From Melissa at Blue Horse Sanctuary: Grooming and fly spray today. He is such a lover. 

From Melissa at Blue Horse Sanctuary....JOLLY's Forever Home:

8-8-2023 Dental Visit-JOLLY

The Dentist had a look at Jolly this morning. It was all good news. He has 3-4 teeth in both upper jaws and 3-4 in both his lower jaws. He said they meet enough to be functional for him and didn’t see anything that would constitute removing or filing them right now. He said that he seems to be using his lips and gums to graze, which we see him do, and has no problem chewing with his back teeth. We assume that is why he has continued to gain weight since he got here. We have been allowing him free choice, along with 4 other horses that are prone to lose weight, and they are all getting along great and eating well. So that's all wonderful news!

The Dentist did say he heard the heart murmur (which you already knew about) and that it is a pretty profound one in the right ventricle. Vets and Dentists will give sedation if the problem is with the left ventricle, but not with the right. So, even if Jolly needed surgery to remove some of his teeth or any of those bit and pieces that are embedded in his gums, it would be too risky. Thankfully there is no pressing need to do so! So at least we have a happy, semi-healthy big ole boy on our hands who is running and enjoying companions and eating!

JOLLY:  This poor horse!  Our last update showed how well he was doing now that he is getting regular meals that he can actually eat.  He eats twice as much as GUS in soaked senior feed, hay pellets.  

Kathy found him lying down in his corral one morning looking very uncomfortable.  Jolly doesn’t usually lie down.  His eyes showed stress/pain.  She immediately called me, and since she was able to get him up, we elected to do the wait and see before a vet would be called.  Kathy placed him in his stall (which he hates!) because he usually will pace.  We figured the walking would help and she gave him some Banamine.  Oddly, he didn’t walk around his stall as he usually does and we were getting pretty concerned.  He was better that evening (more Banamine) and better the next morning.   

At first he wasn’t finishing his soaked pellets/senior feed which is highly unusual for JOLLY.  It appeared to be gas colic and finally subsided.  With his heart condition and all he had been through prior to being rescued by YOU, we weren’t sure what the outcome would be.  For good measure, Kathy gave him some Sand Clear just in case he might have some sand in his gut.  No sand appeared in his manure.  He’s now back to his old self.  We are sooooooo grateful for Kathy’s care/attention and catching this so soon.

The last update on Jolly was 4/4/2023.  In that update there were pictures of JOLLY from 3/29/2023.  We stated that he had come a long way in his recovery and that he still had a long ways to go.  Today he has 117 days of recovery from the starvation/neglect.  Almost 4 months since he arrived at Kathy's/Starburst Ranch.

She sent me pictures and I can't believe my eyes!!

I really wasn't sure if his back and hips would ever fill in enough to round out simply due to his age and lack of muscle.  Just goes to show you when they are given the basic necessities....food they can process, vet care, farrier care and attention, horses like JOLLY can exceed my hopes!  Just AWESOME!!!

Because of YOU, JOLLY has had 110 days Or 3 months, 20 days of proper care, nutrition, vet visits, hoof trims (he was a bit grumpy about that) on his LONG road to recovery.

He has become healthy enough to begin to shed that nasty, unhealthy, neglected old horse coat too! 

After long term starvation the body's main focus is survival.  This means that non-vital hair & hoof growth are shut down, nutrients are taken from muscles, etc. so that the body concentrates on keeping the heart going.  Once consistent feed is supplied again, the body begins to restore itself.  The fact that JOLLY's body is healthy enough to trigger a normal response to shedding, that is a milestone in his recovery.

He has a long way to go, but he is getting there thanks to our supporters and the care he is afforded with Kathy Lake at Starburst Ranch!

Picture below was taken 5 days after he was rescued.

Kathy hauled Jolly to the vet for a follow up on his heart murmur and blood results.

Great news!  His heart murmur is improved and the vet feels he has put on a significant amount of weight.  

Texas has had quite a bit of windy, wet and cold weather recently.  Jolly doesn't appear to mind it at all.

Thanks to our supporters, we were able to pull JOLLY from a killpen in mid December.  Considering his condition and that it has only been a little over 2 months since he arrived at Kathy's, he is doing quite well!  Thank you Kathy for taking such good care of this oldster for us.

From Kentucky Equine Research:  “Moderately starved and thin horses usually regain body weight within 60-90 days. However, severely starved horses may take 6-10 months.”

Thanks to our supporters, we were able to purchase JOLLY in mid December 2022.  It hasn't quite been 2 months since he has been getting regular meals that he can actually eat.  As a result, the old boy is SLOWLY putting on weight, has a bit of light in his eyes, and it appears that he has gotten a spike in his energy! 

2-2-2023 JOLLY update from KATHY/STARBURST RANCH

Quick update on JOLLY. Saw him trot this morning.  He spent yesterday in a stall because of freezing rain. He totally destroyed it pacing to the point all the mats will have to be pulled, washed and relaid. So even though there was ice everywhere, I turned him out.  He trotted up and down the fence line a couple times before heading to the food bucket.  That was so good to see!

Also, he was far from a gentleman this morning coming out.  It took nearly 10 minutes to get him to the point I could get a halter on him without him running over me.  Once we had the halter on, we made a couple trips up and down the shed row because this morning the icy conditions have been the most dangerous and I couldn’t risk him pushing or pulling me.  The ice is trying to melt underneath so the horses are breaking through it but I can’t so for me it’s very much an ice rink.  Super pleased with his energy level.

JOLLY loaded up nicely to go to the vet for his evaluation & dental appointment.  Once he arrived, the vet noticed that he was breathing a little heavy.  At this point, we aren't sure if it is from a brewing respiratory issue (his lungs appeared clear), from his heart murmur (grade 4 out of 6 murmur), or anxiety of wondering where he was going in the trailer this time.

Vet says his physical condition is 1-2 on the Henneke Scoring System.  He is VERY thin, but he has put on a bit of weight since he landed at Kathy's for quarantine.

We asked for a CBC (blood panel) so that we would have a better idea of what is going on with his organs, etc.  They ran the test twice and it seems the only area of concern is that he is slightly anemic!  Truthfully, I was surprised that is all that was found.  I was expecting some issues with his kidneys or liver.  

Needless to say, JOLLY is a VERY old horse.  It will take some time for him to get healthy again.  In a couple more weeks we should know more about his ability to absorb nutrients and if there is a respiratory issue.  He could still come down with something after being exposed to sick horses at the kill lot.

When I was on the phone with the vet, I asked if his teeth had broken off or were worn down from age.  Vet's reply was....Yes.  Meaning that his dental condition was due to both.  He did have sharp points on the remaining teeth.  We asked that those points be filed down so as not to cause more sores & discomfort.  He had to be sedated for the procedure as he didn't like his mouth being fussed with.  Sedation was huge concern with his heart murmur, but he was given a light dose and JOLLY did well.

Vet agreed with Kathy's feeding schedule and quantity.  She will add some Red Cell to help with the anemia.  In a few weeks, we will reasses his condition.

"Seabiscuit" movie --- "Every horse is good for something and you don't throw a life away just because he is banged up a bit".

With your help, we want to make sure he never has to “live” like he had been prior to your help in rescuing him.  Thank you!

Jolly is doing really well!  We are sooo relieved that there have been no major issues thus far.  He has been in quarantine at Kathy’s for 2 weeks and 2 days.  The first few days were a bit worrisome as he wasn’t drinking as much as we would like to have seen and he was leaving a bit of his soaked pellets.  He was being fed small amounts 5 times a day so as not to overload his system.

By day 5, his water intake had increased, he was finishing his pelleted feed and eating the leaf off the small amount of alfalfa hay he was being given.  His body slowly adjusted and we could see a bit of progress.

Since he is in quarantine, he is the last horse to be fed so that if he develops anything contagious, it is not spread to the other horses.  He’s a talker!  He tries to convince Kathy to feed him first by making those low chortling sounds while she feeds the other horses.  His energy is up and he now walks back and forth outside of the stall while Kathy is cleaning it and talking the whole time.  And, he sticks his tongue out to let her know he is starving!! (He only does this at feeding time)

His alfalfa pellets and senior feed amounts have been slowly increased and he is now being fed 3 times a day.  Next week he will be wormed.  We purchased a halter/lead rope and wormers to send to Kathy for him, GUS & BEAU.

A MAJOR area of concern is his teeth.  He has a vet appointment scheduled for January 3, 2023 for an overall health evaluation and a better idea of his dental condition.

JOLLY FINALLY finished all his evening meal AND drank 15 gallons of water!  Woo Hoo!  He'd been leaving a little food each meal, not much, but some.  He hadn't been drinking as much as we had hoped he would.  Hope this progress continues for him.

From Kathy:  6:07 AM

An increase in manure piles overnight.  They are starting to turn green and have very few stems in them.  Water consumption still isn’t great but he did drink overnight. His mid morning meal will be a slurry of senior with the hopes that he drinks it.  His eyes look better this morning.  Still a little bit of discharge but nothing like it has been and it is still white.  Appetite is good.  He will get out for a bit this morning but we have a few very cold days coming so he will be mostly inside so I can keep him out of the wind.

I could see the partial defeat, sadness, apprehension, fear and despair in his eyes. His eyes spoke volumes.  Yet, there was that glimmer of hope shining out as he did his very best under his current circumstances.  Despite the neglect, the gnawing ache for edible food, the distress & confusion of being in a strange place with strange horses and people, he was holding on as best he could.  

How long had people laid eyes on him and then glanced away?  Averting their gaze because he was “older”, skin & bones, not the flashy, shiny, pretty or impressive boy he once was and there wasn’t any monetary, etc. advantage to helping him?  How many looked, but didn’t see?

After years of giving of himself, hopefully loved for a time by someone, this was to be the final story of his life?  A sale ad, a video, a brief account by people who did not know him?  Older, starved, neglected.  Forsaken. 

I checked the ad for 5 days in hopes that he would get a reprieve, catch a break for a change.  I shared with other rescues and rescuers.

Tag Number: 8853, Color: Paint, Sex: Gelding, Height: 15.1, Age: 20’s

Price: 625.00

Slaughter Date 12/14/2022

I checked with our usual Quarantine facility to see if they had room.  I checked with a couple of transporters to see if any were available to transport to quarantine.  

12/14/2022 before the truck arrived, we paid for him.

He was transported to Kathy’s at Starburst Ranch to hopefully let the recovery begin.  We weren’t sure he would make it.  He’s being fed 5 times a day with soaked hay pellets.  We are being cautious with feeding him hay as he has severe dental issues.  More on that later.  Of course he is hungry and his head is buried in the feed bucket.  Water consumption is as good as we’d like to see it yet.  Manure & urine output is good now.  He finally laid down to rest. 

We named him JOLLY for the Christmas season.  Are you able to help us make this a JOLLY Christmas?  Any assistance will be greatly appreciated.  Merry Christmas to you all!