Rusty is sick :-(

My barn owner left me a message on Sunday afternoon to let me know that Rusty seemed a bit sick.

I immediately panicked - thinking colic or heart failure or something bad. I couldn't get a hold of her until Monday mornning and she told me that he stopped eating most of his grain and seemed a little lethargic.

I was home sick on Monday and without a car, so I had to wait until 5pm to go out and see him. The vet had been at the barn for another horse, so she checked poor Rusty while she was there. His heart, lungs, gut sounds were all good and he didn't have a fever (she checked twice). Her first reaction is that he might have a stomach ulcer! Yikes. Apparently they are fairly easy to treat with medication for 2 weeks. She took blood work and a fecal sample (fun job). They were supposed to call me yesterday with the results, but I haven't heard from them yet!!

I'm trying to wait patiently, but I'm not doing a good job. I thought I'd write a post about it to sort out my thoughts. If Rusty does have an ulcer (poor boy!) I'd like to get the medication going asap to hopefully have him feeling better. I've been out to check him every night - he is ok, but fairly lethargic. I've been handgrazing him, as the vet recommeded as much grass as possible.

Apparently sweet feed is the worst thing for an ulcer, so he is off that for now. He is eating a small amount of beet pulp twice a day, as well as being out on pasture all night. He has dropped at least 200 lbs in the past 2 weeks - it wasn't that noticeable at first, but this week the barn owner and I really noticed it.

I feel so bad that I can't do much for him until we hear from the vet. He is such a sweet boy, that I feel extremely negligent that I didn't notice that something wasn't quite right. I'm not there for his feed times usually, so I rely on the barn owner for stuff like that. This is definitely one of the downsides of boarding. My barn owner is great - she held Rusty for the vet since I couldn't be there and didn't charge me for it. She is also willing to try any options that might help a horse, whether it be feeding, training, etc.

I'm still recovering from my sickness - I had tonsilitis or something. I lost my voice and sound like a squeaky little mouse - or maybe an elf??? Most people find it funny, but I've had a couple of people look at me like I'm a total weirdo. Nice. This latest round of illnesses has made me realize how lucky I am to be in very good health normally. I have been taking it for granted that I can speak, hear and move around without any limitations.

Some people aren't so lucky - have you guys read about Mikael's daughter's head injury? That was the scariest thing I have read in a long time. It sounds like her daughter is recovering, so that is good news. I'm really going to make an effort to live a healthier life - watch more closely what I eat, get more exercise, etc.

I'm also staring down a list of about 19 things I need to do - none of them are urgent or life-threatening, but it is stuff that I have been putting off and need to take care of. Hopefully I can make a dent in it by this weekend. I've added one thing to the list - research horse feed needs for senior horses - maybe there is something that ol' Rusty can eat that is easy on his stomach, but will help keep his weight up.