Ernie's Back

Ernie came back from the equine hospital! He stayed there from 1/18 to 1/25. Carrie and Laura trailered him home.

He's lost weight. I took this picture 2/9.

I scanned around for a comparison picture that wasn't too old and here's how he looked during the summer (He's wearing a coat in most of the more recent pics).

Ernie's going to be on stall rest for 4 weeks. He's on equine senior feed now and the portions are small. Since he's a turd and refuses to drink much water, Carrie made the decision to put his feed in his water bucket. If he's hungry, he has to drink to eat! It's the only way we've been able to guarantee he's getting the minimum water each day the doctor recommends. 

Ernie's supposed to get a few 30 minute grazing sessions and 10 minute walks throughout the day. Carrie was stressed, sore, or something one morning, so I took Ernie out while drinking my tea.

Right now, Ernie's on a three bucket meals a day program: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Carrie normally handles the first two and I handle the 8 PM dinner feeding to get him through the night.

After 4 weeks of stall rest, Ernie will be promoted to limited turnout. He'll get to go in one of the pony dry lots by himself.

Colic surgery and the follow up hospital stay are not cheap (over $10 grand). If one of our horses needed it, I'd argue that the most fiscally responsible thing to do would be to say our farewells. Ernie's an older guy, so I thought there was a chance Laura and Amy wouldn't have done the surgery. However, they've been through some tough times and losses recently, so I knew there was a chance they'd roll the dice on surgery even if it would be a financial burden.

Amazingly, God provided. An old job owed Laura backpay from over a year ago that she'd thought she'd never see. A check arrived a week before Ernie's colic that covered 98% of everything! 

So here's to hoping Ernie has a speedy recovery and a lot more years in him. He's part of the herd and Laura and Amy are part of the barn!