barbaro recovery

[kentuckyrosesinmay]

Originally Posted by LARHAGE

I made a commitment to my horse that as long as she was willing to fight that I would go the whole way with her, some people probably woudn't have. It was emotionally draining to see her in pain, but at the same time she still had the look in her eyes of a horse that was not depressed. I did all kinds of things to keep her interested and happy, like buying a bunch of varieties of hays and hanging them in nets all over her stall to encourage her to stand on her feet, despite the pain. I had a small tv outside her stall, and a radio, hell you do ANYTHING you can do when you love something so much... and if that means letting go, than you do that too. The people closest to this horse know his heart, and they know when he has had enough. It's nobody else's business to question their ethics or the extent of their love. I wish more owners were like the Jacksons, and my heart and prayers go out to them.

Yep Larhage, I've been there too. I also wish that more owners were like the Jacksons. I agree with Gator...definitely the post of the day and maybe even the month. Touching.

[Rupert Pupkin]

I have a question that I have been asking ever since the injury but nobody has given me an answer. If the worst case scenario happens and they can't save the leg, why do they have to put him down? Why can't they try giving him a prosthetic leg? There have been horses that got prosthetic legs and did fine. There was a horse in California named Boitron and I believe he even stood at stud with a prosthetic leg. I believe it was a back leg that he had lost. Why isn't a prosthetic leg an option for Barbaro?

[Cajungator26]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

I have a question that I have been asking ever since the injury but nobody has given me an answer. If the worst case scenario happens and they can't save the leg, why do they have to put him down? Why can't they try giving him a prosthetic leg? There have been horses that got prosthetic legs and did fine. There was a horse in California named Boitron and I believe he even stood at stud with a prosthetic leg. I believe it was a back leg that he had lost. Why isn't a prosthetic leg an option for Barbaro?

Boitron died when he was 11 from perotinitis. Interesting article I found...

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/hor...=64413&subsec=

I guess it would depend on where they had to amputate and the disposition of the horse.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by Cajungator26

Boitron died when he was 11 from perotinitis. Interesting article I found...

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/hor...=64413&subsec=

I guess it would depend on where they had to amputate and the disposition of the horse.

Thanks. That article answered most of my questions.

[my miss storm cat]

This just came up on DRF.....

Prognosis for Barbaro becomes more bleak
By GLENYE CAIN
LEXINGTON, Ky. - Barbaro's surgeon termed the colt's condition "guarded" and said he faces "tough odds" on Wednesday now that infection has threatened his survival.
"As we said yesterday, Barbaro's condition is potentially serious, and we are aggressively seeking all treatment options," Richardson said in a release issued Wednesday by the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center in Kennett Square, Pa. "Today we will focus on further diagnostics and keeping our patient comfortable."

In an interview published Wednesday in the Washington Post, Richardson gave the 2006 Kentucky Derby winner less than 50-50 odds of surviving in light of an infection in his shattered right hind leg.

"He is stable today, and he's got a great appetite, but he's not as good as he was two weeks ago," Richardson said. "Two weeks ago, we were at 50-50. With this new problem, we're less than that."

Richardson was scheduled to hold a press briefing Thursday morning to discuss the 3-year-old's condition. In the meantime, the hospital release noted, Barbaro is being treated both for the fractures he sustained in the May 20 Preakness Stakes and for "discomfort" in his uninjured left foot.

Barbaro's injured right hind leg showed signs of infection last Saturday, prompting Richardson to perform a three-hour surgery to replace the compression plate and many of the screws that are holding the lower leg together while it heals. Barbaro's recovery from anesthesia afterwards reportedly took 12 hours, significantly longer than his recovery took after previous surgeries.

"He's facing tough odds, and his condition is guarded," Richardson said in the Wednesday release. "Our entire staff is determined to do all they can for this magnificent horse."

In a New York Times report on Tuesday night, the colt's co-owner, Gretchen Jackson, also revealed that Richardson had identified a bacterial infection in Barbaro's uninjured left hind hoof. Richardson drained that abscess as part of the Saturday surgery.

Barbaro remains in intensive care at the center's George D. Widener Large Animal Hospital.

The left foot's condition is of great concern to Barbaro's veterinary team in large measure because it is vulnerable to stress-related laminitis, a painful and potentially fatal hoof disease that can develop in horses forced to shift weight off an injured leg. So far, there have been no indications of laminitis, also called founder, in Barbaro, Richardson told the Times on Tuesday.

http://www.drf.com/news/article/76357.html

[chupster2]

What gets me about such an article is that there isn't one thing on it that wasn't in the Penn update and others, but they put the word "Bleak" in the title which gives you a spin going in. Of course it is more bleak than it has been. We all know that. But no one said that he was packing it in. To me, it is ridiculous to speculate at this point. It's bad. We have known it was bad since May 20. In fact, we have mostly been shocked that he was doing so well. The dog days are here. Don't pack it in until they tell us to verbatum.

[my miss storm cat]

Originally Posted by chupster2

What gets me about such an article is that there isn't one thing on it that wasn't in the Penn update and others, but they put the word "Bleak" in the title which gives you a spin going in. Of course it is more bleak than it has been. We all know that. But no one said that he was packing it in. To me, it is ridiculous to speculate at this point. It's bad. We have known it was bad since May 20. In fact, we have mostly been shocked that he was doing so well. The dog days are here. Don't pack it in until they tell us to verbatum.

I never lose faith.....

You're right though. "Bleak" wasn't the best choice of words.

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

I have a question that I have been asking ever since the injury but nobody has given me an answer. If the worst case scenario happens and they can't save the leg, why do they have to put him down? Why can't they try giving him a prosthetic leg? There have been horses that got prosthetic legs and did fine. There was a horse in California named Boitron and I believe he even stood at stud with a prosthetic leg. I believe it was a back leg that he had lost. Why isn't a prosthetic leg an option for Barbaro?

I don't think that option has come up because they are really just fighting an infection right now. He is around 50-50 to have a great life as a normal horse.

A prosthetic leg would be a last resort. Considering horses have been sires with a prosthetic leg it might be talked about if it came to that.

The doctor though is a pretty confident guy and I doubt he would even bring it up. He says the right things and is very cautious in the public, but I don't think there is any doubt in his mind that he will pull it off. The guy is VERY ARROGANT and CONFIDENT, and that is not a knock on him.