Storm Serge "SERGE" click
the boxed photo to
enlarge...
Skills Report Card!
Overall
Health:
4/20/11 -- arrived completely emaciated (starved), body score of 1.0
which means "bare minimal body fat and muscle, key internal organs may
fail."
8/20/11 -- Serge now rates approximately a 3. He is FAR better in all
areas except his hoof recovery. thanks to his donated boots, he is
pasture sound and able to walk around fairly comfortably as he
continues to heal.
4/15/11: Serge
is approximately
350-400 lbs underweight, per our vet, on arrival.
Serge is missing massive patches of hair -- his body could not maintain
his winter coat, nor grow new spring hair. We will have to watch for
and treat any 'bed sores' from his blankets and scratching as he sheds.
We do not anticipate him growing any spring coat at all.
5/20/11 -- Please see Serge's facebook photo album (membership not
needed) -- to see the amazing coat this boy is somehow generating!!! He
is making amazing progress and recovery already. He is gaining about
2.5 lbs per day, so in the last 40 days he has gained approximately 100
lbs., with much, much more to go.
7/1/11 -- Sergeis making AMAZING progress. he has grown a coat -- which
he should not have had adequate protein or resources to do but which
has been a huge help for his summer survival. He continues to gain at
an excellent weight.
Aug'11 - Serge's hoof issues -- good
to bad
to recovering
again.
Ground
manners: B+
Serge
is polite and
courteous, but with personality. He's such a sweetheart!
He has light in his eyes and seems genuinely happy as he settles into
his new life here.
His personality has completely recovered, and he is lovable and
passionate, energetic and playful, clearly a leader/alpha personality
for the herd. He wants to be with people, and will leave his fresh
grass meals just to visit and be loved.
He is already learning not to rush people, even when he wants to get to
dinner, etc. He can be a bit mischevious and playful, and is not for a
beginner to handle other than basic tasks such as leading to/from the
pasture.
Basic
Riding Skills:
N/A
We
are told Serge was
trained to drive and may have plowed.
We do not believe he has ever been ridden.'
11/12/11: SERGE'S FIRST EVER
LEADLINE RIDE!!!! YEAH!!!!!! Don't
miss his YouTube videos...IN THE FUTURE
Ideal
Career:
FUTURE CWER AMBASSADOR!
Stall
Manners: B+
Serge
is well mannered and
easy in a stall, so long as he doesn't think you are going to turn out
the lights and abandon him closed within a stall. He quickly gets
nervous once his feed is finished, fearing he won't be allowed outside
again to his hay. He was trapped inside a small area of a barn for much
of his last year prior to coming to CWER.
7/1/11: Serge has made significant progress here, and now will wait
calmly in his stall, even if he is the last horse in the barn. He waits
easily to lead in and out to pasture, halts in the aisle if asks,
gladly lets his front hooves be picked in his stall as well as grooming
and fly spray.
Trailering
Skills: B
Serge
is mildly nervous
about the trailer, but loads when asked.
Companionism/Pasture:
A
4/25/11:
Serge has been
allowed brief visits with other horses, but is always more interested
in his hay or his few minutes of grass than in making new friends.
We'll watch for this to progress as he improves.
5/20/11: Serge is living in the dry lot with Prince and Trinity, and
currently is allowed out in the main pasture for about 2 hours at a
time. He is energetic and playful, then settles down to eat his grass.
He is clearly a lead, but doesn't get caught in the drama.
6/10/11: update - Serge now lives in the main pasture 24/7. The
overweights of the herd sleep in a 'dry lot', but Serge and Prince
remain on the grass to give them maximum access to safely gain weight.
Serge doesn't get caught up in the pasture drama. He HAS become
attached to a beautiful mare, Rosie, who is equally smitten. We allow
them to pasture and stall side by side when feasible -- we're pleased
Serge has so cleanly acclamated to herd life and we will not attempt to
break this 'buddy sour' for some time to come. I anticipate that Serge
will let go of her and be comfortable on his own again in just a few
weeks, without outside intervention.
Serge is a dominant fellow, sometimes pushy or rude with other horses,
but usually simply as close to in charge as a gelding can manage in any
herd that includes an alpha mare. He and his little group tend to go
off on their own, away from Tess and the main herd, and he seems happy
that way.
7/21/2011: Serge is 'over' his crush, and will spend time with Rosie if
she chooses, but otherwise doesn't care much either way. He is mildly
attached to Prince -- and currently the 2 of them are staying together
in the dry lot. Serge is dealing with what is almost certainly a
not-yet-vented abscess; Prince is struggling with a variety of issues
that haven't yet been clearly defined.
Routine
Medical Care: B+
May
'11: So far we have done only
minimal care. He was mildly nervous but respectful.
Serge will need extensive dental work, but our vet says 'not yet' as of
6/1/11. We want to see him gain more weight (as he is despite his poor
teeth) and help ensure his body is stable enough prior to having to
sedate him.
Deworming: Serge's stool sample was positive for worms (but not severe,
whew) and he wasn't pleased at being fed a tube wormer, but he took it
and went on with his day without significant trouble.
May '11: Hoof care -- Serge's hooves were only ever done in stocks in
his past
life (at least he'd had that done!), so we are gradually teaching him
to allow us to handle and treat his hooves. He will hold either front
up and allow rapid, basic work from underneath.
6/10/11, we have
not yet done a full, formal trim where his bars will get clipped back
(they currently folded over to create his body's defenses version of a
shoe as his hoof wall was in such poor shape from starvation) or
otherwise do significant shaping work. Despite his hooves being in such
poor condition, he has not shown even one single step unsound here.
7/1/11: Serge has become very well mannered at having his hooves lifted
and his fronts cleaned. We are close to a formal trim on his front
hooves which will be a radical change -- his hoof walls were splintered
and peeled back several inches, and he has been walking on overgrown
pieces of bar rather than on the sole or on hoof wall. We think he is
stable enough now to trim those back and see what the condition is of
the rest of the hoof.
7/22/11: Today we had to make the first steps on a real trim for Serge.
He is in obvious pain with his right front, apparently an abscess that
isn't yet vented. Mike trimmed back the folded over bars under his
hoof, and began basic work on trimming back the sole. He also cleaned
up what he could of the badly damaged hoof wall and lowered his heel
significantly. Serge seemed to find some mild relief but no obvious
change. He is too sore to trim the left front at this point but we will
as soon as he is able. If the abscess doesn't vent soon on it's own, we
will need to consider more aggressive trims to find and release the
pressure and clear the infection. Because he has minimal hoof
structure, minimal wall and weak flaking sole, the challenges ahead
with this hoof may be very difficult, slow, and painful for Serge over
time.
Aug'11 - Serge's hoof issues -- good
to bad
to recovering
again.
Overview:
Serge
arrived a 1.0 on the body conditioning
scale -- 0 is dead; below 1.0 is major organ failure and unlikely to be
recovered.
He will take 9-12 months of careful feed management and expensive care
to rehabilitate and return to a level of preparing him for a new career. Please
will you
donate to help us to help Serge?
Adoption
Terms:
Serge will not be offered to adopt, at least at
this time. Serge is remaining as a permanent resident, in training as a
CWER ambassador like our Tessa. If Serge enjoys his training and this
job, he will have a place with us here at CWER!!!
Serge's
male owner died, and the wife
was left with the farm animals, and apparently inadequate funds or
education to care for them.
Serge was EXTREMELY emaciated (starved), close to his vital organs
shutting down. Extensive photos are on his facebook page.
Serge was so incredibly thin -- a 1.0 on the scale -- and his winter
coat was falling out in handfuls. There was no new spring coat beneath,
so he had huge patches of raw skin. We wil almost certainly need to
keep him in sunscreen and fly sheets / fly spray all year, as it is
extremely unlikely he will grow a coat at all in spring/summer 2011.
His hooves are also a nightmare, with segments of outer wall peeled
back as much as 2" up the hoof. Amazingly, he does not have underrun
heels and super flat hooves, and his body let his bars grow flat
underneath th protect the foot and give him a walking surface. He is
completely sound.
MAY -- note there are 2 videos below of his progress as of day 11.
June
2011
Serge
is making exceptional progress.
Details and photos are on his facebook page.
Serge has grown a shining, gorgeous summer coat! it is still shorter
than a normal horse's coat and is still very sensitive to flies, to
rubs/scrapes and scratches, and to sunlight. He has done very well in
the high quality Weatherbeeta super UV resistant fly sheet with neck
that one of our supporters purchased for him.
Serge understands the meal routines now and is doing VERY well. He has
buddied up with Rosie -who appears QUITE smitten with this big fellow.
Serge's personality, his presence, is simply remarkable to the point of
being indescribable. He is a high energy guy, but who is very
respectful in nearly all circumstances. He certainly doesn't pity
himself, and he doesn't want a human's pity either. When you see him,
watch him, touch him, you can see the incredible spirit he has beneath
that emaciated frame, and realize that he doesn't need pity - doesn't
want it -- but rather regular attention, meals, and time.
Serge is currently eating approximately $5/day ($150/month) of feed --
Purina Enrich to balance his minerals and give him the top amino acids
he needs, then 3 lbs f Purina strategy twice daily to bring up his
calorie and particularly fat count to help him gain the much needed
weight.
July
22, 2011
Serge
has made exceptional progress
thus far as far as his weight and especially his coat.
His personality, his will to live, are second to none.
We've been worried from day one about his hooves, and those worries
have shown to have basis. He is suffering with what appears to be a
not-yet-vented abscess in one hoof which is incredibly painful. Today
we began a basic trim on that hoof, cutting back the thick hoof wall
segments that began as bars beside his frogs where his body has tried
to protect the hoof on its own through his ordeal. He has so little
hoof wall and so little healthy sole that we will need to keep working
lsowly and cautiously, and may end up having to go to medications,
bandages, soaks, possibly pads and shoes to try to make him comfortable
as his body struggles to heal.
August 2011
Aug'11 - Serge's hoof issues -- good
to bad
to recovering
again.
Serge is incredibly lucky to have had a pair of fantastic EasyCare
brand easyhoof rx boots donated in their largest possible size. the
videos linked in the sentence above show him when his feet were not
sore in July, then at the worst thus far, then how he is doing so long
as he wears his boots. His walls will continue to grow down healthy and
will eventually reach the ground and again be able to support his size
and weight, but it will take time. We have intentionally slowed his
weight gain while we wait for his hooves to heal, but are watching
carefully to ensure that he will grow a solid winter coat this fall (it
is common for starvation cases not to do so), and that he continues a
very slow careful gain in the months to come.
Don't miss Serge's ride photos and videos on
facebook!!!
Sponsorship: Serge needs medical sponsorship!
Estimated costs:
FEED SPONSOR: Please
consider sponsoring Serge. As of fall 2011, he is now on a normal diet
of 3 cups of Purina Enrich twice daily, NO MORE WEIGHT GAIN PRODUCTS!
YEAH!
$60/month, feed needs
$300 initial vet exam,
vaccinations -- THANK YOU October T for the donation that has covered
these initial expenses.
$150 dental work and full power
float -- thank you Pam Erb and pony, Otto, for this donation!!!!!! $150
for Serge's dental work.
$100 summer fly/UV sheet (his skin
cannot protect from insects & sunburn) - donated, thank you
Rogers
family!
Transport to
CWER: $25
Farrier care:
he receives farrier care here at CWER by our own Mike Cross,
unless
something unusual would be found that requires treatment.
Worming: We will
test his stools and treat as needed. Any base issues will be resolved
immediately, then we will do fecals on him every 8 weeks until we are
confident his system remains clean as do our other horses. (We no
longer rotational deworm; instead we do stool samples and worm those
who are needed and only with what they need.
