Barbaro Has Surgery After 'Complications'

[spindrifter]

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: July 9, 2006

KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. (AP) -- Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro has developed ''potentially serious'' complications to his injured right hind leg, and underwent surgery to treat a new infection.

The infection developed in the leg where a titanium plate and 27 screws were inserted after the 3-year-old colt shattered three bones at the start of the Preakness on May 20.

The hardware was replaced and the infection treated Saturday night after Barbaro showed discomfort and had a ''consistently'' high fever.

<snip>

In a statement released by the hospital Sunday, Richardson emphasized that the complications are ''potentially serious.''

<snip>

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/sports/AP-RAC-Barbaro.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

++++++++++++++==

Healing thoughts to you, Barbaro.

[Roland99]

1. Oh, no.

Thanks for the update.

[spindrifter]

3. I just found this.

I won't have time to check on other sources tonight. I'm hoping he does okay. Sounds like that procedure was pretty intense. I am hoping for the best after he did so well in the earlier stages of his recovery.

[Dinger]

2. Sending Healing Thoughts and Prayers For Barbaro

:-(

[TomInTib]

4. This is a tragic development.

Having been, sadly, around all too much of this kind of thing, I do not hold much hope for Barbaro.

Any infectious complication around a rear leg fracture is almost always fatal.

May God bless that singularly wonderful heart we know as Barbaro.

[Redstone]

8. He's a damn good horse, he is. May he do well.

Redstone

[benburch]

5. I don't believe it is mercy to try to save a horse with a broken leg!

How much pain and suffering is this poor animal going through? It would have been a mercy to put him down.

[Redstone]

7. What do you suppose HIS opinion is on this subject?

Redstone

[benburch]

14. Having owned several horses...

...I don't imagine he has any clue as to what is being done to him or why. He just knows the constant pain he is in, and that he has had his movements restricted for weeks now.

[Redstone]

16. Actually, I know how that feels myself. Don't know how to relate it to

horses, but I do understand. On a visceral level.

Redstone

[benburch]

21. They are very simple minds.

They don't reason things out that are not immediate goals. They do learn well, and have long memories especially for painful stimuli. They are usually frightened by changes in their environment, sometimes that can go as far as real terror. Imagine being in a "fight or flight" sort of terror and being unable to run away? And running is what this horse knows best.

[Redstone]

23. "Fight or flight and not being able to run away?"

Have you been reading my mail? Boy, do I remember that.

Redstone

[TomInTib]

We have owned scores of running stock.

Both Quarter and Thoro.

We never would have gone this far on a horse.

But we never had Barbaro, either.

The decision was made to go with it and now he is owed all that can be delivered.

We won't even to get into the business (stud fees) part of it.

[Catchawave]

9. My thoughts too....

Wondering what his vet bill is up to now ?

[iamjoy]

12. No It Wouldn't

If we have the medical technology to save him, why not try?
I remember reading he did very well initially, even showing an interest in mares and food.

If it were a child with cancer would you think it a mercy to put him/her down rather than torturing the kid with chemo?

(and I say child not to emotionally manipulate, but because an adult could make the decision his or herself, a child or animal cannot)

[Redstone]

13. Well said. This tells us that his owners care about him. Not based on

future stud fees, but because they care about him as a living being.

Redstone

[case sensitive]

20. I read an interview with the owners

They seemed quite attached to him.

[benburch]

22. I know they are. And I know how they must feel!

But I simply don't think they are being rational in their choices for him.

[benburch]

18. A child is not a horse.

And a horse is not a child.

I love horses. I had several horses as a child and young adult. But I also know how much they hate having their movements restricted. And I know they are simple creatures who cannot possibly understand why all this painful stuff is happening to them.

Is a small chance of healing them worth putting them through months of pain, discomfort and terror that will STILL likely end in their death?

[kestrel91316]

17. They have really good pain meds these days, and this far down the

road post-fracture the pain shouldn't be horrible. I have had a badly broken leg, so I have some perspective.

That said, if they had to pull a plate and he doesn't have good callus formation yet, or if he has deep-seated osteomyelitis at or near a fracture, the leg may be history.

[benburch]

24. I've never had a break...

...but I have had a subtalor dislocation of my right foot that was bad enough that I could not bear weight on it for 5 months, and it still hurts to walk 20 years later.

I just hope the poor thing isn't going through what I did!

[Redstone]

6. I hope it works out OK for him. He's a good horse.

And please, God, can we NOT have a bunch of people jumping on this thread and saying "why should we care about a horse?"

Redstone

[LeftyMom]

10. Let them.

It's good to know who those sorts are.

[Redstone]

11. Well said, m'dear. As usual. Hey, remember I thought I had a flameproof

thread for GD? Guess what. There were people who flamed the post:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1599227

Y'know, some people are NEVER happy. Ever.

Redstone

[LeftyMom]

15. It's a safe bet.

Just remember, at any given time an eighth of the population needs Midol. It explains a lot of human behavior.

[Redstone]

19. Christ on a crutch: "at any given time

an eighth of the population needs Midol."

I absolutely LOVE it. I'm going to steal it and use it as necessary.

Redstone

[aaronbees]

25. Send Barbaro good thoughts, prayers and vibes right now...

because he really really needs them.

This is a very rough patch from those reports. Thank goodness he has been a model patient and given all his heart to his own survival; not only is he a sturdy fighter, he's got hella big smarts to have gone this far, I think, and trusted his friends. He's a champion no matter how this plays out, and I'm glad many talented people are working to help ease his pain. The Jacksons will do right by him, that's for damn sure.

Sounds like a good sign he's up and eating and standing on both hind legs.

If you want updates, here's a good place to find them (from a trainer at Fair Hill, where Michael Matz stables - most recent update at the top of the weblog): http://www.timwoolleyracing.com/news/2006/07/barbaro_updates_2.php.

:grouphug: For you, Barbaro.

[u4ic]

26. I wish the best for him

but have expected the worst since the Preakness. :-(

[kskiska]

27. I've been following this story closely

and Barbaro has been in good spirits and seemed to be pain-free up until last week. He's been getting baths and scratching sessions to keep his spirits up.

Seems he'd been getting a little stir-crazy. This is a report from a couple weeks ago:

(from a couple weeks ago)

Just before Jackson left Barbaro yesterday, the exit door beside Barbaro's stall was opened for another horse, and Barbaro was obviously ready to go, too. He came to attention and moved swiftly toward the outdoor light.

When freedom didn't come, he let his irritation be known, bucking and slamming his good hooves and his bad one on his stall floor. Jackson says she was glad to be there to calm him, and talked soothingly to her horse.

He is clearly feeling well enough to want to get out!

update, thursday June 21, 8:50 AM

This recent setback is very serious, though. His owners have canceled a planned trip to Africa. The doctors have been warning all along against getting overly optimistic. In a way, they were probably a little dismayed at all the attention, since it would make it more difficult publicly if things didn't turn out well.

[Gloria]

28. Prayers for Barbaro!

[lonestarnot]

29. They should have put him down when it first happened. So now the

cruelty continues so they can reap the benefit of a stud fee if the drugs haven't burned out his reproduction capabilities. Fruitcakes! Horse racing is a cruel sport.

[Hawkowl]

31. Give him a chance

You don't put down a horse without giving him a chance. I applaud the owners and the trainer, who has an outstanding reputation, for even attempting to save him. It goes deeper than just stud fees. These people had tears in their eyes when he was injured. Anyone who owns horses can recognize that look.

And yes, horse racing is cruel. Only grown horses 6 years and older should be raced and all the doping should be vigorously prosecuted. It is a tragedy that so many of these beautiful, intelligent animals die every year for greed. Humanity owes an immense debt to horses.

[lonestarnot]

36. Does not appear as though you've been around horses much. Did

you see his leg? I don't give a fuck about the people with tears in their eyes; 16 screws in a horses leg is fucking ridiculous!

[alittlelark]

30. A 'normal' horse would not have these injuries

Steroids, runs at ridiculous levels compared to other horses, god only knows what else.


I hope for a safe, speedy recovery.... then to allow him to 'discover himself' in a large beautiful field of grass - (w/the lass of his chosing).

[bklyncowgirl]

32. I once had a mare break a leg in a paddock at a camp stable I worked for.

It was the worst equine fracture I ever saw--and I've seen several over the years. The cannon bone was sheared right through above the fetlock and had broken through the skin. The hoof was hanging on by a bit of skin and tendon.

It was probably caused by a dominance fight with another mare--this was a new herd--but we never knew for sure. This was a 15 year old broodmare/camp horse and of course there was no question that she would have to be destroyed. These were leased horses. We had to wait for the owner to come out and put her down--and those were among the worst hours of my life. The actual euthanizaton (with a rifle) went cleanly and quickly and came as a great relief to all of us.

What's ironic is that this horse broke a leg the day after the famous race horse Ruffian broke down on the track. Naturally, I was faced with a barrage of questions from the kids--most particularly "Why didn't you try to save Sugar the way the tried to save Ruffian." The answer, of course was that the injury was so bad and the mare's age so advanced that she couldn't be saved but of course I knew that the value of the horse and the owner's ability to pay for expensive surgery were also factors in the decision.

Horses get hurt--that's a fact of life around them. I'm not condoning the practices of some racing people--many of them should not be allowed to own living animals--but Barbaro seems to be surrounded by some incredibly decent people and the accident appears to have been just that--an accident--there was no indication of pre-existing-existing injury--and there's evidence that another horse came up too close behind him and stepped on or kicked the ankle.

[bklyncowgirl]

33. This is too bad. He'd been doing very well.

I've been following his story pretty closely. He'd been doing very well and was in incredibly good spirits up until a few days ago. From all accounts he seems to be a remarkably kind and intelligent horse who is surrounded by remarkably decent human beings.

His owners seem to have rearranged their lives around his recovery and he's also been getting daily visits from his trainer Michael Matz and/or his assitant trainer Peter Brette. The staff at New Bolton have been teaching him games to relieve boredom.

The best source for Barbaro news is this website. It's run by a trainer at Fair Hill who talks with Barbaro's trainers & vet on a daily basis and has made it sort of a clearing house for information and news.

http://www.timwoolleyracing.com/news/2006/07/barbaro_updates_2.php

[noonwitch]

35. Don't they expect these kind of complications?

After his injury, they said that the horses usually get infections around the pins. Let's just hope that he is healthy and with the right meds can fight it off. He's so beautiful, and if he heals, he could still have a good life as a stud.

[Branjor]

34. Loving thoughts and prayers

for Barbaro and all those who love him at this tough time.