Upon our arrival, we were sad to find out that she didn't eat at all during the night in her stall. She was offered the same hay & food that she loved the day before, but she wouldn't eat. Nor did she drink but 1/4th a bucket of water. This made me cry, as I was so hopeful after Day 1. So we took her out to hand graze so we could bond while she got some sun and ate some grass. She seemed to really love it...
I love the way my husband Michael held his hand on her as they walked... He adores her.
Here I am trying to smile (when I feel like crying) with my pretty girl... I love how gentle and quiet she is.
When we took her back to the barn to groom her, I noticed how gorgeous
the barn light was and took this of her. I love how it shows her sweet
whiskers. But almost as soon as we got back, she started to struggle to
swallow - technically she was choking (although it's not like a person
choking and she could still breathe). It was awful... she was struggling
so much, straining her neck, saliva coming out her mouth and nose,
pawing at the barn floor with her hoof out of frustration. It was so
upsetting, and I cried. Martha was so calm though, and she treated her
while she struggled. Martha is not only a wonderful trainer (and friend)
but she is a specialist in Equine Myofascial Therapy. I will write more
about that later, but what she does is amazing. She told me not to
worry, but to think positively.... she reassured me that her farm is a
healing place (not a place to worry).
The episode lasted about 40 minutes. I just don't understand why it happened... we knew that if she ate regular grain too fast, it could swell in her throat and cause her to choke... but grazing on grass was supposed to be the safest thing for her? She had surgery up in Lexington two months ago to remove a cyst in her esophagus. We are wondering now if there is scar tissue or what could be causing this. Dr. Hawthorne will be back tomorrow.
