Phone Call to the Vet

Summer is here. This weekend was tough to adjust to the summer temps. Looking at the forecast, this weekend is going to be even tougher.

This past weekend we didn’t do much with the horses as we were camping and enjoying some much needed family quality time. We ran back and forth morning and night to check on the horses and make sure the water tanks were full. It was in the 90s all weekend, the poor horses are not adjusting to this heat and neither am I.

I need to keep a close eye on Tommy. He wasn’t acting his normal self this morning. I couldn’t really evaluate him like I wanted. I’m in a bit of pain right now. I managed to sunburn my legs and ankles and any type of shoe bothers. I ran through the gauntlet of foot apparel I could try and ended up with my cowboy boots instead of my steels. Hopefully tonight I’ll be able to walk better to evaluate Tom and make sure everything is ok.

I’m worried about Dick. He’s been losing weight. I pulled him from the road pasture to the back pasture but I don’t think he’s doing any better. I’m afraid he’s at his last few weeks. I had hoped that I could wait until fall sometime as is my normal routine for euthanasia. When I realized I couldn’t wait until fall, I had considered waiting until the end of August just before I go on a small vacation. But now that I see him, I’m wondering if I should just call the vet this week. This heat is really going to bother him and he just can’t seem to keep any weight on. Any grain he eats gives him diarrhea. Senior feed and rolled oats go right through him. His body is no longer processing all of the oats. It’s the same situation we were in a couple years back with my beloved Bob. When we first brought Dick home, he looked a little tough but hid it with his winter coat. Now he looks tough no matter what. It’s really just a matter of me making that dreaded phone call. I’ll be keeping an eye on the weather to see when I should do it. The weatherman is predicting 90+ degree weather for this weekend. I’d like to see if there is any relief in the future. I just hate making this phone call. I had really hoped to wait. He’s such good friends with Rabbit. Makes me sick to even think about it. But rescue/sanctuary life isn’t always about keeping them for years and years but ensuring that they are given a dignified death. This is the part of sanctuary life I dread.