ABC7 and Inside Edition. Despite these efforts, she couldn’t afford to keep him at the hospital. Neither could she bring him home. Baroque’n Dreams’ high desert location meant frosty, below-freezing winter temperatures. Charlie would not survive that. Diane called on her friend Allyson Gagnon, who has a horse property in Norco about 85 miles away, and ample experience with caring for animals in need.


Charlie’s Angels Allyson fosters abandoned kittens and has a barn full of rescued animals. Old basset hounds, and a flock of chickens from a defunct meat and egg factory are all part of her Norco farm. She has a Peruvian Paso mare who was the subject of a felony abuse and neglect case, and a Lipizzan stallion saved from neglect. “I always thought I’d be a nurse, so this is defi- nitely the best thing I can do. I pay close attention and have very good recollection, which gives me an enormous advan- tage in these types of situations,” she says. Allyson has no formal medical training, but she has years


of hands-on experience caring for both people and animals, coupled with a big heart and a generous soul. After she was interviewed for half an hour by his attending veteri- narian, Charlie was finally released AMA (against medical advi- sory) into her care. The doctor felt much more comfortable about his release after speaking with her, she says. Along with Allyson’s


Allyson Gagnon with Charlie during his recovery. Allyson later purchased Charlie and his dam.


dedication, it took a whole team to take care of Charlie when he arrived in Norco. “Charlie’s Angels,” as they called them- selves, were Andrea Montgomery, owner of the Imperial Knights equine performance troupe; Carlee Holden


of Holden Horse Training; Kim Munday of Munday Farms; and Allyson. A local Norco ambulatory vet practice, House Calls for Horses (Dr. Bryn Moser) was also integral. Necrosis quickly invaded Charlie’s deep wound sites and


required constant cleaning and debridement. “Animal bites, especially cat bites (domestic cats included) have so much bacteria that necrosis will take place for about eight to ten days before actual healing will begin,” Allyson notes. As Charlie’s chief critical care organizer, Allyson’s main job


was injections, debridement of wounds and keeping his head wrapped. Wrapping the puncture wounds proved the most difficult, as they were under his neck at the jawline—the pivot point where a baby tilts its head to nurse. Every time he nursed, his wraps would gap, allowing in shavings and other


16 January/February 2018


debris. So his caretakers became creative: they used a flashy purple mini-horse-sized hood to keep the bandages in place. As time went by, treating his wounds became more of a


challenge. “The other angels organized my med box, handed me supplies and, most importantly, held Charlie so I could do my job,” Allyson recalls. “When he first arrived, it only took one person to hold him. By the end of the second week, it took two. After that, it took all three. His strength was return- ing—a cause for celebration—but also a need for more hands on deck!” It took six weeks for the wounds to close and three


months for complete healing. Ultrasound and cold laser ther- apy were then used on the wound sites to promote healing and lessen permanent scarring that could otherwise have affected mobility in his neck and throat latch.


First Premium for the Wonder Colt Just under ten months from Charlie’s life-threatening birth, on October 18, 2017, he attended his first KNN keuring (inspection) and proved, without a doubt, that he was not only a survivor, but a high-quality animal with an exception- ally bright future as a stallion prospect ahead of him. A keur- ing grades horses based on their temperament, correctness of limb, overall conformation and gaits. Allyson showed him in hand and he performed very well. The judges commented that he had a very expressive face and noble head, well- formed neck to poll connection, a strong and well-muscled back and a clean throat latch. Everyone who was involved in his recovery was happily


surprised to hear the judges praise his throat latch and neck. He has healed so well that a person can’t even tell where the scars are unless told. Additionally, Charlie was noted to have legs of good


substance with good bone and a nicely angled croup with good connection to both the back and the haunches. His walk could be more relaxed and longer but his trot was judged very nice and ground covering. He had a nice ability to change leads, his feet were of good size and his legs were straight with no deviation either in or out. In all areas of the keuring he received a high score of 8, except for his walk that earned a 7. Overall, he won First Premium and Best in Class, a major win for Diane, Allyson and the rest of his “angels,” and for Baroque’n Dreams’ breeding program. BnD had seven horses entered that were progeny or grand progeny of their stock and all of them received First Premiums.


The Heart of a Lion Allyson can’t pinpoint the exact moment she fell in love with Charlie, but when he was well enough to return home to the Truxillos, she says her husband exclaimed, “He can’t. You love him. He can’t go, he’s gotta be yours!” Charlie was two months old at that point, and much too young to wean. So Phlicka stayed on as well, and it wasn’t long before Allyson fell for her too. She now owns them both. Charlie has grown into a strapping colt with a striking varnished coat pattern and black markings on his legs that


Kim Munday


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92