Humphrey, Giacopuzzi & Associtates Equine Hospital. Colic and Horses. Why? My dad's horses never had any colic in the old days. Our Sweeties...

I've had some ask me how did I get over my other horse passing...AAAACCCCKKKKK!

He didn't die!

It took a week at the vet's office, but as usual, Dr. Mike and his crew, really were working hard and he is absolutely fine, as I write. Knock-on-wood! However again, the vet's office is full of very sick horses with colic. I never knew colic was such a problem. Kiely comes home day after day of sad stories of families loosing their dear best friends. Some die on the table during surgery, because it wasn't caught soon enough. Horses can have it hit them suddenly, like our Boogie. The doctors are completely devoted to saving each one, my daughter knows how hard they work to save the precious horses that come in.

The procedures that Kiely does as a tech are amazing...I'm proud of her and her ability to be able to hang IVs, test for white blood cells, or even take samples of blood from the jugular...I am in awe, really.

The doctors...I can't believe how much they go through to save a horse. The positions, the gut, the absolute stress of never giving up on each and every animal, and giving them your ALL, year after year. Dr. Mike, Dr. Richard, and Dr. Johnson and the other vets are completely amazing, wonderful vets. That's endurance! Kiely sees it constantly. Ask her if they are great...she'll fill your ear.

I wanted to let everyone know that Sonny is fine, it took a lot to get him back. I think because of our strange weather. Humidity and so much heat that all the horses don't drink enough water. I'm almost to the point of giving loose mineral salt, instead of a lick.

My dad, I suppose, knew exactly what to feed. He watched all the horses closely and probably the best thing is that he majored in "Feeds and Feeding" for livestock, at Cal Poly. The only time I can remember a mistake is when he fed dry barley, that he had grown (It was taller than I was in the field) and the barbs all got stuck in the horses lips, tongue, and cheeks. All the horses, and there were many, let us (the kids, my mom and dad & grandpa) pluck the barbs from them out of the inside of their mouth. Even the Morgan, that liked to bite the ears off of the cattle. She was a cutting horse that had a way out-of-control, compulsive disorder. She was in the Rose Parade. And she was old-style Morgan, and oh...if she could play with the cattle she was in heaven. We liked the cattle to have ears, so she had permanent time-out. I have A.D.D. Can you tell? Hey, there goes a bunny rabbit!....

The barbs from the barley never got infected. What made it to their tummies, got digested. Why do we have colic now? It's a big problem here. Is it the bad water? Was the water was bad, before? Yes. We live in exactly the same place, no sand. What am I doing wrong? Feed is off the ground, but still lower enough for the enzymes in their mouth to help digestion. Dad just threw hay down on the dirt--What the heck?

I hope Kiely takes some of those classes in college and she can teach me.

I love horses.