Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Trying a Smorgasbord

56/18
6 CCs of Lasix 2x a day, IV.

It was quite rainy here, so I opted to leave all the boys inside. I thought that maybe dry and fluffy would be better than wet and sloppy. Plus, I felt like I could put out a bunch of food for Parlay and see what he might eat without being separated from his buddies or having to fight them off (which he just doesn't even do anymore--he just lets them eat whatever they want).

I am trying everything--Today he had in front of him...

1) Beet Pulp with Molasses
2) Equine Senior from Nutrena
3) Agway Superior Pellets
4) Nutrena XTN and Ultra
5) Hay and Hay Cubes

It's just not going well. He just looks at me with a sad face like nothing tastes good. I fed him several carrots (which he does like) and a few apple wafers(which he eats to be polite, but about 3 is the limit). I have to wonder if he is REALLY just holding out for carrots. Tons of them.

So, with all of those buckets lined up along a stall wall, I had to run to work. Leaving has been so difficult for me. I hate leaving Parlay home alone. I keep thinking that he might need something and I won't be around. That something terrible is going to occur when I least expect it. The anxiety is taking its toll on me and everyone around me, I am sure.

I ran down to the barn to check on things as soon as I got home. Parlay nibbled here and there, but there was nothing finished. He did, however, drink 5 gallons of Horse Quencher with some electrolyte in it. I am sure that there must be SOME caloric value to that stuff, right? I am thinking of adding FatCat to that concoction... I wonder if you can get a horse to drink Ensure? (kidding)

Parlay, of course, is taking it all in stride. I go out to see him with treats or a syringe of meds or yet another bucket of food and he just sighs. I check his pulse and respiration over and over again. I swear he is rolling his eyes at me. I am acting like a freak and even my HORSE knows it.

In other news, I have done quite a bit of research on the CoQ10 and Hawthorn supplementation and am ready to give it a try. Problem? The way that the product is delivered is in a gel capsule. The most effective way for the enzyme to work is in this delivery method. How do you give a horse a gel cap, much less 4-6 of them? My friend Gayle says try to hide it in a treat. I guess that is where I am headed. Now, I just need to find the perfect treat vessel! If this horse stops eating treats I am going to need some sort of meds myself!

Rain has slowed and I am getting the ESP message that the boys would like to be outside.

I'll be back...