Twister
Twister
STATUS: AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION
BREED: Quarter Horse
AGE: 3 years
GENDER: Gelding
TRAINING: Some halter training
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JANUARY 2010 Twister came to the rescue as a result of an owner surrender. He is approximately 2-1/2 years old, however he is very emaciated and his legs and joints are somewhat malformed, possibly due to extended periods of malnutrition while growing up. We picked him up from his previous home where he had no shelter or fencing and was kept tied to a car. He has thick discharge from both nostrils, is extremely underweight and has a large, hard lump on the side of his cheek. Our vet examined him immediately after we picked him up. He has a respiratory infection and the large lump is being caused by an infected or impacted tooth. He is not strong enough for sedation, so we cannot have his tooth issues addressed until his infection has cleared up, he has gained some weight and he is more stable, per our vet's advice. We had our vet pull blood which came back with fairly good news - his red cells are low but not extreme so he is just slightly anemic and his white cells were up from the infection but not to an extreme extent either. He is on a special soft diet along with antibiotics to make it easier for him to eat and to get his infection under control. He is easily startled and a little shy around people, but he seemed thrilled to have room to walk around freely when we turned him out into his paddock and after exploring his new space, he took a nice long drink and settled into munching happily on his hay. He was very wary of his stall at first, but by morning he had decided it was a good place to hang out.
FEBRUARY 2010 Twister's infection has cleared up thanks to the antibiotics and he is feeling much better. He is getting more comfortable around people and has settled in well. Right now our job will be to get some much needed weight on him so that we can get his tooth fixed and have him gelded before hot weather arrives.
MARCH 2010 Twister has gained enough weight to be sedated. We took him to the vet to be gelded and to have his impacted tooth treated. He is back home and doing well. Once he recovers from his gelding and gains a little more weight, we will consider taking him to the trainer to help him overcome his trust issues and possibly start him under saddle. He has some swelling in his right front ankle that the vet feels may be due to arthritis, so we will take it slow and make sure he is sound enough to be ridden comfortably and without pain.
MAY 2010: Twister has shed out his coarse, unhealthy winter coat and is a beautiful, shiny boy. He is still our shy guy, but very much wants to trust. He is still having issues with his joints, so we will not attempt any kind of training for fear of causing injury or further damage. He is halter broke, but quick movements make him jumpy and fearful.
