Mara less one tooth

I wrote this a little over a month ago...


Because Mara had only one wolf tooth and needed some dental work, my vet came out. Also, Bellis has been coughing and it really worries me.

Mara went under easily and for longer than expected. I assisted Dr Paufler, holding the head stand and even the upper lip of the horse so he could take down sharp edges on two incisors. He used power tools on her ramp, but the tooth puller thingy was just a mechanical device. We both had blood all over our hands but poor Mara had a mouthful. She was really easy to work on, completely asleep and peaceful the entire time. Amazing. Below she is using the wall and leadrope to hold her head up.

I told him she’s still very nervous and has never lain down yet. I asked if he thinks a magnesium supplement would help and he said to try it, so I ordered some. My friend Tami had good results with her QH who also couldn’t breathe properly. I will definitely let you know if it makes a difference.

I mentioned “My horse…” meaning Baasha – I still think of him as “mine” and Mara as something in transition to becoming mine. Although *drumroll* we applied for a passport update this week, after finally getting our horse-owner registration number. It turns out that in Germany, you have to register with the state to keep a horse on your land. Now we are officially fish keepers and horse/donkey keepers, the government’s got tabs on us!  It will feel good to get her passport with her new name and MY name on there.

Anyway, Dr Paufler said, “He was something special, Baasha” and my eyes filled with tears. I don’t know if he really knows that, but I know he knows Baasha loved veterinarians, they were his very favorite guests, because he knew they were there fully for him.

The vet checked Bellis, palpating her throat to induce coughing, which she did, and he said she’s just got that cold going around from the extreme weather fluctuations we’ve had. OK…He gave me ACC to give her twice per day for 10 days or so. Bellis is in heaven. She gets an applesauce (+meds) syringe in the morning, and a tiny beet pulp/carrot (+meds) mash at night.

Mara, OTOH, is not allowed to have anything in her mouth for 3 days besides grass or hay. No bit for 10 days. I have a little note in my horse treat container by my front door, “Not for Mara til Saturday” so we won’t forget.

Mara slept 2.5 hours! I got pictures cuz I’ve never seen her like that and it was cute. She also looks cute in Bellis’ leather halter, which I had to use to tie her up because it’s padded and soft and she needed to be able to hang her head in the halter as she slept. The drugs make horses wake up with the munchies and sure enough, when I first tried untying her, she started eating bedding for the first time! No! I tied her up another half hour and then finally let her out to eat grass.

She was just fine, I really am thankful she is such a healthy horse, and I don’t spend my days worrying about her like I did with Baasha. She doesn’t hurt herself, and doesn’t go through fences. So far. It’s pretty rare, I think, for such a high-strung animal to not get hurt in a new place. Well one contributing factor is that she lives with a peaceful donkey.

One more thing: I ordered a new saddle June 23rd. I haven’t had a leather saddle (or anything) since 1995. I can’t wait to smell it when it gets warmed by a horse. (5 weeks and counting for a simple fit kit to arrive in the mail? Packages to Germany normally take 2 weeks.)