Gem Update: The Cast Is Off

I had a whole tirade planned about the craptastic communication from the vet, but it really isn't super important. All my local friends have been messaging me about how much they don't like this place, but they didn't want to tell me at the time. Gee - thanks!

In the end I still think it was the best place to go initially. It was the closest and with her spouting blood like a fountain time was of the essence. Dusty and I will need to have as serious talk about where to go from here and if we want to continue with them or move on. I don't know what the answer is.

In any case, the cast finally came off today. I didn't get to talk to the vet because I was fuming mad at her lack of responding to my calls, so I made Dusty do it. He didn't get a whole lot of information out of her.

She has been off bute for 2 days now (thanks for telling me that 2 days ago) and is still full weight bearing on that leg, so at least that's a good sign. According to Dusty she wasn't too worked up about the hoof, but also wasn't super thrilled either.

She had placed stents along the areas of high tension and will be removing those, but leaving the sutures in place. She worries that if she takes them out the entire thing will fall apart on us and then we are shit out of luck.

I tend to go off the deep end when it is my furry family, so I am trying to keep it together until tomorrow when we get to pick her up and bring her home for more stall rest. I was really hoping it would be healed superficially along the laceration line and just need some time for the deep tissues to follow suit.

As you will see below, that isn't the case.

Good news is that there isn't any swelling, drainage or odor. The exposed tissue remains pink and viable and none of the flap has died or completely dehisced open.

The bad news is that her hoof looks like, as Saiph put it, a Frankenhoof and my dreams of a quick recovery are pretty much smashed to pieces.

I need to really focus on long term goals for her right now and not worry about the short term, but I don't even know what her long term prognosis is. To me that looks like shit and that it will scar horribly and she won't even be able to be ridden or wear boots or do endurance ever again. I know that is just my gut reaction to a nasty looking picture and after a very stressful week of not being able to get in touch with the vet and I still don't know much because she won't tell us anything until tomorrow when we show up.

We will see what tomorrow brings.

Front right taken 7/9/15 after cast removal