Donkey Daze

Friday, August 02, 2024

Yesterday, my donkey Pimmy had an appointment with our equine veterinarian. Everything started off awful though. Trying to start my truck revealed its dead battery. A trickle charger connected to the truck’s battery had failed.

I kicked myself for not practice-starting that truck the evening before. I thought about doing that, but the truck has always started—well, mostly—and surely it would again. When it didn’t, I had little time to fool around before Pimmy’s appointment and wasted a block of time waiting for roadside assistance. Finally, I figured out how to use a big jump-starter that’s stood around forever.

Pimmy loaded quickly into the horse trailer, and we went to the veterinarian. She got a physical checkup, had her blood drawn, had her front hooves x-rayed, and was re-diagnosed with Cushing’s Disease. I came home with a bag of medicines and new instructions about soaking Pimmy’s hay regularly. I dread the many needs, obstacles, and short time to do all.

I’ve learned from experience that a donkey is an almost impossible animal to medicate, except for one-time only.

Last evening, I haltered Pimmy and gave her three meds through different syringes. I also soaked hay for her and the horses. Then I found the drained nets too heavy to move and hang. I am trying to think creatively about how to lift future drained handbags, and I anticipate my donkey avoiding me this morning.

On the veterinarian’s advice, I will ask our farrier to trim Pimmy’s hoofs a little differently. If you’ve ever tried to tell a farrier to do something differently, you have a sense of what that’ll be like.

Oh, yes, about Cushing’s. It’s a metabolic disorder that surfaces in various ways. In Pimmy, it shows up in her weight, coat condition, and slowness of movements. Her disease appears primarily as laminitis which affects her front hooves. If left untreated, laminitis can become permanently disabling.

Dear Friends, I tell myself to do the best I can, and if it’s imperfect settle for progress. Diana