A Renegade Cowgirl

I thought it was time to post an update on Fig's progress. I'm happy to report that things keep improving and I'm hopeful it will continue.

In case you didn't see my previous posts about Fig, he foundered last November. At that time I had him x-rayed and there was rotation of the coffin bone in both front feet. The vet said 15%, and he indicated 'the point of no return'. He was doubtful he would ever recover and suggested maybe putting him down. I had just lost Breeze a few weeks earlier and couldn't bear to even think about losing another horse.

I realized I had been given another obstacle to test me and use my education as a Master Herbalist to help my Figgy. I did more research and consulted with my new farrier. As you can see from the previous posts, it's been a long healing process. I gave him mixtures of herbs for pain, inflammation, and circulation. I also gave him Bute (phenylbutazone) when he had severe pain, and used nourishing herbs and supplements to keep his intestinal tract healthy during and after administering the medication.

My farrier had a very positive and hopeful outlook, which in turn eased my mind and worries.

As of this writing, Fig has been pain free since around the middle of March. My farrier took the wooden clogs off a couple months ago and she comes to trim every 6 weeks to maintain the correct angle and keep the toes and heels from growing too long. She commented on how impressed she was that he had dropped all the extra weight and how good he looks now.

I put the grazing muzzle on and let him out to graze in the evening. He doesn't like it much, but he's smart and he knows he must wear it. Keeping him off the lush green grass is probably the most important step in his recovery and it may be something I always have to do with this horse.

Here's a video I made of Figgy on July 2. As you can see, he's doing great! Slim and sleek, happy and pain free! I sure love my boy!

Fig

This is my boy, Fig. You may have seen him on the Cowgirl Attitude Part 3 section of my blog, that he was given to me over a year ago by a friend who could not keep him any longer.

Fig, aka Figareno, aka Figgy...is such a gentleman. A real joy to work with...and such a smooth mover. He's a Saddlebred/Arab cross and about 11 years old. He's as black as black can get and in summer is shiny and sleek. He's always had a slim build, long and lean.

He's been an easy keeper on the most part. He had one occasion that he colicked before I owned him, and had foundered (Laminitis) twice, once very mildly. It may have been because of the lush pasture he was on previously. Some horses are more sensitive to fresh, lush grass, but we really don't have much here.

He had been doing quite well on my thinner pasture and eating mostly grass hay all year. But last summer I had one horse I had to fatten up, and three that needed a serious weight loss diet.

I was surprised when Fig gained so much weight over the summer and noticing his neck was getting cresty. He was really fat! Thoughts raced through my mind about Insulin Resistance and Cushing's syndrome. Not again!

I had been so preoccupied with the challenges of Cushing’s syndrome and losing my mare Breeze, that I didn’t notice that Fig was starting to have problems. Have I failed as a responsible horse owner? Was I doomed to have continuous problems with horses? Am I attracting it?

I eventually realized I couldn't afford to have those negative thoughts in my head. It helps to have friends to talk to.

But by November Fig started to limp. I had my previous farrier out to trim and he thought his feet looked fine. Fig, however, continued to limp and he's been walking on egg shells ever since.

I found a different farrier who trimmed and assessed him again. She could tell by looking at the hoof that it was founder with rotation & suggested X-rays, which were done and confirmed as founder with a 15% rotation. The Vet’s prognosis wasn't good, but the farrier gave me some hope and said putting wooden clogs on his feet might help.

My farrier hand-made these clogs out of thick plywood and shaped them to the hoof, which she had just previously trimmed to a better angle to help take pressure off the sole. (My farrier is great by the way!) Then she mixed and packed impression material (similar to what dentists use) up into the hoof. Then the wood is attached to the bottoms of his feet with long screws to the hoof wall. The screws are then coated with a fast drying epoxy that helps keep them from backing out or getting caught on things. I know this sounds kinda weird, but they do seem to work and he doesn't seem to mind having them on his feet.

Figgy's Wooden ClogsPrior to the clogs, I was using pink styrofoam (2 inches thick) and duct taping them to his feet. I had to change them everyday! Try doing this in zero degree weather..it's not much fun.

In the meantime, Fig gets Bute for pain, but in addition I feed combinations of anti-inflammatory and circulatory herbs such as Ginger, Hawthorn berry, Yucca, and White Willow, etc, plus Reiki and nutrition.

He is still limping, but he does move better. He has a very good attitude towards me and everything I do for him. What a great horse!

He's due for another trim & reset next week. Wish us Luck!

To be continued....