ShowBiz Feature T
his is the story of a survivor, Maggie(a horse), the lady that loves her and an incredible group of people who refused to give up.
I got Maggie from some friends of
mine when she was six years old. She had had colic surgery the year before and was just starting to train again for the show ring. The owners had bred her and they wanted her to go to a good home where she would be cared for, I was interested. In July of last year she officially became mine. The adventure started. In September she had a small bout
of colic and was in the hospital for a week but came home and was doing fine. Then six weeks later she went back to the vet hospital again, this time for surgery to resect her large intestine by Dr. Andreas Klohnen, of Chino Valley Equine Hospital. Since she was young and in good health, the odds of a full recovery were 90% so it was a solid decision to do the surgery. Surgery is very difficult on horses and
it is not unusual for them to develop additional problems, and she certainly did. The first week she was doing great but day eight developed pneumonia and was put in the isolation barn. This was difficult and sad for me personally as I really didn’t like the fact that she was pretty much alone most of the time. It made it easier for me that the incredible staff visited her quite often to keep her company and especially if I was late for my daily visit (I drove the 82 miles per day there for the entire time). She then got an eye infection, cellulitis and finally, from the buildup of necessary medication, laminitis set in. She lost 1/3 of her body weight and looked like an abused rescue horse. It was very difficult to find someplace
for her to go as she looked in such poor health, at this point had a poor prognosis and could hardly walk. Dr. Klohnen, Dr. Neil Gray and I met and decided on
Sunset Equine Farms (Kat Burdett) for the mare knowing she would get great care at this facility. Kat insisted she would be welcome and would flourish at her place. Since the vets were worried about me being turned into the Humane Society as she looked in such poor health, I could not bring her home. After she left the hospital the coffin
bone in her right front rotated 20 degrees and now getting a shoer to deal with this problem was very important. Chuck Esau came into the picture and worked personally with Dr. Gray on how to deal with her feet. The first shoeing required Ron Burdett (Kat’s husband) to actually hold her up while they worked on her. Her feet required sole casts and in addition she was wrapped with diapers and tape to keep her soles well padded. Done daily on both front feet, she had to be administered over 50 pills 2 x a day which Sunset Equine took care of for me. The struggle continued for all of us
involved with her care and each day was a victory. While she improved by little bits and baby steps, the commitment to do what was best for her was always in the forefront of her care and all decisions were made with that in mind FIRST! UPDATE: She is now off almost of her meds, down to 1 bute per day, and only the original bad right front foot (rotated one) is being wrapped and has a shoe on it. The prognosis has gone from never to riding her again to hopefully walk, trot and canter in about nine months, a major improvement against all odds. You may ask, along with many other
people, why we continued. For me, it was the emotional attachment to a horse I had grown to dearly love. Dr. Klohnen, considering the animal first, felt at no
time was she ready to be put down. She continued to eat, nicker when she saw us and always had a bright eye so we just kept going. When she got home Dr. Neil Grey felt the same way so he also just kept going. When she got to Sunset Equine
we tried a lot of different beddings, including sand, in her stall to keep her comfortable. Everyone felt it would take about a year for her to look herself BUT here we are 3 months out of the hospital and she has gained most of her weight back and is walking pretty well even though she is only allowed about 20 feet out of her stall. My gratitude is beyond words for
Dr. Klohnen since she would not be alive today without his persistence and care. Coming home, the support from Dr. Gray, Kat Burdett (Sunset Equine Farms) and Chuck Esau have made her recovery a miracle and I can never thank them enough. Also, to Fernando who took her to the hospital at a minutes’ notice and got her there alive.
Who is Ruthie Frazier??? Not much to say about me. I love my animals and feel a total responsibility to care for them no matter what condition they are in, I just can’t throw them away. Saying that I always follow the vet’s advice and in this case his advice (and I am so thankful) was to keep going and not give up on her. Even though this pretty much took all I have I do not regret doing it and saving this horse whether she is ever ridden again or not. I rode with DiAnn Langer for 20 years before she moved to South Carolina and I have been the Executive Director of the CPHA and the CPHA Foundation since 2004. I am a USEF Steward since 2009.
"You may ask, along with many other people, why we continued. For me, it was the emotional attachment to a horse I had grown to dearly love."
Opposite Page: Maggie with Kat Burdett of Sunset Equine Farm. 69
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