Rafer is doing pretty well - his mood is somewhat subdued, but he doesn't seem depressed. More like he can't quite believe we're keeping him in a stall.
Today I took the grooming kit in again and let him select what he wanted me to do. We went through each brush, curry, etc. and he picked the ones he liked best. We have a little rubber mitt that is very soft but nubby and he loved that one on his neck and back. He liked the big soft brush and the face brush on his face and cheeks. He also loves having the insides of his lovely ears brushed very carefully and will stick his neck straight out in pure delight.
My goal was to get as many happy donkey sounds out of him as I could - those soft little grunts that I initially thought meant he had a cold!
I took a trip to the tack shop and feed stores today to see what I could find. We added a mini salt block and a hanging ball that looks like something a bird might like. Rafer stared at it for awhile, and then he smelled our hands after we touched it, and finally he decided to walk over and give it a lick, and discovered he likes it.
My daughter took him some hand-picked grass mid-morning, and this afternoon he got some apple and carrot chunks. Tonight we brought in some new hay, so he was able to monitor that.
Tomorrow is the big day - the changing of the leg wrap/rig - and I'm a bit nervous that we won't be able to get it just so like the vet did. But I will be glad to let that leg air out, look it over, and see how he's doing under all those layers.
A question - anyone know where to get a hay net with tiny holes, as recommended by jme? I can't find one locally and the only ones I'm seeing online are in the UK.
Keep us in your thoughts tomorrow morning, and visualize dexterity with various wrapping materials, a cooperative donkey, and a stabilized leg! :)
billie hinton’s camera-obscura:
life and lessons on November Hill Farm
Rafer Johnson could get used to this sort of royal treatment. Are any of the others limping around looking pitiful?
ReplyDeleteHope things go well tomorrow.
Thanks, Mamie - no one else is limping around. This crew is more the type to belly up to the stall door and bang the heck out of it with knees in a demand for attention.
ReplyDeleteAnd there is some of that going on - but to be honest, there's not much possibility given the number of hours in a day that they could GET much more than they already do!
Rafer sounds like he is being well cared for and I'm sure he appreciates all the extra attention.
ReplyDeleteI'll be sending you good thoughts tomorrow, I'm sure the re- wrapping will go just fine. Don't stress over it.
Thanks, Arlene.
ReplyDeleteWrapping is not my strong suit, mainly b/c I've not had to do much of it!
I'm sure we'll be pros by the end of this.
I just read this morning that Janet has "gone out on a limb" to say that she thinks Rafer will heal completely and much more quickly than the vet's time frame.
Yay, Janet! I so hope you're right. That exact thing happened when my daughter broke her arm a number of years ago. Young bones seem to be experts at mending themselves both well and fast, so I am hoping this is true for the little donkey here.
i'm glad he's hanging in there and adjusting well to his new circumstances. he might just get to like all of the attention and forget why he's stuck inside ;-)
ReplyDeletethe hay nets are now available from dover saddlery (they aren't as nice as the trawler nets i used to get from the UK, but they do the job and aren't too expensive)
http://www.doversaddlery.com/product.asp?pn=X1-27286&bhcd2=1220464503
good luck with your wrapping :-)
Oh - yay! I was just in here looking again for the hay net!
ReplyDeleteVoila.
Bandaging will happen around 6:30 this evening when husband gets home.
I just read that Hurricane Hannah might come right through here so now the bandage stress is eclipsed by the thought of high winds. Enough, already! :)