Update on Ben

Okay, so maybe I overreacted on my last post, but the thought of having Ben in a cast for the next 4-6 weeks really saddened me. The more I thought about it the more I realized it would be torture for not only him, but for Jena (Hyrum's pony) since she would be without her best buddy for the next month and a half. I hate to see animals suffer and will do anything in my power to help them feel better. So the idea of casting Ben's leg just so it would heal with minimal scarring proved to be very selfish on my part.

Saturday morning the vet came out to check up again on Ben's wound. After seeing the progress it made in just 3 days, she agreed, there was no reason he would need a cast. YIPPEE! I was so excited to hear such great news! Especially for the fact that I saved $1000 by not doing it! It would have cost about $500 for the cast to be put on and $400/month to have him boarded over at Barnabee Farm for hospitalized care.

I am so thankful that everything is looking better of him! I've been changing his bandage every other day and it continues to improve daily. Hopefully by next week he'll be 100% healed and I"ll be able to be back in the saddle starting in February.

Out of Commission

No, I'm not taking a break from blogging and no, I'm not laying in bed sick, it's my horse Ben who will be out of commission for the next 4-6 weeks. I am so sad for this set back, especially when it seemed like we were just getting back into a good riding routine again after the snow and my kids getting sick. Last Tuesday I took Ben on a trail ride up to Gazzam Lake and everything went well. Then on Saturday when I got him out to ride again I noticed that there was an open wound on his front left fetlock where he had an old scar. I hosed it off and applied some ointment and then had my Dad do the same for me on Sunday. Since there was no school Monday, I wasn't able to see him again until Tuesday. When I took him out yesterday it looked much worse and was swollen. I called the veterinarian and she was able to come out to look at it today. After her exam she told me that since the wound is opening along a joint, every time he flexes it causes the tissues to stretch and rip even more. Since it's along an old scar line the tissue is weaker than normal and there is a risk that the whole scar could reopen if not dealt with properly. For those that are interested here's a photo of his injury.

She suggested to have the area around the wound clipped and cleaned really well, debride the old scar tissue, suture it closed and then cast his foot for the next 4-6 weeks. Although this was not what I wanted to hear, there's really no other way for it to heal properly unless the joint is immobilized. So now we are in the process of finding out if there is a stall available for him to recuperate in at the boarding facility down the road, since keeping him here in his pasture would be too hard to keep the cast clean and dry. If all goes well he should have his cast on Saturday and he'll be out of commission until the 1st of March. Boo Hoo! The timing of this couldn't have been worse since I just received my new saddle in the mail today and am so anxious to try it out. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to keep it covered for now and come Spring we'll have lots to look forward too. At least this injury occurred during the winter, since riding in the cold isn't that much fun anyway. Let's just hope it warms up soon and he heals properly so we can be back in the saddle again soon.