "fever" in it's hoofs. It can be caused by a lot of different things. Mostly it is caused by over eatting or gorgeing on grain or really thick grass. If the founder is a sever case, the bone of the foot can come through the hoof. The horse will never be the same once it gets founder. Some may not have a real bad case and they can still be ridden, but not for real long times or distances.
Thank you for asking. Sometimes I forget to explain myself. Sorry.
It looks beautiful there with all the pretty colors.
Sorry about your foundered girl. That's too bad, but now makes a little less envious off all that green lush grass you have there. We only have grass growth for about 2 months of every year, if we're lucky and receive any good rain during our monsoons. Most horses live on sparse dry grasses and hay around here.
And hay usually comes from out of state or down near the Rio Grande where it's been irrigated.
But it's rare to have fat, foundered horses in our area.
~Lisa
Post a Comment