We got him tied to the trailer, IV in his neck and drugs. This is a blurr to me. I was emotionally falling apart and was on the phone to my husband crying telling him to come because Sid was dieing.  I needed him there. As always he came on the run.

Sid received 40 liters of fluids , the most you can safely give. He had DMSO in the fluids and I am not sure what else. I was running on adrenalin .

He was hardly standing. His head was resting on the wheel well of my trailer. His eye was empty. Two bags of fluid were running into him.Dr. Dave told Susan to move . She had been sitting on the wheel well helping him support his head. Dr. Dave was afraid he was going down and she would not be able to get out of the way fast enough. He looked so sad and helpless. When we arrived he was within 20 minutes or so of dieing. The short ride in the trailer had been to much but it also saved him.

Doctors Bell got him stabilized but made no promises. He now had screaming diarrhea, fire hose style. As fast as fluids were running in they were running out just as fast or faster. Roxy and I are good friends and she told me straight they were not set up or staffed for the 24 hour care he would need. I knew they would do their best to save him and if anyone could they could.  I would stay and take care of him.  Dave went home to get the truck and camper. Never did I dream I would be gone 14 days.

So begins the story of Sids fight. It amazes me he is alive and recovering.  He spent most of Sunday night flat out. I put on my slicker and warm clothes and spent most of the night sitting in the straw with him. Stroking his head and praying he would make it to morning. He was down but resting. At 630am he got to his feet and stood with his head hanging down. His head was beginning to swell from being low and I hoisted it into my arms to give it support. When Roxy came down about 7.30 he was heading for another crash. He had little strength and really looked like crap. He had got up a few times during the night and shot diarrhea.

First thing Monday morning I ran his blood into the lab.  Then I ran for WDDC to pick up fluids, lots of fluids. We had borrowed fluids from other clinics for Sunday and Monday morning, We used up the stock on hand at Bells. I stopped by the house to grab clothes and food. There was a message saying his blood work looked like crap. I called my husband told him it was not looking good and I was heading back to the vets. He told me I had a really tough decision to make and that he would leave work early and meet me there.

His blood work showed he had a high white cell count ( a low cell count would have given him a less chance of survival. It would have meant his reserves had been used up) His blood proteins  and albumin were very low. His PCV was high about 54 (30 is the normal range) He stayed on IV fluids all day again and they tubed fluids into his gut with a slurry of some sort. He jerked his head and ended up with a nose bleed that covered the side of the trailer. We had survived Monday!

Tuesday: His head was even bigger if that was possible. He looked terrible and still had screaming fire hose diarrhea. He tried to graze but couldn't. We hand fed him what we could and he was hooked up to IV again. More DMSO, more antibiotics , more banamine. I had Dave bring my mare down so he would have a friend close by. I really felt that was important.  I dreaded the nights.

It starts to run together here. I was getting really tired and drained. He seemed to be improving a little bit. More fluids, more banamine, more antibiotics. Still had  fire hose diarrhea but not as often. His head was swollen and because his protein was so low fluids were settling into his belly. He was stating to look like a Brahma bull . He was getting thin and his sheath was so swollen urine just sprayed out. He could not drop to pee. I hot packed him with warm cloths. His jugular was getting inflamed and we had to move to the other side.Low gut sounds ......ect

.

The edema was getting worse. Blood work showed high white cell count still . His PCV had dropped slightly and he was looking better. Diarrhea was slowing down. He was holding his head higher and the head swelling was improving. He had started to eat good  alpha hay and some grass. Not enough to keep a rabbit alive but he was trying. His belly and sheath continued to swell.

We had been tubing him with a slurry of pepto (horse kind) kaopectate , yogurt , probotics, charcoal and supplements trying to get the diarrhea to stop and to replace what he was loosing so fast.

About Aug 28

He is still not looking great or improving much. My husband has been a rock through this. He comes after work to walk Sid and give me a break. I am emotionally drained and on top of it all I am worried because the business is not being taken care of. People are calling with orders, I have orders that have not been shipped. And the bills are racking up fast.

Finally the diarrhea stops. But for every gain he makes there is seems to be a new complication. He is looking a little better. He is eating slowly. The swelling in his head is down to almost normal. The jugular is inflamed but there is still blood flow through it. But now with no food he is not passing manure. At some point his heart rate shot up to 72. This seemed to help absorb the edema under his belly and sheath area. He would walk for a short while and liked to hang out in the shade of Roxy and Daves backyard. He was eating the wild rose hips. I would walk him across the road to a hay field. He would eat very slow and not much.

He finally passed some gas and a small amount of manure that looked like pond sludge. It had been 3 days without passing any manure. Good news yes but also bad news . He started to colic. He was getting impacted. He would stance with his back legs stretched so far behind him he was on his toes, front legs extended out as far as they could go. He would moan. We started tubing mineral oil into him. He was still on antibiotics.

I was beginning to think he was becoming a banamine addict. He would be okay for about 8 hours then crash, fast and hard until he got another shot.

He was holding his own.

WNV test comes back negative. Now we have no idea what is causing this. Send blood to another lab for a retest.

(Note: since this happened it has been found that false neg results may show on a vaccinated horse. It is pretty sure Sid had WNV )2005

I am not sure on the order of events and time frame. By now I was getting very tired and running on nerves, sugar and coke a cola.

About Monday Sept 1 he colicked  He rolled into the panels and scraped up his legs, then got hooked up in his pen. Lucky I was with him and with help managed to get him out with minor damage. We gave him banamine and decided to tube him. When Roxy put in the nose tube his stomach contents emptied out his nose tube.  He was then  okay and lay down still for a few hours. That night listening to him lay there and moan. No energy to get up, not seeming to improve I went to Dr. Dave about 10 at night and asked him to put him down. I felt I was letting him suffer to much. I honestly felt that I had to let him go. Dave and Roxy said lets take a look and tubed his stomach . He had shut down between his stomach and intestines. The build up in his stomach was causing him pain. ( I am not sure what the vet term is for this.) They then tubed his stomach empty for the next day  Once it was empty and the banamine kicked in he looked better. He would walk around and eat. I left him loose in the yard and he could do what he needed. Still no manure. He had been 5 days with out passing anything.

He was started on ulcer meds.

I still checked him through out the night

 Friday Sept 5 I checked him at 6.30 am and he was flat out but quiet in his stall. 7.30 he was cast in his stall. He had started rolling again. We got him up and outside. He dropped and rolled a few more times. I sat on his neck and Kim managed to get his banamine into him. We got him into the stocks , he was pawing and not very happy. He had really begun to hate the clinic. Finally he passed manure. It was not much but it was balled up and looked like horse poop.

We were thrilled. The impaction had finally started to move. He had ate enough solids to push it through.

Roxy palpated him and he had real manure in his intestines. He started passing gas and leaking oil. The 2 gallons of mineral oil that went in had finally started to come out. He was passing cow pie manure, very oily cow pies . He passed lots all day and did not crash that evening. I checked him every hour Friday night. I was scared he would crash and get into trouble in the stall.

Saturday morning I took my mare out and opened his stall. For the last week he would drag behind us to the outside open. This morning he trotted out calling to the horses in the pens. He stayed on his feet eating most of the night and spent the day munching grass and hay. He passed a lot of manure and looked good. Sunday evening I got to bring him home. He is happy to be home. He tires easily and is under blanket. He has no fat  left. He is eating well and will get stronger every day. It will be at least a year before he is ready to go again. Every system in his body was compromised at some point. It is amazing he is alive.

I think his fitness level helped him make it through. He did not founder even though he was under great stress and I truly believe that is because he has always been barefoot and had a natural trim.

They don't know what caused this illness. Just treated the symptoms as they showed.

I do not know how to express my gratitude to Drs Dave and Roxy Bell and their staff Kim and Lora. Sid is still with me thanks to their dedication.

Thanks to Dr. Trish Dowling for her support as a friend and for all the advice she gave.

Most of all thanks to my husband Dave for being there for us. And thanks to God for a miracle.

Sept 11 /04

Sid spent most of the day out on pasture with our older gelding. He is happy and looking better everyday. The scabs on his face are falling off and growing hair. His manure is still cow pie texture but looking a little less glossy. He cantered a little coming in to night. Life is good.

Oct 3 Sid continues to improve daily. He is still thin and ribby but has put on over 100 pounds, His top line is still hollow . The scabs are almost gone. The scabs above his eyes are the last to go. The damage must have been very deep. He is putting on his winter coat and no longer needs to be blanketed at night.

Dec 2004 The scabs on his face finally came off. He will have scars forever.

April 2005 Sid is doing great. He seems to have made a full recovery. I have never pushed him hard nor will I ever. Our goal this year is to move up to 50 mile distance and do a multiday ride. The weak team member this time is me. Unfortunately severe complications from surgery caused me to have a severe colic. I hope to be riding part of the 2005 season. Sid is fat and happy in the pasture since November while I gather my strength.

April 7 2005 I am very sad to tell you that Reid, Sids companion had to be put down. We will miss her.

Sept 3 2005 Sid completed his first 50 mile endurance ride in Nisbett Forest, Sask Canada.

He was amazing getting stronger as the day went on. He completed the last 6 mile loop in 30 minutes. This was a milestone for both of us. I am still recovering from surgery and not as fit as I used to be. We are partners. Both of us have beat the odds and lived to ride another day. When I was on life support last Nov Sid was my guardian angel. I lay in the ICU on life support for five days.I thought of what he had gone through. His strength and courage transferred to me. I would live to ride with him another day. The fact that both of us are alive today is a miracle.

Oct 2005

I am recovering from my last surgery. The colostomy reversal was a success and I am feeling better everyday. Sid is fat and sassy waiting for me to be able to ride again.

Nov 2006

Happy to say Sid is looking great, Still fat and sassy.

I have a new 5 year old Chinook. He is Canadian and arab cross. A very BIG boy with a completely different personality then the arabs I am used to.

Bought him from Wayne and Elaine Delbeke

I am getting back in shape with a personal trainer. When it is warm enough (thats above -20 C I will be in the saddle and having fun with my horses.