Palomino Thoroughbred colt. Dual registered Jockey Club and APHA

May 6th 9:40am
Yesterday was a regular morning here and all the stallions were turned out. They all have a good run when they first get out and I stand there and watch them as it is so neat to see them all. Well yesterday came to a horrible halt. I was standing at the barn watching them when I heard what sounded like a fence post bust. It came from the furthest away paddock (600feet) where my newest stallion Inferno was turned out. He came running up the to the gate stopped and turned to go back the other way when I heard it. It was a really odd feeling and I stood there for a minute and he did not keep running. I proceeded to turn out two more mares and foals out by the barn and he did not move the entire time. So with a sinking feeling in my gut I walked out there. It was the worst thing I had even saw. From just above his knee his leg was dangling. He just stood there and looked at me. I immediately ran to the house called a couple people to help out and hooked up the trailer and back it all the way down the lane. By that time I had 3 people there to help me bandage/support his leg and get him on the trailer. He stood there the whole time and did not budge as I wrapped in with 8 different cottons/wraps. I have him 12cc Banamine and 2.5 rompin. As soon as we asked him to walk his hobbled around to the trailer and proceeded to hop up the ramp and knew where each bump was and when he needed to jump a little more. He was awesome through this all. 1 1/2 hours later we arrived at Guelp and proceeded into radiology. He had busted a spiral break right through the bone just above the knee. It was horrible to see on the film. 3 vets and I discussed the procedure and his chances and I was told that it was operable the the prognosis was grim at maybe 25% of making it through everything and returning home. The procedure was to put in 2 plates on each side of his leg that go the whole length of forearm bone. I was told that once they opened up his leg that my see things that did not show up on xray and they may not be able to finish. And then he had to make it through waking up from the drugs and then live in a sling for 6 weeks at the hospital and then 4-6 months stall rest at home. It took me about 15 minutes to decide that I had to give his a fighting chance. So I opted to go through the surgery and take it one step at a time. It happened yesterday around 9:30am and we were at the hospital by about noon. The decision was made to send him to surgery about 1:30 and they started to operate at 4 pm. It was a 5 hour surgery that I got to watch on the TV there. At 10pm he was in the recovery room hanging from a sling to wake up. I was told that the surgery went much better than expected. yay... With fractures they do not want to let them get up on their own so they hang them from the rafters for several hours until he is awake enough to stand. I was back there with him until 11:40 when he was about 1/2 awake but not standing yet. I had to leave as there was no longer anyone at my farm to watch the mares I am on foal watch with. I got a call about 6am this morning from the head surgeon who stayed with him the whole time to say that he was now standing on his own for about an hour. So after that long story he has already crosses several of the hurdles. Know he just needs to accept living in the sling for the next 6 weeks. I was told that this was an extremely rare and freak accident that they only see less than a handful a year. The surgeon said that he must have just hit the ground on the wrong spot with the wrong amount of impulsion and twist. I can still hear it in my head. He is now on a long road to recovery and could use many jingles from all of you. He is going to be there for 6 weeks. I am not sure if the hospital allows outside visitors but if they do and anyone who lives in the area of Guelph university hospital and would like to stop in and visit him (he loves carrots) I am sure he would love it. I am only going to be able to go up a limited number of times as I have a operation here to take care of and I still have to keep the rest of my stallions out on the show circuit. I hope this is not considered advertising but I will be giving 15% off my sales horses for the first two that sell to help pay for his hospital costs as I am quoted in the $15,000 range. For all who have paid booking/breeding fees I am refunding them as he will be out of commission for the rest of this year. This is really such a bummer as we were just starting to click together and just got back from Culpeper, VA where we did the adult jumpers together. Poor guy... praying he pulls through...

May 6th 2:30pm
Thanks so much for all the good wishes, hugs and jingles. It is defiantly a really tough time for the both of us. He was my dream horse who was capable of teaching me so much in the jumper ring. It took me a couple years to come across a suitable partner for myself as I was VERY particular about what I searching for. Now all the dreams I had for the two of are gone in an instant. Not to mention what he has gone through and still yet has to go through until he can run in green pastures again. I only purchased him 4 months ago but we bonded quickly as he was everything I could ever want in a partner. Kind, sensitive, light to all the aids, great, great mind, knew he was a stallion and when he could and could not act like one. He was a fabulous jumper but also knew all the lateral/flat movements and was so sensitive that all 5'2 of me could get his 17h+ body where ever I wanted it. He just knew how to take care of me no matter how I got him to a fence. There were a few times that I got him to a nearly impossible distance and he would just do a sliding stop and wait for me to tell him to try again. Rather than leaping for it and possibly hurting me. This is my first ever horse that I have done jumping with and I have only been in riding lessons for less than a year so I have no problem saying that I am a very green show jump rider. Ridden since I was 5ish but never competed in the jumper world. Did mostly western games as a kid, then go so heavily involved in breeding that there was no time to ride. So my beloved partner is gone but I can still give him a loving home where he will hopefully be able to continue his breeding duties as he has so many great qualities to pass on. I really hope to get a few foals of his for myself to one day compete on... His surgeon on Guelph is Dr.Troute Will let you all know how is dealing with sling life when I return this evening. Again thanks so much for keeping him in your thoughts/prayers...

May 6 9:24pm
I sincere thanks to all for the good wishes on hopeful prayers. It is really nice to come back from the hospital and read all this. Every one has been more than gracious with the phone calls, e-mails and offerings. I would really like to thank Sheryl from the Selle Francais Assn as she has offered to refund my stallion activation fee of $500 to help towards his hospitals bills. I was not expecting that at all but it is greatly appreciated!!!! I really look forward to the day he actually gets to breed and dealing with Sheryl when registering my foals. Also to the couple mare owners who have opted to not take a refund in hopes that it will help and that they may get a chance to breed to him next year. I get all teary eyed just from thinking of the kindness and generosity of all you out there. THANKS! Now for todays events... I took him two bags of carrots and had fed him almost a whole bag in the 2 hours I was there. He seemed quite happy to see me. He looked at me out side his stall and dropped the mouth full of hay he had in his mouth. He knew me I went in brushed him around the sling which is really quite the apparatus. He is covered in corn starch to prevent the harness from rubbing him raw. His poor head took a bit of a beating during the recovery/waking up. Hairless spots, a couple cuts and a big gull under his chin. He lost about 1/2 his tail from the tail support they put on him to steady as he woke up. He had a really lovely tail. I brushed it and took all the dead stuff out. He is handling the sling quite well so far. It is under his belly, behind his rump and in front of his chest. On the rear of it it is tied to each corner of the back of the stall to prevent him from turning all the way around. His also has a string coming down from the roof to the top of his halter to prevent him from putting his head all the way down. He can shift his hind end from side to side of the stall and move forward/back wards about 3-4 feet and his front end from one side of the stall to the other. I used the carrots to make him stretch his neck from side to side and down as far as he could. If all goes well over the next couple days I am going to discuss with the surgeon about getting him a message person to see him a couple times a week. Anything to make him a little more comfortable. The surgeon came in and discussed everything with me and was really great at answering all my questions. I also got to see the xrays they took this morning. OMG... I had watched the whole surgery on TV but did not realize that there was that many screws put in there. One plate on each side with 14 screws in one and 16 in the other. The screws go from one side of the bone all the way through and almost out the other side. It is really amazing that he has all the hardware in his leg I can not even begin to explain what it looks like except to say that there looks to be at least as much metal in there as bone. The surgeon said that it is the best surgery that he and his crew have ever done on an break like this. The screws come in at each other from either side and he said many times what can happen is that the screws can bump into one another making them have to retract and do a new drill spot or even skip some holes and put in no screws. That usually happens several times but with Inferno it only happened once and it was barely rubbing, as there was a short screw being used there anyway. So from the surgery side of the ordeal Inferno passed with flying colours. What I have been told is that over the next week his body could reject the hardware or some of the screws could come loose as the bone could break away becoming less dense/strong. Sort of like a bone infection. Inferno has passed many hurdles and we have done all we can up to this point. Now it is really up to him and his body. Praying that he is truly a fighter and his body can accept all the metal in there because there is a lot of it! I am allowed to have other people go visit him and give carrots but I need to call them ahead of time to give names as they just do not want people dropping by. Which I can understand. We are going to give Inferno 3-4 days before he is allowed visitors so he can get a little use to the routine there. Again thanks, I know I have said it several times but I feel I can not say it enough. I will not be able to go see him tomorrow as things here at home have piled up since I have not done much the past 2 days. I will be getting a phone call from the surgeon mid afternoon and then heading up again Monday to see him.

May 7 4:20pm
Heard from the surgeon a little bit ago and Inferno is doing better today as he has accepted the sling more and had finally passed some manure. Yesterday when I visited he had not passed anything yet but now he bowel is up and running . Will be going to see him tomorrow and taking my camera to get a couple shots of him in his new environment. Will post again tomorrow with another update... The prayers and thoughts from all of you seem to be working. A sincere THANKS!!!

May 7 4:34pm
talloaks... I will take a few photos of him tomorrow. I will try to explain a little more. It is a full body sling that that is on a 1 1/2 ton hoist from the ceiling. There are chains that are attached to the sling. He can be raised or lowered with this. He is lowered to the point that the sling under his belly has about an inch of space. So he hooves are on the ground. At the rear of the sling, on each side of his but there is a rope that is tied to each back corner of the stall. This prevents him from moving his butt more than the 180 degrees. So 1/2 of the stall from side to side. His front end is not tied to the corners so it has more room to move around. As the sling it fixed to the ceiling he can only move forward and back about 3-4 feet. He can not walk up the front wall of the stall. There is a hay net and a water bucket hung from the right side of the stall. Oh and a salt lick hooked on a string attached above his water bucket. He head can not reach the ground so when he would drop carrots I had to pick them up for him. I could that was a little frustrating for him. And when he urinated he could not turn around and smell it. That also annoyed him and he would toss his head being upset. He is not normally a head tosser at all so I know that when he did it something was bothering him. His bad leg is bandaged from the very top to over the hoof making it very difficult to put weight on. All his other legs are also wrapped for extra support. Oh and I am told that when he wants to sleep or rest that he can just slump into the sling and it will hold him and give his legs a rest if he wants to do it. I thought no way would he just slump into it but apparently he has. I guess if they do not then the horse would just be hoisted up to a point where he hooves were barely touching so the legs had to rest. I was also told that there is a risk of the other front foot foundering if it is to have all that weight on it for the full 6 weeks. It is really quite the apparatus. Hope that helps some. But will post photos tomorrow so you can get a clear idea.

May 8 7:45pm
Today when I arrived there were 5-6 people in the stall with him having just changed his leg bandage, brushing him, adjusting this sling, wiping him with a towel and putting new corn starch under the sling. The whole time he just munched away on his hay net un phased by all the people and what was going on Today Inferno has looked the best yet. Perky, eating hay well, not tossing his head or pawing. He would eat his hay the whole time I would be scratching him. As soon as I would walk out the stall he would stop eating and look at me. If I just stopped scratching and stand in a corner to watch him he would continue to eat. I just love this horse!! I brushed around the sling and rubbed him all over, gave him almost a whole bag of carrots and a few apples I bought too. He seems to have really settled in quite well. It is very nice to see as it makes me feel like I made the right decision to go ahead with the surgery. I really thought he would take to it OK but until he did there is still that feeling what if??? So now as long as his body accepts the hardware in his leg we are looking at a bright light at the end of this tunnel. He is still on quite a bit of meds and some of the pain meds he is getting make his penis quite relaxed a lot of the time. I saw on his chart that he has had a few messages there. I guess to keep it moist to encourage him to use the muscles in there. He can retract it and does but just seems to hang loose a lot as you can see from the photos. I did talk to the surgeon while I was there and he explained to me that Inferno is only going to be fed hay and that he is going to loose some weight. As well as his top line and may get the pointy bum look from lack of use. That is going to be hard to watch and not be able to feed him more. The surgeon says that it is good for him to loose some weight for when he does start to walk on it again. He is such a nice looking horse and everyone that I tell he is 16, finds it hard to believe. Here are some photos taken from today...

May 10th 11:10am
THANKS so much everyone!!!! I am trying to head up there today to visit him today and going to meet up with one of the fellow BBers. I have one mare who was at 250 on chem tests last night so I need to find someone to keep an eye on her while I am gone for the afternoon/evening. Will post an update when I return.

May 10 9:56pm
Made it up there this evening. He seemed happy to see me and of course the sound of the carrot bag sure helped He did give me a bit of a scare though. When I first entered the stall his hind end was barely on the ground and seemed to be squatting under himself. I immediately felt the sling and it was really quite tight on his front end. Me being quite upset by what I saw as it almost looked like he was have a seizure in his hind end. Like it was just not working right. I went out and quickly got his nurse/attending vet tech. She came back to the stall and explained that he does that do relive the pressure off his hind legs and to swing them around rather than stepping over. He did it about 15 times during the two hours I was there and by the 14th time I was starting to get use to seeing him do it. It scared me quite a bit as it looks like a loss of control but he does not get upset or frantic when he does it. Really weird to watch. He is starting to get quite the rub marks and hair is falling off quite a few spots where he has sores from hanging in the sling during recovery from the anesthetic. They are tightening the sling more now too to relieve the pressure off his legs. It is quite snug under his belly (no more inch of slack) I thought what he has gone through so far to be quite difficult but watching him over the next 5 weeks loose weight, condition and get rub marks/pressure sores is going to be very hard too. I just want him to be happy and comfortable. He is one quite a bit of pain meds including bute so they are also going to start him on ulcer meds. The next few weeks could not go by fast enough so he can be out of that sling. He is such a beautiful horse and to just stand by and watch him go through these ugly stages is difficult. I know it is for the best and if/when he makes it through all this, he will return to his old lovely self but none the less it is still hard to watch and not be able to really do anything. He is really being a trooper though the way he is handling it all. Not a fuss or tossing of his head or pinning of the ears. Nothing. Just eats his hay then stands in for some pets and eats the carrots. Such a really good soul. I can only hope to one day have a foal by him that has 1/2 his characteristics and I will consider myself lucky... Can anyone tell I truly love this horse and after only 4 months of owning him. I am trying to head up again to see him Friday. A fellow BBer (who met me there today) is going to go visit him tomorrow. She only lives 4 minutes away. Thanks so much Ceci!!

May 11 9:04pm
Thanks for offering to contribute to a wellness fund but I do not feel right accepting any money from people for nothing. Since all of this started with Inferno I have sold a chestnut TB filly with the 15% off that I am offering on sales horses to help with hospital bills. A sincere thank you for offering to contribute to wellness fund. The generosity of strangers out there is so heart warming. All your thoughts, prayers and jingles are wayyy more than I could have asked for. And they seem to be helping as he is doing quite well thus far. I just received an e-mail update from a fellow BBer who visited with him today and all went well. He enjoyed some rubs and did eat his carrots too. The vet tech took off his back leg bandages and the fellow BBer rubbing and scratched them for him. I am told they are not stocked up at all. That is great!!! as I have not seen them yet. Thanks again everyone. I will be heading up to visit with him tomorrow. The vet tech and surgeon did not say anything about feeding him too many carrots. They even gave me a bucket labeled stall 418 treats... Awww his own treat bucket... They should be taking xrays soon to see if the plates are being accepted by his body. Part of me really wants to see them and the other is a little scared in case the news in not good. Will post tomorrow after my visit with him.

May 16 4:19pm
Been offline for a few days. Glad to be back I went to see Inferno a coupe days ago and he was doing quite well. Just standing there in his sling and really not phased by much at all. Well until he sees me and I must look like a big ole carrot to him... Cause he gets that look on his face and as soon as he hears the bag the drool starts and by the time I get in the stall he has bubbles coming out his mouth. Here are a few photos taken the day I was there. The last one is him looking over at "Kafues" mare who had the colic surgery. What a sweet mare and he has a crush on her As every time someone would enter her stall he would give out a little nicker... I would like to get a digital copy of his xrays. Not sure if it possible but if I can then I will post them... The animal planet idea is a good one. Wonder how I would go about it... Must do some research~ Going to try and go see him tomorrow. If I do I will post an update. Oh and the surgeon said that xrays will be taken around the 2 week mark which would be this coming Friday. Can not believe it has already been that long.

May 18 6:38pm
I did get to go up and see him yesterday. He looks quite bright and appears content. Spoke with the surgeon and there have been a few problems. Guess things could not be 100% smooth as they have been up until now. One of the screws has worn through the skin. I am told the skin around it looks good and it does not look like there is an infection there. It simply rubbed the skin raw and came through. So they are putting a donut type patch around it so that the bandage/splint does not rub on it much and hope that it will develop some proud type flesh over it and make a bumpy scar. He said worst case scenario the screw may have to come out. Also he had an IV on his left side to start and it got quite irritated about 4-5 days in and it was removed and one was put in on the right side. There has been a bump on the left side ever since and it has now hardened to a solid feeling bump. I am sad to say that it has clot and now the whole jugular has gone hard and I am told no blood if flowing through there at all. I am told it may be permanently like that or it could resolve it self. They are unsure but they have seen it before. I asked about un clogging it and am told that it is next to impossible and impractical. I find this very hard to comprehend that first of all he is okay with no blood flowing through there. I always thought that to be a VERY important blood vessel. Second that it can not be unclogged. I mean in humans doctors and go into the brain and remove stunts (sp?) which are blocked vessels so why no a really big one so close to the skin. No brain surgery. Surgeon says that all the small vessels around it will expand and the blood from that part of the head will still be moved. A side effect it that his head will swell on that side and all the veins/arteries are very pronounced. Looks like he just ran a 4 mile race. I also wonder with all that extra pressure on the small ones if it is possible for one to burst. One question that came to me as I was driving home. Will have to ask that one. Please oh please let this not be a big issue. I am going to do some research on this as I am having a hard time with it. It has nothing to do with the surgery or his leg at all. I guess I need to trust the vet that he knows what he is talking about but it is still hard to understand. He also told me that he has seen a horse with both jugulars not working and the horse survived. Just had a really swelled head. Inferno has such a lovely and noble head. Poor guy. I hope some how it can resolve itself. Xrays have been put off over the last few days as everything appeared great but now that the screw came through xrays are suppose to be today or tomorrow if today get too busy. Also the farrier is going to be putting a padded shoe on this good front leg for a little extra cushion. I know some things were apt to get a little bumpy somewhere and I guess I just need to be happy with him coming out of this alive and able to stand/walk/run again. There are going to be some cosmetic blemishes that I am just going to have accept. It does not make it any easier though. Pulling it together now as I am heading out with two of the other stallions to show at Palgrave. Going to try and have some fun. Will report back when I hear about the xrays as I am not going to be able to get up there again unitil Sunday.

May 18 6:54pm
oh and Kafue it was nice meeting you there today. Glad to go to take your mare out for a little walk/graze and thanks for leaving him some grass the other day. Muchly appreciated!!! As for a fund; I think the best way people can help is to pass the word around about what a spectacular horse he is and how very kind, willing, trusting, calm, quiet, noble and what a true fighter he is. Not to mention passing the 100DT in Holland with flying colours, being approved by 4 warmblood registries with the more possible by handing over his 100DT scores, having a Grand Prix career in the jumper ring and to Prix St George in the Dressage arena and then to pack around an ammy rider for a few years then to go through a divorce (which is how I was able to purchase him) and then to pack around another ammy rider with hardly any experience at all, teaching her so much in only 4 months and being there every step of the way for me. He is a true champion in every sense of the word. So pass the word around; in hopes that he will pull through this and be able to breed again next year and produce horses that will carry on his legacy. That would be the best way for anyone to help if they so choose. The hospital bills are going to be quite high but that is something I have accepted from the start and it is really not anyones else's responsibility. I am not trying to snub anyone who wishes to help and I am not so well off that I do not need it but there are so many other people/animals out there that could use the help/financial aid more than I. Off to the show now...

May 22 8:48pm
I did get up to the hospital yesterday and he is still handling sling life well. Amazing after 2+ weeks in it now and he just stands there eat, drink, poop/pee and eats treats. They are also now at a point that he will just stand for the bandage change daily without being sedated. I am told the bandage change alone take 1 1/2 hours with a few people. oh my... I did not realize it took that long. He has had his xrays taken and some good news and some not so good news. Good first. The screws (thus far) look like they are not being rejected. If they were then on the xrays I would have seen a halo effect around them which there was none. Bad news is that one of the screws has come out a bit. It was one of the screws on the bottom of the fracture. I hope I can explain this well. They pre-drilled through the bone where the screw was to go in. The first 3/4 of the bone the hole was a little larger as they did not want to the screw to grab the first bone but rather go through it and grab the 1/4 of the other side of the fracture to pull it tight to the larger piece. Well it has almost come out of the 1/4 piece. So there is not much holding it in there now. I am told it in not a real big problem and at some point in the future it will likely have to be taken out. For it to be taken out the surgeon thinks that he would be able to do it while he is standing up without have to make it another major surgery. It is under/between 2 different muscles so it should not come through the skin but will likely inter-fear with the muscles later on when he begins to walk. The 1/4 piece where the screw has come loose does have a few loose fragments that (I am told) will either be absorbed by the body or they will become apart of the new bone that will form there. It is a little odd to see loose bone in there but I am told it is OK. All the other screws appear to be doing well. Where the other screw had come through the skin it is forming scar tissue around it but still drains from that hole. There is also two other spots on his leg where it was puffy and they ended up lancing it to drain the fluid. The fluid was cultured and they are now using a antibiotic that it is sensitive to. They also flushed the top hole with a high concentrate of penicillin and found out that all three holes are connected. I am also told this is not really bad and it should respond to the treatment well. It appears to not be part of the bone issue but just soft tissue. He has also had a padded shoe put on the good front leg to help in support and to lift him on the ground that extra little bit to make the other leg move easier as it gets caught on the rubber mats and in the shavings. They have rasped the toe off the bad leg so he can move it around easier and so it is less likely to get caught on the rubber mats. On the xrays his knee appeared to be looking a little knocked kneed from the way Inferno has been using it on an angle because he could not really get it square under him. Now he has an extra brace (total 2 now) on the bad lag to help with this. The shoe on the good leg and rasping of the toe are also to help with this. He is not on any IV's now and all his meds are given orally or in the form of patching absorbed through the skin. I asked about the good foot showing any signs of laminitis and he said the pulse has been good and there are no out wards signs thus far. I asked about x raying it and he said Inferno had been through a lot in the last couple days that when he settled in again they will think about doing it in the future. He has lost so much condition in just the two weeks that he has pretty much no top line and no butt. Has not had a bath in 2 weeks and is covered in corn starch so he is not shinny either. He has been in good spirits and eating well. I truly think this is one amazing horse to put up with all this day after day and never even as much as pin an ear. He even just stands there unsedated for the bandage changes, which I am told do cause discomfort to him. I swear he knows we are trying to save him and he really wants to be able to return home. I did buy him a mint lick it toy and hung it on the wall. He did not do much of anything with it so I opened it up and stuck a carrot in the hole to get him use to the flavor. So I hope when I go back up Wed. he has used it some. So that is the update... We have hit a few bumps in the road to recovery but hopefully he pulls through them all and continues forward. Thanks so much for all your thoughts and prayers. I have met some really wonderful people through this. France you are awesome!!! She works at another part of the university and visits him daily and give me awesome detailed reports so I feel like I was there. Thanks to all...

May 22 8:52pm
oh and the horse show sucked... Really bad weather with plenty of rain/wind and T-storms. They managed to show one day at 1.2m but ended up going ohconcour (sp?) because it was a ammy class. We just wanted to get in at least one class so we just found something at a doable height and in an arena with decent footing. I am going to Saugerties, NY for two days the end of the week with one of them. Really hope for some better weather and that this mare I am watching foals before I leave and the others wait until I get back

May 27 9:22pm
Had a great time at the show but did miss being able to take Inferno with us for me to ride. My one stallion did well though getting a 2nd out of 31 horses in the level 3 jumpers... Inferno update... I have not been up there in a few days but have been given a couple e-mail updates. He had a rough couple days where he got colicky and ended up being tubed. He did not even want his regular treats But after 1 day of treatment and a day of recouping his seems to be doing better. Is back to his regular self I am told today. I am really going to try and go see him tomorrow and get a detailed update from the Surgeon. But I am quite behind here. I had one mare foal just as I was leaving on Thursday morning and another on Friday night while I was away. I did receive some info when I purchased him. Not sure if it is the same info or not that you have oakstable?? If it is not too much trouble perhaps you could copy it and send it to me. e-mail me at postmaster@blazingcoloursfarm.com for my mailing address.

June 4 11:04pm
I have not been to see him in over a week as been busy showing in Saugerties and then came home foaled a mare, then went to Devon for the line classes, got stuck in PA because of T-storms canceled flights the night I was to come home. So I drove back in a rental. Missed my show at Fox run Friday and therefor can not show the boys on Sunday in the Mini Prix as they need to at least enter one other class. Been trying to schedule a rig to take one of my stallions to Chicago Monday as I am so far behind here I can not go away for another show trip right now. But he should really go. So today I am doing nothing (well not nothing but I do have some free time; LOL )and finally get to go see him. There have been a new set of xrays done but they prefer to discuss the findings in person so I do not know yet. He is still in the sling and will be so for another 2 weeks at least. I will post later this evening with the new details. Oh and the lady who has been visiting him for me said they did an ultrasound one day and I have no idea what for. So will be an interesting visit today I am sure.

June 7th 7:21om
I made it up there on Sunday but no one was there to discuss anything with. I went back today and was able to talk with two of the vets there (the first two who dealt with him when he arrived) and had a lot of questions answered and some not. He is doing Okay and nothing much has changed. The bone seems to be growing slowly or slower than one would like. The problem is that there are so few cases to compare this to so no one really knows what is "normal" bone growth rate. Anyway because of the slow bone growth/repair he is going to be in the sling for at least another 4 weeks. And then he will have to be weaned off the sling and back to walking etc... They can not give me a date when he will be able to come home, if all goes well. So we are going to take it week by week and see how much the bone fills in each time he is xrayed. I was told about a case where a older horse than Inferno was in a sling for 3 months+ and the bone just never filled in and repaired. So I was quite bluntly told that we are not out of the woods yet and the vets could not tell me that everything is going great either. The next set of xrays will be done towards mid next week and I pray for some better news and that the bone starts to fill in. On a good side the screws seem to be holding and the bone is not rejecting them. The one screw that came loose is still the same, not coming anymore out. The infection he had under the skin is doing better. He has a pressure sore on his belly that is now bandaged so I hope it heals up. He looks quite slim and has lost all his top line. ALL of it! His neck looks quite nice still. If I took a photo of him on his right side and just head/neck only he would look normal. He is being fed senior Purina pellets now with a bran mash 2x daily. Finally something more than just hay. I am going to do some research/reading on supplements known to or thought to help bone growth as I would like to do as much as possible to help out. The vets there say that nothing is proven scientifically to aid in bone growth but surely there should be something that is "thought" to help. Anyone have any ideas or know where I can find some good reading material? So that is the latest update... It will be 5 weeks this Friday and he is still happily hanging out in the sling. He is handling it all so well and really seems to be quite content. I could never have imagined that he would be so okay with everything. Truly amazing!!!!

June 15 8:19om
I went to see him a couple days ago and he seemed to be in good spirits. Happy to have visitors and of course treats too. He finally is enjoying is lick it and more or less eats it in chunks now. I spoke with the vet on his case today and received an update. New xrays were taken and still nothing really in the way of new bone growth/filling in. We are 6 weeks in and time just seems to trickle by. The largest screw in the bottom of his leg has a bit of an infection. The previous infection seems to have went away and now this new one. They took a sample to send away for testing to see what it sensitive to. And I am told they are going to use an antibiotic rarely used on horses for him this time around. The antibiotic is most only used on humans... Guess because it is quite costly... ARG Anyway what they are going to do is put a really tight elastic around the top of his leg and inject the antibiotic right into his leg. By putting the tie off (so to speak) on his leg it will make the antibiotics just stay in the leg. It is going to be a very high concentration and the leg will be tied off for about 20 minutes. It will be done for 4-5 days and then they hope that will end the infection once and for all. After that they are going to cast his leg. One of thoughts is that because the leg is only splinted it is moving around a tad too much and not healing. They would have liked to cast is sooner but with the infections that keep popping up the bandage needs to be changed daily. To put the cast on they are either going to put him totally under again and straighten the leg out again. He will then have to wake up in the sling again and their feeling is that he will handle the wake up process quite well as he is 100% use to life in the sling now. OR they can just sedate him in the sling and put the cast on there. The feeling on this is that because they will not have free motion of the leg and because he will be right side up that is may not as good of a set. I would sort of like to see them do it while he is in the sling and not put him under again but we will see. I am going up either Saturday or Sunday to discuss all this in more depth and to see the xrays. I have also found out that he is getting a water type hydrotherapy to his leg which is like a message to it. I also did some research and found out what supplements they are using on Barboro to aid in new bone growth and I have contacted that company and they are on the way here. I figure that the vets/owners of him have done a lot of research and what they have found is probably the best out there. I really wish that there were more cases like this that have been done so there was really more to compare. Just to really see what is normal bone growth and if perhaps older horses grow it slower or maybe even certain breeds. But I can tell you as long as the process remains this expensive that not many people are likely to go ahead with it. I was quoted xxxxx to get to the 6 week mark and now at 6 weeks it is nearly double the estimate. And I was told when this began that my quote was on the high end. AARRGG. Now I am stuck between a rock and hard place as I have come this far and really what choice do I have. I can not tell them to stop and just bring him home. There should be some sort of experimental discount or something as this is hardly ever done I have been told that I will get 20% off the final bill but it is still going to be astronomical. Sorry to kind of rant but this has been an unbelievably hard few weeks and each time a new set of xrays are taken I am on pins and needles. I was really hoping for him to be at the end of his hospital stay by now. And from the last set of xrays (yesterday) he has at least another month of living in the sling. That is if things go smoothly and the bone kicks in gear and grows in. Then 2 weeks ish to wean off the sling before he can come home. xrays are taken every two weeks. He still needs lots of good wishes, jingles and prayers from all of you. Lets get this truly amazing gentle giant home again

June 15 8:46
Oh and Adagio. Thanks for that info. I have contacted them. Magnetics would not work well as he has two large metal plates in his leg with many over 30 screws. Nice thought though.

June 17 10:15om
Jackie; that would be oh so kind and generous of you!!! Please either call me 905 386 0815 or e-mail postmaster@blazingcoloursfarm.com I will be around most of the day tomorrow and Tuesday. Will be showing wed, Thur and Fri. AS for taking donations or setting up an auction I am really starting to hear you guys. I really wanted to be able to do this all on my own as I was the one who made the choice to go ahead with this whole ordeal. However the hospital costs are really starting to mount up and it looks like he is going to be there for at least another 6 weeks. I did meet with the vet today and went over the xrays. As I said in my previous post the new infection is in the area of the largest screw. The vet said today it is quite likely that the one plate will have to come out at a later date, when the bone heals and grows in. Originally both plates were to stay in permanently. So should that happen later down the road, it is probably going to mean a second major surgery. Making my bill up there shoot through the roof. So if anyone here is capable of setting something up or has done so in the past please contact me either at the phone number above or by that e-mail. He had his first treatment of tyeing off the leg and injecting antibiotics right into it. The procedure went well. Another 3-4 days of it. Today he was in great spirits and enjoyed all his goodies. I bought him a new mint lick it. He does not lick them but take big bites out of it. His breath smells so wonderful after-wards. Every time I go up and see him I find it truly amazing how he is handling all of this. Ears up looking at who is peaking in his stall. Always bright and cheery. I saw him eat his dinner for the first time today. I am not usually there that late. While they were making it he would put his nose up to the fan and smell the air blowing in. He could smell it from across the hall and in a small room. He started chewing and licking his lips. Then put his nose back to the fan air to get another sniff. Then peak through the bars and prick his ears forward so as to see if anyone was coming with it yet. He is so darn cute. This morning I drove over the border to Buffalo to pick up the new supplements he got for the first time today. (same supplements as Barboro) Hoping they help the bone wake up. I also had a talked with the people from Bioscan and they have offered to give a decent discount on the product that they think will help him the most. I am just waiting to hear back from a lady who has had more experience with using that technology on broken bones. She is another company rep. It also apparently relieves pain quite well and I may have it as soon as Tuesday. They also send up a person to show me how to use it. I really thank all of you for the continued support and good wishes.

June 18 7:47pm Okay so I have had a couple people send my PM and a e-mail about being hesitant sending money to a paypal account in another country. Thanks so much AstonMartin for offering but not sure that I can use your account. The offer is greatly appreciated and nothing personal... Hope you understand. I have just finished setting up a paypal account. I have only ever used it for a few e-bay purchases and to buy a premium membership on this board. So I have no clue how to accept payments on it. I have just got my bank account verified on it as that was needed before I could send or receive anymore money through it. So for those of you who have done this before please contact me with what I need to do or what info I need to provide. Well I just tried to send some money and alls it asked for is my e-mail which is postmaster@blazingcoloursfarm.com Please put the subject of Inferno Fund or something of the sort and also include your COTH name so I know who is contributing and can thank you personally. As for an auction I have no clue how to do anything like that. Anyone out there done it before and would volunteer to help with it.

June 19 7:55pm
Thanks so much AstonMartin, Farrier's Daughter and Fairview Horse Center. Greatly appreciated by Inferno and myself. The generosity of people on this board is truly amazing. Colorado Eventer; nothing came through in the account as of 8am this morning. I hope it did not go somewhere else. One thing I do want to point out is that "COLOURS" is spelled the Canadian way with a "U". I hope that not proove to be a problem. And mbj; snail main is great too. My mailing address is 74033 Regional Road #45 Wellandport Ontario L0R2J0 Canada Maybe we should post this in a separate thread. Your thoughts?

June 20 1:06pm
hummm... A little stumped here. The other post has been deleted and I received a PM from a moderator saying that I am not allowed to solicit money through this board unless I am a registered charity. So as great a suggestion as it was, I can not do it through here. I am sorry I pushed the limits of what is allowed here and did not do so intensionally. I have seen other relief funds through here but I guess they were different. I must have offended someone and if they allow this then they may have to allow anyone with a horse in the hospital to do it too. Which is one reason why I was so hesitant to accept money to begin with. As I know we all go through tough times with horses and vet bills. I made the decision to go ahead with the surgery and now the after care so I will continue to do what I can in hopes that I can get him home soon. So again I am sorry. I will continue to post updates on Inferno and should anyone wish to discuss anything regarding an auction or donation do so by PM or e-mail. Thanks.

June 22 8:07pm
I spoke with the vet on his case yesterday and tyeing off the leg and injecting the antibiotics into a vein in the leg has not been working like they had hoped. He has it done for 4 days now. Yesterday he was heavily sedated in the sling and they cleaned up the skin area that has a the infection. Today they are going to heavily sedate him again and put a screw directly into the cannon bone where they are going to inject antibiotics straight into the bone. He already has 30 screws in that leg what is one more They said there is a really good blood supply in the cannon bone as they want to be as aggressive as possible to clear up this infection once and for all. The leg will still be tied off for 20 minutes once the antibiotics are injected into it. Now he has to remain very still when this is being done and if for some reason he does not and wriggles too much then I have been told that they are going to totally have to put him under again. Which means waking up from it again as he did after the first surgery. I really hope it does not come to that and that he will tolerate it all under only heavy sedation. He is also being given a new antibiotic (given pretty much only to people) daily in the good leg vein as they try not to use his only good jugular he as left. They are switching antibiotics a bit as we do not want it to build up an immunity to one. I feel so bad for the poor guy that he keeps having to go through all this and it seems there are new bumps along the road continually. He surprises us all by staying in a good mood and still loving attention from people. So I have you, Inferno, in my thoughts all day today praying that you make it through with flying colours!!!

June 23 7:27pm
Okay so the screw has been set into his cannon bone and there were no complications with that. Thanks goodness. The vets have decided to inject the human antibiotics straight in through the screw. They were going to use that one intravenously but as it is quite expensive and it can be administered at very potent doses this way, so they are going with that. And then the regular antibiotics intravenously. New xrays will be taken next Thursday. So for the next week is a waiting game. I did visit with him for a while today and he was happy to see my as always. I went to the grocery store by the hospital to buy him carrots and they were out of the big bags. So I bought one bunch of the nice ones with the greens still attached and some precut bagged ones. And apples plus something new, peppermints. He had a sampling of all it while I was there and I left the rest for others that go in his stall to feed him. Thanks so much for the continued support and good wishes for Inferno.

June 27th 8:15pm
I had a meeting up at the hospital today and got some new news... The bone is still not growing in. So it has been suggested to go with another surgery where they will put a pin directly through his upper arm coming out a couple inches on each side of the skin. There will be a cast down from the pins on each side to the ground so his weight will be transferred down his arm through the pin and down the outside of his leg. Sort of around the fracture. The prognosis for this is not great either so we are at some sort of a turning point. Just not sure which way. I am told they think it is unlikely it will start to heal at this point if we continue on with the treatment we have been doing. Not so great news. This really SUCKS!!! as he is being great through all this and is really just handling it all like a trooper. I only wish to have another horse 1/2 like him sometime again in the future.... I am going to take a couple days to process this and will go from there.

June 27 9:12pm
Thanks so much everyone... Believe me I am exploring ALL and any possible options. I will be getting in touch with several different people over the next couple days; which is why I am going to take a few days to come to a decision. I hope to find some good news...

June 28 10:04am
Found some good news... http://www.uoguelph.ca/research/news...he_blues.shtml that is an article about a surgeon from the hospital where my guy is who has done this surgery before and successfully too. Also Jackieblue is overnighting me a bone growth stimulator. So I should have it tomorrow. Still undecided about another surgery but no I am giving up with a darn good fight!! Thanks everyone for the support and good wishes also for keeping us in your thoughts

June 30 1:51pm
I have decided to go ahead with the second surgery. After a lot of thought, researching on internet and talking on the phone I am going to give him one last chance to get through this. The surgery is going to be 99% on Tuesday which will give Inferno a few more days on this antibiotic treatment to try an get rid of the infection . As a part of this surgery they are going to take out the one plate that seems to be causing some of the infection. They are also going to take some bone marrow out of his hip and put it directly into the fractured area in hopes that putting some new/good marrow in there it will stimulate new growth. There is discussion about putting slow releasing antibiotic beads in there as well to fight any infection that may get missed. There is a culture being done now to see if the bug is still sensitive to what is being used or if something different should be used. Not sure how many new pins will be put in at this point until the one plate is removed and how much room is there. The prognosis for this whole procedure is not great but everything that may help is going to be done to give him every possible chance. I know going into this that he still may never come home but I want to know that I did all that was humanly possible to give him that chance; he so deserves. Now I want you all to know that if I thought he was really un happy with life in the sling or being very bitter about it all or getting mean towards people or turning into a horse that I did not know I would not be making him go through anymore of this crap that he has to put up with everyday. But I really have to say that he is being so great with everything and I mean everything that I really feel he is fighting to stay alive. The only part that is going wrong is that the bone is just not setting new bone down. Which is something we do not have much control over. Just time will heal it and I really want to give him that time. He has only recently been started on supplements that are thought to increase bone growth and the bone growth stimulator is just starting to be used this weekend. The vet there is also looking into something else that may help him set new bone down. So knowing now that this is the problem we are doing all that we can to encourage it. This means he is looking at least another 2 months in the hospital. So he is going to need good wishes and jingles for some time yet. This has been a tough time for him and I but I really pray that in the end it was all worth while. Even if he does not come home I hoped something will have been learned to save a horse in the future... I love you Inferno and please try to make it home...

July 5 7:54 am
#2 surgery done and on to recovery...

Yesterday was quite long. He went under at 9am and I arrived at the hospital at 11am. I watched the whole operation on TV. He was stitched up at about 4:15pm. Then moved to recovery. I waited about 30 minutes before I went back to the stall. A fellow BBer met me there a bit after noon and was so sweet to bring me some lunch. She stayed until around 6pm. Inferno fought the recovery in the sling for a while. Just would let himself hang there instead of standing. The vet and most all the techs were quite patient with him. A little while into the recovery I suggested to one of the techs to bring in a mare to entice him to get up. She laughed. Then about 30 minutes later I suggested it again to one of the higher ranked techs and she too smiled. By this point he was quite tried from struggling so they lowered the sling and he just lay there an slept for a while. Half an hour or so. Then I suggested it our loud to the whole room including vet and they giggled a bit. The vet said that they were trying to give him incentive using food and treats. I said that is great but men are much more motivated by women than food. Women can motivate men to do almost anything no matter how they feel. Again no one used the idea and we waited there another 45 minutes. Finally the second lady I suggested it to went and got a little pony. As soon as the pony walked in the room, up went Inferno. Voilà, Magic... LOL... wish they would have listened to my suggestion earlier. As the Tech walked out with the pony she shook my hand, to say good job. Guess I do know my boy quite well. Then he had to get sturdy on his feet for about another 1 hour before he started to move to his stall. During this hour he stood wobbling a lot and there were four grown men standing around him and one lady saying good boy, come on and feeding him carrots, apples, mints, grain with pellets, chunks and sweet feed and some of the Jelly Beans I brought. It was so cute. They were patting and rubbing him a lot too. You could tell they really did care. The the end of being in the recovery stall Inferno had them trained as soon as he would start pawing, the treats would come. The one guy kept going back to the stall to get more carrots for him and the lady was getting him the jelly beans.

I saw him without the sling for the first time since this all began as he shuffled/hobbled to his stall. He is really very skinny. Wayyyy worse with nothing to cover him up. So that is about it... I left after he had been in the stall for about 30 minutes and was munching on hay at about 9:30. He was tearing the hay from the net with a great appetite. Good Boy. The vet/surgeon said that the surgery went Okay. There were a couple more loose screws than what he thought that had to come out. A couple screws in the plate they left in also had to come out for the pins to make it all the way through. There was no bone barrow taken out of his hip and injected in there as the bone look a little worse than he thought and he thinks that is may be done next time. By that I mean his leg is now casted and it will have to be changed in about 2 weeks. For that he will have to be put under again at which point the bone marrow graft could be done. I will be going up today to see him and put on the bone growth stimulator. I thought it best for him to have a night of rest to adjust to his new leg before I attached anything to it. Yesterday I took up three bags of carrots, a bag of apples, a bag of mints and some jelly beans and I am sure by today most of them will be gone. So will take up some more carrots.

July 5 10:30pm
I was not meaning to sound tough on the techs at all. Below is a quote from my post where I thought I was being quite complimentary of them

Quote: Then he had to get sturdy on his feet for about another 1 hour before he started to move to his stall. During this hour he stood wobbling a lot and there were four grown men standing around him and one lady saying good boy, come on and feeding him carrots, apples, mints, grain with pellets, chunks and sweet feed and some of the Jelly Beans I brought. It was so cute. They were patting and rubbing him a lot too. You could tell they really did care. The the end of being in the recovery stall Inferno had them trained as soon as he would start pawing, the treats would come. The one guy kept going back to the stall to get more carrots for him and the lady was getting him the jelly beans.

Why I wished they would have tried a horse to motivate him earlier in the recovery... well there was a really good reason for that. Which I can PM to anyone who wished to know. Overall I was very happy with the Techs and one of them, whom sat beside me a couple times to talk, is here all the way from Costa Rica for 3 months as a volunteer. So some of them are really in this for the knowledge and to help horses as there is no $$$ involved. I do agree that they are great and they are the ones who do the day to day care/meds etc... I even say thanks to the man who I know feeds and does his stall. Very nice guy who has been there for something like 20 +years. He even sneaks him some of the good hay I am very nice to everyone there except for when I feel something has been over looked or if there may be another way to do something. And let me tell you that is it very difficult to stand up and say something to anyone of them about what I think should be done. As I do not want to offend anyone. I am young, 27, but I still do get ID all the time. And I do feel sometimes, well not so much anymore and most everyone there knows me, that when I say something I get looked at like a kid who does not know what she is talking about. So sometimes I have to repeat things a few times and a couple times I have gotten quite loud about something so that I insist they hear me. All I wish is for him to have the best care possible and once in a while I may know him better than the people who care for him and go out of there way for him on a daily basis. This does not mean I to not respect them or think their job is not important. Without them Inferno would have not made it this far... Just as an owner I have an opinion that may not be the same as their opinion. No more no less... Today he was good. I was there for about 2 hours when they were dealing with him. And he was doing okay. He ate treats of all kinds and was trying to be a good boy through everything. When I left he was quietly munching on his hay. The cast will be changed in about 2 weeks and until then he is just going to be hanging out. He is still getting the leg treatments of tyeing off the leg and injecting antibiotics into the screw that has been placed in his cannon bone. I have the bone healing system from JackieBlue but have not been able to get a hold of her to help me with setting it up. So if anyone knows how to get in touch with her other than her cell phone please let her know I am trying to contact her. Off to bed to get some sleep...

Thanks to everyone for keeping him in your thoughts and for standing up for me, with respect to the Techs. Compassion is what Inferno does need. He loves people and to see his eyes look into yours, one can not help but feel compassion for him. Hope you have a good sleep tonight, Inferno...

July 6 2:47pm
I am well aware that I will be dealing with other issues he has during the recovery time and that if, once he comes home he will require a lot of maintenance. His feet are doing quite well thus far. There is a farrier that visits him regularly and his good front leg does get a shoe with pad on it. I know he will never be the same horse physically but mentally he will. I hope he gets a chance to pass that onto several foals in the future. I just pray that the bone starts to fill in and that we can begin the long road to recovery. I am and will be there for him every step of the way.

God forbid that he does not pull through all this despite his true will to do so; I can accept that. I have already thought about what and how it will be done. For right now he is not showing us any signs of giving up;quite the contrary. God bless his impeccable temperament and will to try and make it through this. He is truly a great horse!

July 12 5:19pm
Not much news right now. He is doing Okay and being great about everything as usual. Xrays should be taken in another week or so and a cast change. So for now all is well.

However, JackieBlue, whom I received the bone growth stimulator from has not gotten back to me After a few phone calls and emails and over a week has gone by, no responce from her. Hope she is doing okay herself??? So I have not been able to use that piece of equipment which is disappointing. I can not get it to work and no one to tell me how. I even tried calling the company who makes it with nothing. Sat on hold for over an hour at which point I left a message and no return call. So if that was my miracle, it is not now... JackieBlue if you read this Pretty please ...call me... 905 386 0815...

July 14 5:13pm
The end of this road for Inferno...On to greener pastures

Well after I heart felt reply it was lost... So I'll try again.

Today Inferno was scheduled for a cast change and was put under. There was also discussion of cutting the tendon in his good pastern to release pressure on his foot to try and curb any possibility of laminitis. His hoof was xrayed a couple days ago and was starting to show very small signs of change. Nothing bad but to aid on the side of caution vet advised to be aggressive with it. There was also to be a bone graft put in. Upon removing the cast and taking xrays, the bone still had not start to grow in at all. In-fact it had shown signs of degeneration. So I got the call saying that Inferno was 99% not ever going to heal and the decision was made to euthanize him around 1PM this afternoon. It was a very difficult decision, in a sort, but I think it was time. Through everything he was always a gentleman but I do think he was getting tired; mentally and physically.

Inferno's true spirit shinned though this whole ordeal with his on going fight to survive. What a tremendous horse to have put up with everything from the trailer ride to the clinic with a displaced fracture to letting us examine him, to/through the first and second surgeries and with all the daily bandage changes and then living in the sling for over 2 months. Never did he once show aggressiveness or even get mouthy in the slightest. He is the kind of horse anyone would be proud to have been apart of. It is just so sad that a horse with such heart and so much to give back to us was taken in such a way that we, as humans, (with all the technology that we have) could not mend a broken leg; so the one thing we could not control (bone growth) was what, in the end, took his life. I know I did all that I could to give him a second chance at life (which he so deserved) and I feel I did right by him as I just finished laying him to rest on my property where he can watch over the daily activities here and be apart of my life forever...

I want to thank France; who has visited with almost daily and has really become a part of Infernos family. She e-mailed me daily with what went on, anything that she saw and even gave me the details if he pooped while she was there or if he seemed tired, itchy or... She has helped me a lot in dealing with this as I felt a connection to him even though I only got to visit once or so a week. I really can not thank her enough and I know I have really found a true friend in her. Thank-you France!!! How ironic that Inferno a Selle Francais stallion was visited by a wonderful lady named France. Oh and she also told me that she spoke French to him sometimes. You really made his last few months special, please remember that. I read this somewhere in the past week and thought how appropriate it may be so I save it...

Quote:
God looked around his garden and he found an empty place,
He then looked down upon this earth and saw your tired face.
He put his arms around you and lifted you to rest,
God's garden must be beautiful he always takes the best.
He knew that you were suffering he knew you were in pain
He knew that you would never get well on earth again.
He saw the road was getting rough and the hills were hard to climb
So he closed your weary eyelids and whispered "Peace be thine"
It broke our hearts to lose you but you didn't go alone
For part of us went with you the day God called you home.

Inferno, I will always remember our good-times together and everything you taught me. I will remember how you nickered at all the other horses in the hospital as if to say, "it is okay, they take care of you here" You were truly an amazing horse that will never be forgotten. I hope you are resting in piece now Inferno, and have some very purdy fillies to run with you in green open pastures with of course apples trees and carrot patches you can dig in.

July 14 7:08pm
Thanks everyone for keeping us in your thoughts throughout this whole situation.

Very sadly, I did not get any foals for 2007. His injury happened 2 days before his first shipment was to be sent. I was competing him during the month of April and breeding was to open May 1st and his accident happened on May 6th. I has planned on freezing semen too but never got the chance. Then a few days ago I started to looking into chemical ejaculation. It looked promising and we would have tried it but with the news I got today I could not, in good conscience, wake him and keep him in the sling for a few more days only to try and get semen. He was under general anesthesia and I let him go from there.

I have heard that his previous owners (2 owners ago) have frozen semen so I hope to get in touch with her. I will eventually be looking for a new jumper to continue where Inferno and I left off in the ring. I will defiantly and seriously be seeking one with relation to him. I have found some very nice offspring by him in Europe so I guess that is an option too. But for now I am going to need to take a while to recuperate financially from this ordeal. Though I do not regret anything that was done or money that was spent. Life is a learning process and this is just one step of many...

RIP Inferno.

July 14 7:32pm
Thanks Oldenburg Mom...

I also wanted to thank Dressage72 / Sharon H. for giving us some insight to your story... Dealing with horses can really cause lots of pain with many ups and downs but they also can provide us with so much love and great times. If something is to be learned from this it is to do use extra healing tools (ultrasound, infrared lights, shock wave etc... from the get go and not wait to see if it heals on it's own first. What or where did you get your ultrasound from? I would like to have something like that for a if or when something else ever happens... Wish you and your guy a great life together. Give him a pat for me.

I have the biggest head ache right now and then I think of Inferno and all he has gone through in the past 2 months; it makes my headache seem minute compared to all that. What a strong horse who had the heart to do anything we ever asked of him.

Another photo of Inferno and I before a class in Culpeper, VA at a HITS show

Oakstable. No foals from 2006 or 2005. He was owned by an amateur owner who had no interest in breeding at all. He was just such a great and talented jumper that could teach anyone the ropes. He never acted studly which is why he could be used as an amateur mount. His previous owners at Rockey Mountain Warmbloods were the last ones to use him as a breeding stallion. They are the ones, who I believe, still have frozen semen.

July 15 12:40pm
Thanks so much everyone... So many of your posts brought tears to my tired eyes. It is so heart warming to know that so many of you were really pulling for him. The kindness of total strangers has really surprised me through this whole experience.

I spent some time mucking stalls today and just thinking of all that has transpired over the last few months. It was a roller coaster ride, to say the least, but knowing that I did all I could and that I gave Inferno the best care possible and when the time came to let him go I could, even though it was very hard ,after all we have been through; as I kept thinking one more week and it will take a turn for the good. I am content with what happened and I can put my head down at night knowing that he was laid to rest on my farm; as I promised him I would bring him home no matter what the outcome.

I am flying to Kentucky tomorrow as I had already made these arrangements a couple weeks ago. I am going to the Fasig Tipton select yearling sale. And just recently I found out that one of my mares sisters is going through. It will be neat to see her in person. I feel this trip could not be more timely as I really need to take a break from the farm and just enjoy a few days in the sun with some very close friends. I get back on Wednesday to then leave Wed afternoon to take my other stallion, Mirabeau, to the HITS show in Saugerties, NY. So I am keeping my chin up and riding on...

A sincere thanks to all for your thoughts and kind wishes...

Take care good friend... you will be missed... ((March 22 1990 - July 14 2006))

To see the full story with everyone's response click here. It is is quite long but an amazing story of how many stragers out there were pulling for this amazing and wonderful horse.