And the deed is done. Mum was distinctly uninterested and in fact left the scene shortly after Rory started wobbling as the first sedative took effect. She was on the far side of the field right up until I took Rory back to her after it was all over. The foaless mare actually spent more time at the gate whickering reassurance than mum did.
As for the specifics, he went down quite gently and stayed quiet throughout the procedure. The vet had us put a folded towel over his head, and stay very quiet - he said they stay down longer that way. I couldn't see much of the gory details given that I was kneeling on his neck (half kneeling). Rory being Rory, he got up earlier than he should which kept us pushing him back and forth until he could balance on his own. Then I stood with him and kept him relatively still for twenty minutes or so until most of the sedative wore off. At that point we started walking back and forth along the fence and he got more stable and secure as he moved.
The vet checked that he wasn't bleeding too much (just a few drips) and then I escorted him back to mum. I had visions of him trying to gallop to her and taking a header so I decided safe was best and didn't let him go until after he'd bumped into her bum.
I rode past his field much later (after dark) and he was alert and whinnied at us as I rode the brat past. I fed the mares and foals after finishing with the brat and Rory followed me about as I dumped the grain in each tub, and then happily munched on his own. I took a peek at his sheath as he ate and things look good. A tiny bit swollen as expected, but nice and clean.
A good day.
Oh yes, one more thing. His extra bits were picked up by another vet (who teaches at the local college) to be preserved for next year's students to dissect!
As for the specifics, he went down quite gently and stayed quiet throughout the procedure. The vet had us put a folded towel over his head, and stay very quiet - he said they stay down longer that way. I couldn't see much of the gory details given that I was kneeling on his neck (half kneeling). Rory being Rory, he got up earlier than he should which kept us pushing him back and forth until he could balance on his own. Then I stood with him and kept him relatively still for twenty minutes or so until most of the sedative wore off. At that point we started walking back and forth along the fence and he got more stable and secure as he moved.
The vet checked that he wasn't bleeding too much (just a few drips) and then I escorted him back to mum. I had visions of him trying to gallop to her and taking a header so I decided safe was best and didn't let him go until after he'd bumped into her bum.
I rode past his field much later (after dark) and he was alert and whinnied at us as I rode the brat past. I fed the mares and foals after finishing with the brat and Rory followed me about as I dumped the grain in each tub, and then happily munched on his own. I took a peek at his sheath as he ate and things look good. A tiny bit swollen as expected, but nice and clean.
A good day.
Oh yes, one more thing. His extra bits were picked up by another vet (who teaches at the local college) to be preserved for next year's students to dissect!
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