Zelly arrived at SAFE with a snotty nose (no other symptoms, like fever or lethargy) that did not resolve with time. When our vet first checked her out, she said she would want to take X-rays if the snot remained, as the snot was not bilateral, and was likely a sinus related issue.
Sure enough, X-rays revealed that her right sinus was filled with fluid. We immediately started her on a course of antibiotics with a recheck set for several weeks out.
The antibiotics almost immediately cleared up the (visible) snot, and an X-ray at the 4 week mark showed marked improvement, though she was still not at 100% clarity. She will continue her antibiotics for several more weeks with the hope that they will clear out the residual gunk sitting in her sinus, and keep it out. There is a chance that when the antibiotics stop, the fluid will return, which will require the sinus to be drained, but we will keep our fingers crossed for full healing.
She also has a tooth that looks to be compromised and might need removal, but we await further feedback from our vets.
Zelly is a sweet girl. Her appaloosa-ness means she’s prone to looking at you sideways, but she is gentle to handle, and has been an absolute saint for her twice daily metronidazole, which we administer rectally. She gets arena turnout with her appaloosa counterpart, Evie, and Arab gelding Henry. The trio are quite herd bound, so we will work on helping them be more comfortable apart.
Zelly is up to date on vet and farrier care. She has had her teeth floated, her teats cleaned, and is up to date on her vaccines. She was also dewormed upon arrival, as she arrived with a positive worm load. She is gentle for grooming and she has been trimmed twice since arriving at SAFE, with a 6 week trim schedule set going forward. She gets daily thrush treatments to help combat the thrush all the Graham horses arrived with. Our vets estimate that she is 20.
Zelly is nervous about the flag, and as we spend more time with her in the round pen, we will run through the usual checks before saddling her at SAFE for the first time. She is quite stuck going backward, and is very heavy on her front end, creeping forward at every opportunity. We will work with helping Zelly find more balance in her feet and give to pressure a bit more readily than she does currently.
