DULCE & COOKIE left Texas and headed to California. These 2 girls had a boat load of health issues when they were first brought to Quarentine.  Kathy, our go to Quarentine person in Texas, went above and beyond to help these girls on their road to recovery.  O course, we could not have done it all if not for our donors.  Thank you so very much.

The girls spent their Quarentine time together in adjoining stalls during the crazy winter storm in Texas and afterwards, they shared a pasture area.  During the trip to California they were side by side in the horse trailer.  They formed a very strong bond with each other over time.  Cookie is especially attached to Dulce.

After much thought & deliberation, it was decided that Cookie will travel on with Dulce to Valley View Ranch with Marlene.  We just did not feel right breaking them up and it was obvious that Cookie would be heartbroken if she was separated from Dulce at this time.  We did the right thing for these girls at this time in their lives for the right reasons.

Thank you all for being there for these girls.  Their story could have been so much worse if not for our supporters!  They so badly needed a chance to be the best they can be, receive proper feed, farrier, dental for both girls, medical care, people who cared about THEM and equine friends.  Thank you all!

Cookie & Dulce were scheduled to leave Texas and head to California at the end of this week (2/18-19/2021).  Our transporter, Marlene Dodge, had to turn around due to weather conditions.  A freak snowstorm has presented dangerous conditions.  Temperatures in Eastland, Texas, where the girls are quarantined, were minus 8 degrees Fahrenheit.  Poor Kathy and her husband have had to melt snow to provide water for the horses on her property.  They have been able to acquire water elsewhere.  Thankfully, Kathy has lived in snow country at one time and knows what to do in this mess.  Feeding, etc. is very difficult.  Despite the horrible conditions, the horses are doing well thanks to Kathy and her husband.  Please send positive thoughts.

COOKIE:  This gal has been back and forth to the vet so many times she & Kathy should get Frequent Flier Miles!  We purchased a different eye ointment from the vet after his most recent examination that seems to be working well.  Once she gets to California she will be seen by an Equine eye doctor if necessary.  In the meantime, she is doing well.

Cookie’s awful mouth ulcers have now healed.  Her really snotty nose has cleared up after being on Uniprim for 2 weeks.  Eye injury to left eye seems to be clearing up.  She had been housed in a pen attached to shedrow stall.  She's not a fan of being stalled.

First part of January 2021, she was moved to a different pen/stall set up.  She presented with odd behavior.  Sort of looked like choke symptoms, but no "gagging" or discharge from nose.  She was moving her mouth in an agitated manner, tossing her head, wrinkling her nose, backing up and snorting a bit.  Kathy (Quarantine Facility Owner) immediately took her to the vet in case it was choke or colic.  

THOROUGH exam by vet...ears, nose, mouth, throat, teeth...nothing.  Gut sounds all around.  She was sedated for exam.  Oiled her just in case.  She was also given a shot of Dex for inflammation/possible allergies.  Next day, after sedative and Dex wore off she was exhibiting the mouth movement, head tossing, backing up.  No snorting.  Passed plenty of manure.

Could she be pissed off because she was moved and being stalled?  Could this be behavioral?  Otherwise, she is a pretty sweet mule.  In the beginning, when she was unwell due to stress and not being able to eat, she was pretty low key.  Now that she is feeling better she has been hard to catch...avoidance.  Once caught she is very well mannered and loving.

We thought it might be allergies....but it is winter.  Everyone was stumped. 

The vet mentioned that he recently attended a sale and observed a mule walking backwards for the whole 2 hours he was there.  I contacted our vet here who had owned mules in the past and described Cookie’s actions.  He thought it might be behavioral.  Perhaps letting us know there was something she wasn’t comfortable with?  I also contacted Jerry Tindell, a Southern California based mule trainer, about the behavior and he agreed that it was most likely learned behavior and she was expressing her dissatisfaction.  

When Cookie was picked up from the kill pen, another mule accompanied her.  This mule had an anxious personality, paced the stall & run.  This mule left quarantine for their home recently.

It seems that the strange antics Cookie was displaying have disappeared since the other mule left.  I am so glad that we knew of some mule folks we could contact about this situation.  Although we were at first extremely worried and thought it may be a health issued, seasoned mule folks recognized what was going on.  Apparently, some  Mules can be a bit demonstrative about their feelings.  Whew!  It takes a village!

COOKIE:  Cookie's first night and next morning didn't go as well as hoped.  She barely ate her hay both morning/night.  The antibiotics for her semi-snotty nose and the Bute for her eye injury are mixed in with a bit of senior feed/hay pellets/water.  She ate some of the mush with the medication in it, but not enough for the meds to be really effective.  Meds had to be mixed in a syringe and adminstered orally.

Kathy at QT sent a video of her chewing that made us think that Cookie definitely had dental issues.  So, of course, Kathy quickly called the vet to see if Cookie could be seen for her teeth and an appointment was made for late in the day on 12/23/2020.  This was the second time Cookie headed to the vet.  The 1st time was because of concern about her eye injury.

OMG!  Poor Cookie.  On the left side her mouth is one of the biggest ulcers I have seen in a horse/mule.  These are cause by sharp point/hooks digging in to the side of her mouth when chewing and due to lack of proper care.  

The right side of her mouth was worse!  Although the picture doesn't show it, this ulcer is bigger and deep!  Most likely caused by a tooth that was out of alignment due to her grinding side to side to eat her food with the least amount of pain.  I can only image how long this sweet girl suffered like this.

Front teeth don't come together evenly and we don't know how she was able to graze or grab hay effectively.  Vet was surprised that she was in decent weight considering her inability to process food correctly!  Vet didn’t feel like he could make any more changes than he did at this time.  She needs more work for sure.  

This is why the occasional dental exam is important for your equine friend. The most amazing thing is she somehow managed to eat enough to not be just a bag of bones.

Cookie's semi-snotty nasal discharge has progressed into full blown nasal discharge.  From what I understand, during her dental care she managed to cover Kathy (Quarantine Facility Owner), Dr. Billy Bob Browning and his assistant with snot.  Kinda like an over filled snowblower with yellow yucky flying stuff.  ALL the vet tools, clothing, lead ropes and exam area had to be disinfected.  Kathy had to powerwash her trailer with disinfectant once they got back to her facility. Hopefully, the anitibiotics will knock this out soon. 

Fortunately, her lungs are clear and vet said it is NOT strangles.  We also had a fecal count done to see if she was infested with worms.  Not bad, but Kathy will be worming her in the next day or two. 

Evening report from Kathy indicates that Cookie is now eating her hay.  YAY!  HUGE Thanks to Kathy for taking this girl to the vet 2 days in a row!  We are priviledged to have such an amazing/caring lady caring for Cookie.  Also, we are grateful to the staff at Lazy 3 Animal Care for their quality service and caring:  https://www.lazy3animalcare.com

What makes a bad day better? A Cookie!

No hot water!  Pilot out on Water Heater?  Propane Low? Of course not.  Couldn't be that easy.  The 14 year old Water Heater gave up.  Our go to fix it, build it, paint it, where do you get these ideas Gail, guy came over asap!  Thank you Keith!

My personal savings just went down the drain!  Purchased a new water heater, Keith picked up the WH and all the items needed for install (including converter for propane). Went about the task of taking the old one out and installing the new one.  Of course, I had other plumbing stuff to add to his list. (Remove old water softner unit that hadn't worked since we moved here, cut/cap off those pipes, etc. Add a few items to my ever increasing fix it/build it list)  Turn the hot water back on and find that the old faucet for the kitchen sink is kaput.  Another hour or so trying to clear the blockage and no luck. Get to see Keith again as he will be installing a new faucet.  Thank goodness for Keith.  His talent, knowledge and sarcasm are much appreciated.

Phone ringing, emails about horses in need-can we ride your horses, do you have any 5 yr. old-able to leap tall buildings in single bound-Flashy-Broke-16 hands-sound-self cleaning-self feeding-Infant Safe-Great Great Grandma Safe-rides double or triple-Barefoot-comes with appropriate tack for racing/jumping/skydiving/swimming/mountain climbing/bungee jumping-trail & freeway & overpass & airport runway safe-sweet personality type horses for free?, scheduling for yearly appointments (what a pain in the tookus because of The Covid) just a whirlwind of stuff all at once and my usual sunny disposition (that is sarcasm folks) quickly spirals into loud, verbal buzzsaw, cut 'em off at the knees attitude and takes me a few minutes to knock that stuff off. Surprised myself because I used to let that stuff escalate and it would take awhile to rein it in.  SOME things about getting older are better I guess. Just kind of a "Bad Day at BlackRock" type of day.  

Then, in the midst of the havoc that is spinning in my mind (dogs want out, dogs want in, dog (Bruce) barking at every car/truck/airplane/bird fart in a 2 mile radius, cats crouched in wide eyed get ready to flee mode and make sure you get tangled in Mom's feet while knocking over random stuff when exiting, noticing that the dust bunnies are the size of Armadillos rolling down the hallway as the cats make their escape and the dust on the furniture is thick enough to plant a lawn-just needs a little water and grass seed and just how noticeable is that coffee stain right next to the other coffee stain on my shirt?), in the midst of this daily routine......a COOKIE!

I receive a message that a short haul transporter is heading to one of the Texas Killpens RIGHT NOW to do a pickup/rescue of another in need equine, there is room on that trailer and person who sent message is willing to contribute a bit, can we PLEEEEEZE .....

Tag Number: 2837

Color: Sorrel (and brown due to all the mud on her coat)

Sex: Molly (Female)

Height: 15hh (Sure!)

Age: 18 (yeah, right!!)

Result?  Hello Christmas COOKIE! It was noted that there was a slight nasal discharge, eye goobers, swollen eye that was partially cloudy/blue.  Quarantine owner contacted vet to make appointment and, Hip Hip Hooray!, Kathy was able to get her in to the vet right away!  Cookie rested her big head on the vet's shoulder while he examined her eye.  He doesn't think there is any serious damage and prescribed an ointment along with Uniprim for the semi-snotty nose.  Keep vet in the loop on her progress over the next few days.

She is sweet, sweet.  Supposedly (emphasis on maybe) primarily used for packing, but she rides. (no noticeable marks from packing gear use) Leads well, loaded & unloaded into an unfamiliar trailer with ease.  Feet seem to be in decent condition.  Ate all her Uniprim with a bit of pelleted feed and seems to be in decent weight, but could use a few pounds.

COOKIE, you are safe!  Merry Christmas!!