B.C. Horse Vacations
Straycat
Our Rescued Colt
6 year old 15.1HH Tennessee Walker / Haflinger / Paint X
Black with flashy white socks and blaze
Height/Weight at the time of his rescue:
May 25, 2003: 13.1HH 515 lbs.
Jan. 24, 2007: 15.2HH 1000 lbs.
24 hours into recovery and a full belly
All stitched up, and later packed with Nitrofurazone
Straycat came home last summer after a terrible accident. A neighbour I didn’t know pulled into the drive one Sunday morning looking for some slack lime (the active ingredient in “Wonder Dust” wound dressing) to use on an injured colt. A friend and I went along to see if we could help. From across the pasture it was immediately apparent that this colt was desperate. His coat was long and dull despite the early summer heat; he had a wormy belly; his ribs, hips, shoulder blades and spine stuck through his hide. If it hadn't been for his scruffy coat he would have been a walking lesson in bone structure. Then we saw the wound… a large flap of skin hanging from his chest and shoulder, looking like a torn shirt pocket. The colt was listless, still standing, but looking very unwell.
I told the man, “You need a vet, and you need a vet now.” The colt was going into shock; the injury had happened hours earlier. He agreed to let us find a vet on call. In Princeton, the nearest vet is 1 ½ hours away, if available. It is expensive to have a vet drive out, even before treatment. Eventually the family decided they couldn’t manage the bill nor did they have enough experience to do the after care. The young horse would have to be shot.
Therapy work
What a heartbreak; in my mind, the starving colt never had a chance. The owners and I came to an agreement; I would take the colt home, pay the bills, and he would be mine. The yearling had never been taught to lead. He was terrified. He also had dents in his face from where the halter he lived in was pressing into his flesh. The only solution was to bring his mom home, too, as the accident had happened due to late weaning and careless fencing. The young horse had panicked at separation, and hit a protruding 6 inch spike.
Neither the dam nor colt were likely to load, so we led mom home and let the youngster follow. It was a short, agonizing journey. We turned them out in our safest paddock and watched with horror; responding to our geldings across the fence, the young mare started snorting and galloping. The yearling stuck to her hip, panicked, racing around the pen with his chest wound flapping. It was awful to see.
3 months after the accident & feeling much better
We got mom under control and waited for the vet. Dr. Teresa Jacobsen, practicing in Kelowna, had been the first vet to respond to the flurry of calls earlier. We’d never met, but Dr. Jacobsen showed her expertise immediately, making a rapid assessment and hitting the colt fast with drugs to counteract the shock and pain, and to anesthetize him for treatment. Having heard the tale, she was furious about his deplorable condition. The spike had torn along the shoulder blade exposing inches of bone and then dipped underneath into the chest cavity, just missing his young heart. She gave him a 50/50 chance of surviving the night.
With heavy hearts we watched her work, wondering if it were all for naught. Even if he lived through the night, if he started to drag his foot it would prove the damage irreparable; he would have to be destroyed. Something about this sad little colt, with the softest eyes and beautiful head, made us want to try. Dr. Jacobsen cleansed and stitched with low expectations for the sutures to hold. The best we could hope for was the flap to act as a bandage for a few days to keep the internal trauma from infecting. She did what she could for us, and left us a long list of nursing instructions. She was also very clear about keeping her informed as to the progress.
Fat Cat moochin' around with Scully
The next morning, he was still here. That irrepressible spirit had struggled through the night, not giving in, not lying down. He didn’t lie down for days. We hosed and medicated, gave shots, took temperatures, massaged and hosed some more, for days, for weeks. And he just grew stronger, and sweeter. Straycat became a lovebug from all the attention.
When he was strong enough, we started the worming program. When he had enough feed pass through that we were sure it wouldn’t do more harm, we rolled out the ½ ton round bales and left him to the all you can eat bar. He was so under weight, he was started on foal feed instead of yearling. The vet had declared Straycat's development at 30% of normal. But he showed us.
When the healing was at the right stage, we took him into the round pen, to gently work the damaged muscles, keeping them limber. Through out this experience, not a fraction of what was accomplished could have been with out the help of our good friend, Linda. She has years of experience on a breeding farm. Linda came every morning and night for months to handle this colt while I stuck him with needles and cold water and all those other unpleasant things he wasn’t real keen about. Linda taught the colt to be caught, to lead, to stand politely for countless hours of doctoring. When it came time to head into the round pen, she leaned on the rail and coached, “Now try this with him.” using all the Natural Horsemanship techniques she’s learned. She turned rehab into a twice daily joy for a sponge-like colt who thrived on the positive attention. We could only work his body for minutes at a time, but his mind expanded exponentially with each session. The horse who wouldn’t catch, catches us, leads without a lead shank, backs up with the wiggle of a finger. Straycat healed beautifully, to the amazement of the vet. He's completely sound.
Growing up Vet visit 1 year later
Now we wait, letting him be a horse, growing up strong. We’ll start him late next year, to give his body time to catch up to his age. Sometimes on short rides we let him come and just run loose, bucking and exploring the trails. He gets flashier with each passing season as he grows into a horse, showing off his Tennessee Walker trot. He’s full of life, and living is sweet for Straycat.
Don't you love a happy ending?
In January 2006 Will Clinging, a well known horse trainer and clinician started Straycat under saddle in weekly clinics at nearby Ghost Rock Stables. Stray had been saddled and ground driven prior to meeting Will, and with Stray’s great attitude and Will’s kind, firm approach, everything went very smoothly. It seems that the little rescued baby wants to be a dressage horse when he grows up! (Will starts a lot of very expensive show horses for a living.) Stray accepted all his new lessons with a cheerful demeanor, looking for more, and talk about a little horse with lots of try. Within 5 low key rides Will had Straycat turning on his haunches with a loose rein. It was a true pleasure to watch this horse bloom.
When Will handed him over, Stray was a very well started young horse, who just needed easy miles. What a good time that was! Will’s excellent advice, “Be cautiously casual, and if you always treat him like a green horse, you’ll always be riding a green horse.” So we pretended he was a broke trail horse until he became one, and are lucky enough to have the available mileage and backcountry terrain to make it true. We poked around the forest together, exploring the world, got into some hill climbs, crossed a few creeks, and before long Stray was about ready to be the guide horse, albeit for the shortest days.
One day the inevitable time arrived for his first road ride – the BCHV pasture runs 1 km alongside a fairly quiet paved road, so he’s used to traffic. We saddled him up with a friend riding sensible Tank for company, and set off. Some days are more challenging then others – we ran into not one, but seven logging trucks within the first few minutes - there’s a knuckle biter! The truckers were considerate (this is horse country) and we nestled Straycat in by a fence line, hiding behind big Tank, riders laughing and faking that the trucks weren’t there. Stray could have cared less, yawning and nuzzling Tank, oblivious to the horse-eating semi’s thundering along, a true confidence builder! I couldn’t have been more proud; then realized with a head shake, we had only owned Tank for a few weeks, and had put an incredible amount of faith into his steadiness – doubly proud of both those Boyz.
Straycat didn’t work much last year, his physical and mental maturity still a question mark, and at 4, we didn’t feel it was fair for the youngster to pack around a big load of gear and guide all day long. We wanted him to look forward to going to work, not dread it. But he did very well, showing a surprising amount of confidence for an adolescent.
For 2007, Straycat will become the regular guide horse, until he’s got enough mileage to be truly trustworthy. On a side note, in the life’s strange dept., Straycat has risen through the ranks out in the pasture, and now is the most dominant horse in the herd, bossing even the Supreme Travis around. Who would have thought, 4 years ago, when we dragged home this nearly dead weanling that he would not only survive, but thrive? He’s still as friendly and curious as ever, a true people lover, and talk about cheeky. We couldn’t love him more.
We are eternally grateful for the compassion and help from so many people. These people truly love animals.
Thank you Linda of Ghost Rock Stables. And Stray Cat thanks you. Whole heartedly. What a friend.
Thank you to Dr. Jacobsen for making the long journey for people she didn’t know and a half dead grade horse, and she discounted the bill for a rescue. Dr. Jacobsen’s skill not only saved Straycat’s life, but her stitchin’s good- there’s barely a scar to show the ordeal.
Thank you to my Mom & her husband Bob , huge hearted animal lovers who shouldered most of the emergency vet bills, just because they could and they cared.
Thank you to Tony & Tanya , who dropped everything to help that 1st day, dragging over their fence panels to build a hospital pen in the shade.
And especially, thanks to my husband & partner, Damon, who barely blinked when I came up the driveway leading a mare and badly injured colt and explaining how we had to pay all these emergency vet bills on a Sunday, and by the way, dear, I got us another horse… Damon's answer? "Well, you had to."
Questions? Email us at info@bchorsevacations.com.