so jack is here and he is so completely and totally lovely...he is already sleeping in the big dog room and has picked out his very own bed...his room mates are fine with his joining their group too.
i sadly did not get to pick up phyllis today...by the time i got off work and grabbed jack, the mission pound was already closed...tomorrow for sure.
do we have kennel cough in here? the vet is not quite sure...sissy's teeth are pretty rotten and that could be what is irritating her throat. she is on abx and we will get her in for a dental. in the meantime...i am assuming we do have kennel cough in here...with all of the recent new ones, it just stands to reason. plus if i treat it as such and practice good infection control, we should get thru it just fine like we did last time and it IS better then sissy having cardiac disease.
gideon has his head plastered to spritely's hip...he KNOWS there is something bad up with that leg and he is sticking close just in case.
i wanted to tell those of you that do not know this story, of spritely's arrival at saints.
she was a brood mare and a very good one too. she had that bad leg for years and years but it never interferred with the foals she produced. then she slipped a foal and she was sold. she slipped another one and was on her way to auction...we offerred to take her and that is how she got here.
the day that she arrived, she was standing in the aisleway of our barn and i remember looking up at her and thinking "holy shit, she is the size of a freight train!" i was totally overwhelmed. i was used to petite and compact gideon...spritely to me was absolutely, mind boggling HUGE!
i took her lead rope and led her out into the field..i had never introduced two horses before so i thought i would just do it like i do the dogs. gideon took one look at her and started to whinny, she answered right back and he took off at a gallop to come and see her. i took off her rope and they ran towards each other and stopped and started encircling their necks and nuzzling their noses.
back then, i thought it was A. love at first sight or B. just how horses said hello.
since then i have introduced both swinger and sparkles and it did NOT go like that. now i think that spritely and gideon already had been good friends in some distant and past barn...they have loved each other from the second that spritely arrived here at saints and this has never changed.
they are both GREAT and wonderful horses.
yuck...beau just puked and he is re-eating it too...jack has way more class than you do beau!
well i am tired tonight, and i only have one last sad thing to post...
please note...
On this Saturday, Sept.27th...the shelter will be closed to ALL family, friends, staff, volunteers, and visitors until 10 am that morning. This is the early morning that i have chosen for spritely to pass away...the passing of horses is never easy and it can go south for everyone really quickly so mo and i have decided to be the ones with her when she goes and just keep it at that. it can be extremely distressing to humans and the other animals because it is not the peaceful, drift off to sleep of the smaller animals. once carsons arrives, i will stay with her alone until she is loaded and taken away.
i would suggest that people say their good byes to her before saturday...cuz mo is right, there are images that are hard to remove from your head, and spritely wants to be remembered as our stunningly beautiful and vibrant spritely.
Carol, I believe you have made the most loving and humane choice by letting Spritely go this way. There will be no waiting and watching for signs of deep distress and pain. Spritely won't be afraid, she'll have her two best human friends in the world with her. This decision will impact you and Maureen far more than it will the Mighty Spritely. Take care of one another, we all know how very difficult it will be for you to complete this heartbreaking act of loyalty to a true friend.