Blind Rosie is on strict stall rest for four weeks as part of her colic surgery recovery, and the only exercise she is allowed right now is a closely supervised walk. The way we worked that into the schedule is to take her with us to get the mail every day. Lena's Barn, where her stall is located, is a full 1/4 mile (.40 km) from the mailbox at the other end of the drive, so she gets a good 1/2 mile walk from the mail run. Alayne got this photo of me with Rosie yesterday on a cool, wet fall day. She's glad to get out of the stall, but right now we can tell that this is just about as much exercise as she's ready for. It's not really the "Pony Express," I guess ... more like the "Pony Shuffle."
Colic surgery is an incredibly invasive, difficult surgery, and it can really take a lot out of the horse. (Not to mention the bank account: $5,700 for Rosie's surgery and hospitalization! Oh.my.goodness.) So the "road back" is slow and careful ... controlled feeding, controlled exercise, and controlled environment -- no horsey fooling around during the recovery!
That's why blind Bo is off with Lena and Nikki in a distant pasture. As I was pulling out of the drive with Rosie in the trailer that day, Alayne was already moving Bo over to be with those two. He would simply get too frantic to be by himself. This little threesome is doing great together on pasture. When Rosie is done with stall rest and then four weeks of access to a small outdoor run, she'll be reunited with Bo. But for now, she's actually doing great by herself. As for Bo ... well, he got two girls out of the deal, so no complaints there!
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Still No. 1!
Please keep voting for us every day in The Animal Rescue Site/PetFinder's Shelter Challenge. Thanks to your votes, we came in third nationwide and won $3,000 for the animals in the previous contest. Now we have a shot at No. 1 and the $20,000 grand prize! Enter "Rolling Dog Ranch" and our state postal code, MT for Montana, and it will bring up our listing so you can cast your vote. Please ask your family and friends to vote, too. Thank you!
Its nice to see Rosie up and getting stronger every day.I"m sure see will enjoy getting things back to normal, but she may miss her walk to pick up the mail. It is my goal to vote every day, it is the least us readers can do for YOU, ALAYNE and the animals that you care so deeply for.For that we give THANKS!
Posted by: Kathy and Harley | October 22, 2009 at 01:08 PM
Thanks for the update. I bet she does enjoy the walk but is glad to get back to her stall.
Posted by: Colleen & Sweet Kitty Erin | October 22, 2009 at 10:25 AM
I'm glad to hear of the update and that she is doing well!
Posted by: Suzanne | October 21, 2009 at 02:33 PM
Thanks for the update.
Posted by: Adele | October 21, 2009 at 08:19 AM
I hope my votes are working in the Shelter Challenge! Don't you usually get a notice of who is in the first few places and a notice saying that your vote has been counted?
I haven't been getting that in a few days :(
Thank goodness you are going to win the Shelter Challenge so you can use that money to pay for Rosie's surgery!
Posted by: Carisa J | October 21, 2009 at 05:50 AM
Off topic but for those of you who have a Kuranda pet bed (the cots that RDR uses), Kuranda is running a contest. Send in a photo of your pet on one of their beds and if your photo is voted best for that week, you get to name a favorite place to receive a donated bed! RDR can always use another Kuranda bed, right? More here:
http://kuranda.com/blog/dog-of-the-week/
Posted by: Lynne Parker | October 21, 2009 at 05:32 AM
I'm glad to see Rosie walking down the drive! What an amazing surgery she had...the pictures you posted were very impressonable. We hope she gets stronger every day! :)
Posted by: boundforglory | October 20, 2009 at 09:33 PM
Thank you Steve, for a blog I'm sure many followers were waiting to read; I know I was. Words filled with hopeful optimism and a dash of humor! "no horsey fooling around" ha!
Great job Rosie, keep on getting well girl!
Posted by: Lynn (in Louisiana) | October 20, 2009 at 08:00 PM
Thanks for the update. Thanks for the pic of her (and you) strolling down the lane. She looks great. Well you too :)
Posted by: Ev | October 20, 2009 at 07:16 PM
I've had abdominal surgery and I know that I was weak and tired for at least a month or two afterward while I was recovering. It's major, major surgery and it takes time to get your energy and muscles back in shape. Muscles start to atrophy after 24 hours of lying around, so you can imagine what shape you're in after surgery and with weeks of limited exercise.
Good luck, Rosie, you're doing great!! The body needs sleep/rest to heal, so take full advantage of your naps.
Posted by: Janet in Cambridge | October 20, 2009 at 06:56 PM