Re: [RC] Horse Struck by Lightning - Chris PausOh gosh, I'm so sorry. This is horrible! I have had a horse and lightning experience too. I had taken my mare from Kansas to Iowa for breeding. When I picked her up to bring her home, it was July 3, 2001, we came into a terrible T-storm on I-35 south of Des Moines. I had my grandson with me in the truck. We pulled over at a rest stop to let the storm pass. It seemed to get better, so we got back on the road. Got two miles down the road and the sky just got pink! Neither of us could see! Then we heard a terrible crack. I pulled off at the next exit to wait it out again at a truck stop. A trucker who pulled up next to me told me that a semi in the next lane over had taken the direct hit, but that we got lit up too. I checked on my mare who was 3 days since her last cover. She was quiet and munching hay. I didn't notice anything wrong. So John and I hung out at the truck stop listening to the weather report. We got back on the road an hour later and when we got into Missouri, the damn storm was there again. We pulled over again and got rocked by hail and wind! We finally got home about midnight. I pulled the mare out of the trailer and my husband said, what's wrong under her tail? I looked and she had a big red donut where her poop hole was supposed to be. Her rectum had prolapsed! I looked on the trailer door and it was full of blood and tissue and feces! I had never thought to look at the back end of the mare when I checked her in Iowa. I called the vet at midnight and we rushed her to the horsepital. They put her back together. she spent several days in intensive care and then had to spend 6 weeks eating sloppy mineral oil and beet pulp and only soaked hay til she healed. We couldn't do a palpation or ultrasound to check for pregancy until she was 4 months along. It took a while for her insides to heal. WE had no idea if all the medication she had been on would have a bad affecton the foal. We surmise that she must have had her nose on the metal manger in the trailer and the lightning went through her. We were very lucky. It took a lot of work, but she did heal up and she had a very healthy foal, whom we named Baraq (lightning) who now lives in Texas with his new mom, Val. I was afraid the mare would never get back in a trailer again, but she apparently has never associated the trailer with the episode and she just hops in, yeah! Long story, to tell you that there may be hope for your boy. My mare and foal survived. And please, don't anything think that because you are in a trailer or truck on rubber tires that you and your animals are safe! And I learned the hard way that lightning CAN hit a moving target! You and your horse will be in my prayers. Keep us posted on his progress. chris Dear Ridecampers, My Arab 9 yo, healthy, in good shape and current on all shots. We were getting ready to start competing in LDs this fall when he was struck by lightning last Friday. The best we can tell is he was drinking out of the pond when it hit. It entered his mouth and exited out his ear. It's been hell week since. The vet has treated him each day with a three gallon concoction of water mixed with DMSO, salt, etc. and steroid and banamine shots. His corneas have been burned and we are treating them with eye ointment. He is as wobbly as a new born foal, can hardly see, and he drools/slobbers as if he just got out of the Dentist's Chair - but he's a fighter. He is able to drink a little on his own now and we switched him to Equine Senior feed - pellets that can be easily digested. I am a realist and know that it will be months before we know the full extent of the damage. My question is "Has ANYONE experienced this before and would they please share with me - online or offline - their thoughts, opinions, positive or negative? It would be greatly appreciated. Ruth Abair shakesbearides@xxxxxxxxxx ===== "A good horse makes short miles," George Eliot Chris and Star BayRab Acres http://pages.prodigy.net/paus ============================================================ Arabians were bred for years primarily as a war horse and those requirements are similar to what we do today with endurance riding. ~ Homer Saferwiffle ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/ ============================================================
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