The vet visits again...

Alice came three days in a row to repeat her antibiotic injections. In the end Zano got fed up and bucked when she jabbed the needle into his bottom! But apart from that he was very well behaved really. The only thing he hated was being cooped up in his stable. And he moved around so much that keeping his bandage up and covering his wound proved really tricky. Still, we managed to keep it really clean and it started to heal well. He had big Swedes hung up in his stable to play with and munch and he learnt how to demolish them very quickly!

Zano looking incredibly scruffy after making
the most of his time out in the field. The farrier took
all Zano's shoes off just after this. He might as well
have a break from the nails going in while he's off work!

Alice came back weekly and was happy with the progress the wound was making. But after three weeks there was a new concern. Zano was producing too much tissue, and this was going to make it difficult for the skin to grow over the tissue. A new cream was prescribed and his grazing was cut down to a tiny paddock to restrict his movement. If that didn’t work, he’d have to have a minor operation to remove the excess tissue (proud flesh). I waited for another week and a half, applying the cream, before Alice returned and pronounced herself happy. The aim was to continue bandaging the wound to keep it clean and help it heal.

But, as was the pattern – all did not run smooth. Keeping a bandage on so long created its own problem – pressure sores. Zano’s point of knee (the knobbly bit that pokes out the back!), where the bandage slipped over, began to get sore and when I went to lead him out, he was lame. The wound at the back had become infected, and another course of antibiotics and anti-inflammatories were prescribed. Now we had no option but to keep the bandage off, and just hope that he wound on the front could take him getting up and down on it (horses go down on their knees first to roll, or lie down for a rest). His comeback was put on hold, again.

November update - The vet arrives

The first thing I did after Zano’s accident was ring the vet. We were still about 20 minutes from home, but as I rang I knew that I had to get him home. His knee was bleeding, but there were no major blood vessels around there, so I knew it would be safe for him to walk on it. The blood flow stopped as we walked. Zano seemed surprised at the fall, and a bit shocked, but as we walked back he didn’t seem very bothered – maybe that was the adrenalin kicking in. Anyway, the vet said to cold hose him when we got to the yard until she could get there.

The vet – Alice – arrived within the hour. While my boyfriend held Zano and the hose, I untacked Zano and put a light weight rug over him to keep him warm. His near fore brushing boot was lacerated almost right through. If he hadn’t been wearing that his leg would have been even more damaged.

The vet examined Zano carefully. The wound, thankfully, was clean – flushed by the cold hosing. Alice then flushed it herself with a syringe and then she gave Zano antibiotics straight into his jugular (intravenous) and into his hind quarters (intramuscular). He was bandaged up, given anti-inflammatories and granule antibiotics for his feed, and led to his stable. Zano, unsure what all the fuss was about, protested about being kept in. He wanted to be out in the field next to Chico and told us in no uncertain terms!

The vet told us to keep him in. The next 24 – 36 hours would be critical. If Zano’s knee joint had been damaged in the fall, fighting the infection in the joint would be difficult. It would be a very long road to recovery. I went home, exhausted and worried, keeping everything crossed that his joint capsule was still intact. Alice said she’d be back the next day.

After almost no sleep, the next day I rushed to the yard first thing. Zano had obviously had an unsettled night too – his shavings bed was a mess, with his dropping swirled everywhere. All I could do was give him plenty of hay, a groom and lots of fuss as I waited anxiously for Alice to arrive. A minute felt like an hour. I watched the time tick by, with Zano pacing restlessly in his stable. When her car pulled up I led Zano out and I held my breath while she examined the wound closely.

“I think we’ve just about got away with it.” Those words are etched into my memory! I was over the moon. When she thought I might be back on in a week, I was even more happy. But, on her visit the next day, she’d revised that estimate to 2-3 weeks. Still, it didn’t seem much in the scheme of things.

Zano looking fed up and grumpy in his stable