Feronia needs surgery :(
Well, the subject line says it all. The Boss Vet came for a recheck today and when he found her not any better, he suggested ultrasound imaging for the left hind. Her left hind suspensory ligament (the one at the back, below the hock) is extremely inflamed and this is probably the root of her unsoundness. It is not torn, and she is a very good candidate for the surgery (fasciotomy and partial neurectomy, basically to relieve pressure and pain on the ligament) because she is young and doesn't have secondary damage ... 4 weeks stall rest, then 6-8 months slowly being brought back into work, and there is an 80% chance of a full recovery. The vet says this has been going on for a while, months at least, maybe years. Luckily I have major medical on her; it won't cover the full cost but a good chunk of it at least.
(ETA: The vet says that just rest rarely works on these cases, because it's not an injury but an inflammation.)
Feronia can be difficult, but she's grown up in the last 6 months and become much more the horse I want, so this is a huge blow. When I finally broke down, she was in her stall eating hay; she normally is more interested in her hay than anything else but as soon as I started crying she came right over to me and stayed by me until I stopped. She's done this before. Such a good mare. I look forward to all the time I will be able to spend just being with her.
Meanwhile... goddessfarmer has offered me the use of Trumpie, basically as a free lease, for a few months, and I am trying to figure out how to afford to move him to the same barn as Feronia. He's basically retired, been mostly hanging out in her back yard for the past year, and would need to be brought back into work gently (but heck, I am used to that, now), but he's a real sweetie and we get along well.
Onward, yet again...
(ETA: The vet says that just rest rarely works on these cases, because it's not an injury but an inflammation.)
Feronia can be difficult, but she's grown up in the last 6 months and become much more the horse I want, so this is a huge blow. When I finally broke down, she was in her stall eating hay; she normally is more interested in her hay than anything else but as soon as I started crying she came right over to me and stayed by me until I stopped. She's done this before. Such a good mare. I look forward to all the time I will be able to spend just being with her.
Meanwhile... goddessfarmer has offered me the use of Trumpie, basically as a free lease, for a few months, and I am trying to figure out how to afford to move him to the same barn as Feronia. He's basically retired, been mostly hanging out in her back yard for the past year, and would need to be brought back into work gently (but heck, I am used to that, now), but he's a real sweetie and we get along well.
Onward, yet again...