Surgery Part 3, The Final Chapter

I hope that this is the final surgical post for Wrangler, don't know for sure though.
I have grouped the wounds separately to demonstrate the healing process. Some of it isn't pretty. Di, that is nice for meaning, 'some look gross'.

The first photos are the lacerations as I first saw them. Followed by the surgical views. Next I have included pictures taken five days after surgery. The final picture in each group was taken twenty five days after surgery.


This is what greeted our eyes after removing the first leg bandages.



Cleaned up and sutured as well as I could with what I had to work with.

Five days later, half the sutures have pulled out and pus is oozing. Plan: Continue bandaging, scrubbing and twice daily antibiotics.*sigh*

Twenty five days later, the leg no longer needs wrapped and I discontinued antibiotics. Healing, the skin will slowly cover the wound.

Once more, the icky left shoulder.

Sutured closed, not so yucky looking.

Five days post surgery the sutures under the greatest tension have pulled loose. They lasted a few days longer than I thought they would. Provided some protection from dirt and flies while some deep healing began. Continued daily flushing, scrubbing, and fly spray!

And twenty five days later, the deep defect has closed, no sign of infection and it is just a matter of time for the skin edges to close.

The healing right shoulder on the first day, after being cleaned.

Five days later, can you appreciate how much the defect is filling in? Looks good so far.

And again, twenty five days after we got Wrangler the right shoulder looks nice but there will be scarring.

This view of Wrangler's chest taken 25 days after surgery shows both injuries and just how much improvement has taken place.

Twenty five days is a long time to be doctoring, medicating, washing, and bandaging a horse. He and I are both weary of it. I am ready to be done with it.

For several days prior, I have been turning Wrangler out in pasture for some exercise, first by himself and then one at a time with Rock and Remington who are gentle pasture mates. They did great together.

They have gotten to know one another in the barn also, by being in neighboring stalls for meals.

Questions have been asked about how or why this silly colt suffered so many injuries. He can see quite well, we wondered about that too. I got out the ol' eye chart and he has 20/20 vision. Well... not really a chart, just some little obstacles and watching how he sees and reacts to tiny things visually. He is a very passive colt around other horses, this puts him as low ranking horse in the herd. The dominant herd 'boss' will often pick on the wimpy horse. That is what was happening at his other home. It was a very steep, very thickly wooded pasture with dense stands of Manzanita. We believe the alpha horse there was chasing, harassing and running him into things. He is not a clumsy colt, I have watched him gallop, spin and slide to a stop in our pasture.

So we hope that here at his new, safe , loving home, he will never be injured again.

That is a Fairy Tale Ending!

I turned all four horses out in our pasture soon after I took those twenty five days after surgery pictures where you can see all of his injuries healing so beautifully.

Cheyenne our herd boss, or call him BULLY, ran and ran and chased and bullied that poor colt right into the fence.

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Daughter came out, looked, said,"I told you we should call him Johnny Gash".

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Fresh laceration right across the center of his chest. How insane is that!

More surgical repair. This time it was fresh enough and an ideal location for staples. Quick.

I promise you, no more bloody injury pictures of this horse. I can't promise he won't have any more bloody injuries, but I'm not sharing. Plus look at all of that white hair, why would anyone want a white horse? Blood red just shows up much too clearly. I like sorrel horses so much better.