Getting the Upper Hand

On Tuesday last week, the vet came out to see Rico. If you remember, Rico had been hospitalized for a full week after taking a serious turn for the worse. He was spiking a fever every day, was severely underweight, and generally just feeling like shit.

Rico got home last Saturday and was feeling much better. But in the days following, he was slowly becoming sicker again. The reality is that when he's hospitalized, he can get IV antibiotics, which are much more effective than the oral ones that he gets at home. The hope was that the hospitalization would give him a major boost and get him on the right track.

Slowly he started getting worse. He'd spike a fever every afternoon. He felt less energetic. Didn't play with Riot as much. We started getting worried, called the vet from the hospital who said to wait a few more days and maybe we would put him on a new antibiotic.

THEN as we started to get worried, he started to pull out of it. Started to be a little more energetic, started to bite Riot more often. Horses, such a roller coaster.

This happened!! Note his belly was shaved

The vet appointment for Tuesday still stood, but we got good news that he DOES look better and the antibiotics are working! He spiked a fever on Wednesday and Thursday, but since then hasn't spiked one at all. He's eating well and gaining weight.

Once again I'm really really hoping we're on the other side of this and from now on it's just giving him lots of food and these antibiotics and love and then he'll be fine. Obviously we don't know for sure, and there's a chance he could get really sick again, but he's looking better than he has in months at this point, and that's super promising.

He was so excited

This weekend I took him out to brush him and he was downright nuts. Stood with his head straight up in the air and was super interactive. I decided that he was probably okay to get on just to walk around a bit. So I popped a saddle pad on and then undid his halter to put on the bridle and he took off marching around the barn. I had to run after him to get the bridle on and then get on. The second my butt hit his back he zipped off at the trot toward the gate. All he wanted to do was trot all the way down the road, so I let him. We had no walk, we had jigging or standing and staring into the distance. It was amazing to see him like this. He's been so depressed and sick lately.

There was a point where I thought I'd be losing him, it felt really good to sit on him, even if he still looks terrible (and has had his belly shaved). But we still have a long long way to go.

I really hope I can spend the summer riding him. Come on Rico!