Barbaro Update: Not all that good

[Tucumcari]

I must say I am really disappointed though...with all the advances in medicine and the things at their disposal at New Bolton, they haven't done something as simple as give him special, custom orthotic boots and have him packed in Rapid Response to STIMULATE the healing and growth of that hoof. Sometimes simple is best.
[/quote]

The thing I find with new technology is that it is not always what it is cracked up to be. This year I suffered a significant fracture. I was supposed to have screws put in, but Del Mar called. Stupid, I know. And I was given a Bone Growth stimulator. I'm still hoping it will work. New technology... that one is a bit disappointing..

[Nerd]

I must say I am really disappointed though...with all the advances in medicine and the things at their disposal at New Bolton, they haven't done something as simple as give him special, custom orthotic boots and have him packed in Rapid Response to STIMULATE the healing and growth of that hoof. Sometimes simple is best.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that basically what they were doing up until a week ago?

I think that if Barbaro doesn't pull through it will be a failure of science, pure and simple. I'm not a vet, so I probably haven't fully internalized the complexity and hopelessness of laminitis, but as a scientist and an engineer I find our inability to prevent and deal with it unacceptable. I don't know if it's effort, ethics, or lack of funding standing between us and a solution, but whatever it is I get this strong intuitive sense that a solution does exist and we should be trying much, much harder to find it.

[BJ]

I must say I am really disappointed though...with all the advances in medicine and the things at their disposal at New Bolton, they haven't done something as simple as give him special, custom orthotic boots and have him packed in Rapid Response to STIMULATE the healing and growth of that hoof. Sometimes simple is best.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that basically what they were doing up until a week ago?.

I don't think so. I never saw the kind of boot I'm talking about. Sources tell me he WAS being given the Rapid Response after the laminitis first reared its ugly head. But I don't think they've been packing him in it recently. That stuff is amazing. I wish they'd use it. What have they got to lose. Packing the Rapid Response inside a soft orthotic boot, would not only make him more comfortable, but help him to keep his weight evenly distributed and keep the circulation from shutting down again.

[Nerd]

you mean those soft ride boots? I could have sworn he was wearing those, although now that I look back at the New Bolton pictures I don't see 'em. Maybe it was in the videos...

[amanda1]

A horse does not have the capacity to think in terms of the future. A horse does not wake up each morning thinking of the new day ahead. A horse thinks only in terms of the past.

IT IS UP TO US TO CREATE A POSITIVE PAST!!!!!

The past 7.5 months of Barbaro's life have consisted, for the most part, of four walls, pain, needles, and confusion. It would seem that the positives for HIM (who should be THE determining factor, it being his life and all) are minimal. Um.....let's see......grain (Here it comes.....oh goody goody....hurry, hurry, HURRY, yum, yum yum, snarf, GONE), hay (boredom manager), treats (again......yum, snarf, gone), grooming, and his daily walk outside, which I am sure he loves, but can hardly make up for the remaining 23.5 hours he spends cooped up.

I am not making any calls on what should or should not be done.....there must be tremendous pressure. It seems any decision they make will be wrong. If they put him down, they gave up.....if they keep fighting, they're prolonging his pain. I wouldn't want to have ANY of that on my shoulders.

BUT.....ih horses do indeed think in terms of the past, Barbaro must feel he's trapped in Purgatory.

GROW, HOOF, GROW!

[BJ]

A horse does not have the capacity to think in terms of the future. A horse does not wake up each morning thinking of the new day ahead. A horse thinks only in terms of the past.

IT IS UP TO US TO CREATE A POSITIVE PAST!!!!!

I love that saying. But you forgot to post the author

Found it...

"A horse has no future. It cannot greet the sun and say today will be better. It can only reflect upon days of past experiences. It is our job to create a positive past." Karen West

www.bayequest.com"

[Rococoms]

It doesn't seem unreasonable that in this era, Jockey Club could somehow get a system in place for special dispensation for certain circumstances for AI to be allowed. Barbaro is a special, high profile case, and I suspect if JC is ever going to change their rules anytime soon, it would be for him.

But he wouldn't be the only beneficiary. I've cared for a mare who endured all if not more than Barbaro has, who is now finally doing well with a font leg prosthesis. Like him, her case was very special, and she had the same will to live. But it scares me to death to think of her being shipped across the country so that she can be bred. To loose her after all she has been through, for that, would be a unthinkable travesty, as would subjecting Barbaro to perform live cover, only to have it be the death of him.

[geowarrior]

Wilf - I can completely relate. My Akita is thirteen and a half, which is positively ancient for a large breed dog. She is increasingly arthritic. She was always quite aloof, so I have to watch her constantly and look for the slightest signs to ascertain whether she is beginning to cross the line in terms of quality of life or whether she is just showing her normal disdain. However she is still constantly nailing me with the imperious look informing me that the water bowl is requiring filling or that it's dinner time (which seems to be all the time). I accidentally left the front door open the other night while said dinner was being eaten. The other dogs were engrossed in food, but Isla the Akita spotted the open door and wandered out for a look at the neighborhood. Signs of life, Wilf - the old spirit of exploration which was so strong in her that she used to (literally) yank me off my feet, is still present to the extent that she will leave the full bowl of tasty stuff (a major sacrifice, because the other dogs who didn't notice the open door, did notice the full bowl of Akita food) to examine a few good smells.

[freshman]

....grain (Here it comes.....oh goody goody....hurry, hurry, HURRY, yum, yum yum, snarf, GONE), hay (boredom manager), treats (again......yum, snarf, gone), grooming, and his daily walk outside, which I am sure he loves, but can hardly make up for the remaining 23.5 hours he spends cooped up.BU

You've just described the life of a typical racehorse.

[erins isle]

All I can say is that animals can't speak how they feel, you have to watch them constantly and than they tell you. For my pets at home I have one golden rule: as long as they are happy they may live, but if you watch them suffer let them put asleep, even if you are not up to it yet yourself. My poodle Rohwena is just like the Akita 13 and a half. She has diabetis, is almost blind and her mind is getting worse (senile), but she is happy still and I hope that we will spend some more time together. In the case of Barbaro a lot of money is involved that is the difference, but I do hope that his owners will take the right decision.

[BJ]

but I do hope that his owners will take the right decision.

Ah...but there is no "right" or "wrong" decision, at this point, where there is life and the legal right to end it. That is the real issue here.

Some people look at an animal and see suffering and depression. Others will see them "enduring" and be certain they are enduring because they want to. Who really is "right"? Who really can say?

It is not a decision any of us can make FOR ANOTHER person, in any situation there is still "hope" and the animal appears to be trying, or where the owners/connections truly care about the animal.

How sad for the folks that can't afford to do everything possible to save an animal they love dearly...or a human, for that matter.

So, we all have to hold on to our own beliefs and understandings and connections with the animal...and hope we are doing the best by them that is possible. I am certain that is what is being done for Barbaro.

[Mood Swings]

Four walls all day long, needles, confusion - BLAH, BLAH, BLAH!
That describes the lives of most racehorses and hunter/jumpers!
WE do not know the level of discomfort he may be feeling because we are not him. IMO if he were suffering so terribly he would look very depressed. I do not think he looks very depressed. The Jackson's have said they do not want him to suffer. Horses suffer everyday, Barbaro is at least getting medication to help mask the pain so that he is given an opportunity to recover and if he recovers he will not be suffering -you see? So many horses go through terrible s**t that is worse than what Barbaro is going through. He has had "phases" good and bad during his recovery and still has a spark in his eye, if he can handle these bumps in the road why not give him a chance at living. If he makes it only to live in a green pasture and not cover mares but still be comfortable I think that is worth it - the Jackson's can afford it. If he has to be euthanized in the end . . . very sad indeed, however there has been information gained and he was well cared for through-out his ordeal.

Amen! Good Luck Barbaro!

[Rococoms]

I actually talked to someone who said he was being given rapid response- though whether topically or just orally, I don't know.

[Rokeby Forever]

The Thoroughbred was created as an unsound animal for speed. And now that they're bigger, heavier, and still race on legs not meant to carry that much weight, more and more have shortened careers, injuries, and breakdowns.

What happened to Barbaro, as with any horse that breaks down, was and still is tragic. But to be involved with this sport and lose sleep over these things is a bit hypocritical. Nobody wants a horse to break down, but we breed and race unsound horses. NO Thoroughbred is sound...I don't care what specimen you show me. So, forgive me for not being as "soapy" as others in this discussion, but it seems to me there are 2 choices: Accept these things when they happen, or stop racing altogether.

As for Barbaro...God Bless Him. I don't think any human could have endured the last 7 months that he has...we can only wish every horse had a heart his size.