I have a 24 year old Arab gelding who started dribbling urine. The dribbling of urine is what initially saved his life.
Took him in to the vet's office last Tuesday. They did a rectal and also an ultra-sound. They catherized him and drained gallons of urine. They determined that he had a bladder stone.
Surgery was the best option but totally unaffordable for me. I asked for alternatives. Originally, they said pumping his bladder with ammonium chloride might work to break it up. It was not a solid mass, still somewhat pliable. (ammonium chloride was one of the components that the bombers of OK City used)
Was then scheduled to bring him back to the vet today. It was a total change of plans.....
They came up with a different plan.........they drained his full bladder and then pumped white vinegar into his bladder and drained and pumped more vinegar, drained, etc.
The original stone was about 2lbs and configured like a dinner plate and several dinner plates thick.
While pumping the vinegar in, one vet put his arm up his rectum and manipulated the stone.
When they did drain the bladder after the vinegar (each time) all this mustard colored crap came out.....the stone was dissolving!!!!!!!
The stone is now the size of a baseball. I have to take the horse back in on Thursday and they will do the same thing again and hopefully this time the whole thing will dissolve.
One of the vet's said he was going to write a paper about this 'experiment.'
So, put this info in 'your book' about alternative treatments for bladder stones (that are not a solid mass).
It ain't over til the fat lady sings but I am very, very encouraged:)
Also, there were two horses in there with tracheotomies. They had both been bitten on the nose by a rattlesnake. Same owner of both horses.
Horses both seemed to be doing OK. It was fascinating.
