Will
Will
STATUS: CURRENTLY IN REHABILITATION
BREED: Buckskin Quarter Horse
AGE: 25-30 yrs
GENDER: Gelding
TRAINING: Halter broke, gentle, easy to handle
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AUGUST 2009 Will came to the rescue as a result of a law enforcement seizure for starvation and neglect. Will has earned his name by exhibiting such a strong will to survive despite his extreme malnutrition and extended period of neglect. Our vet examined Will immediately upon his arrival and conducted numerous blood tests to help determine the extent of the damage to his internal organs and other systems resulting from his starvation. Will's red blood cell count was very low along with his hemoglobin causing Will to be anemic, however all other levels were within normal ranges which was somewhat good news. His fibrinogen levels indicated no signs of infections, inflammations, disease, cancer, or any other physical causes for his emaciated condition - he was simply neglected and not fed properly. Will has been prescribed a two week regimen of daily Lixotinic to boost his red blood cell production and he is on a diet of Purina Equine Senior along with soaked beet pulp in a small amount, 4 times a day, gradually increasing the amount weekly until we can get him up to a point where he can handle a normal sized ration. His teeth have been totally neglected and he is in need of dental work, however our vet feels Will could not handle the sedation in his current condition and we will have to wait a couple of months. We are cautiously optimistic about Will's chances of survival, however his advanced age will be a negative factor and it will be a very long, slow and difficult road to recovery ahead for him. Will has fought and struggled for so long, determined to survive, convinced that someday, some way, life would get better. Will never gave up hope, and now that he has found his way to us, neither will we. We are dedicated to giving Will every possible chance we can to help him overcome his neglect and recover - he deserves no less.
SEPTEMBER 2009 Will is doing well on his special diet and is starting to show some small weight gain and just overall better condition to his skin, hair and attitude. It took him a couple of days to realize that food would appear regularly for him. He would come expectantly into his stall when he heard the feed buckets being prepared, but would give up within just a few short minutes of waiting and walk slowly back out into his paddock, disappointed. It was as if he had spent so many months, possibly years, watching and waiting for food that never appeared, and he had resigned himself to being forgotten yet again. Of course, he soon learned that now his food, along with grooming and loving attention, does appear several times a day here, and it wasn't long before his low, soft nickers joined the loud, demanding calls from the other barn occupants.
SEPTEMBER UPDATE: Will has suffered a serious episode of colic. He was down and struggling for several hours through the night despite the quick arrival of our vet and the many shots of medication, pain reliever, antispasmodics, electrolytes and tube feeding of mineral oil and water. We were very concerned that he would not pull through, but Will has once again proven how tough and determined he is. He appears to be recovering well and is on his feet, alert and responsive but he will be under close monitoring and a revised diet for the next 10 days until we are confident that he has completely recovered.
NOVEMBER 2009 Will has recovered from his episode of colic and is now back on track and slowly, but surely, gaining weight. He is still thin, but his ribs are no longer prominent and he has filled in over his hips and spine. The farrier came out last month to trim his feet and found that he had thrush in all four feet. The farrier cut out the affected areas and we have applied Koppertox to kill the bacteria and help healthy tissue grow back.
August 2009 October 2009
DECEMBER 2009 After doing so well and gaining back much of his lost weight, Will passed away on December 27th. He went down in his stall and was unable to rise. After an examination, our vet felt it was possibly a blood clot or stroke and that our final act of kindness for Will would be to humanely euthanize him. Although we are extremely saddened by his passing, we take comfort in knowing that for the last several months of his life, Will seemed very happy and content here receiving the best care and all the love and attention he was missing in his previous life.