Buddy

Arrival Date:  September 22, 2019

Farewell Date;  March 1, 2024

 

Christine Sperry, a wonderful volunteer with County of San Diego Department of Animal Services brought Buddy to the ranch on September 22, 2019. Buddy was thirty years old at the time.

Unfortunately, his family was unable to properly care for him. Thanks to the intervention of Animal Services, Buddy had already started gaining weight. So, we were able to build on that and get him back to his proper weight.

Buddy is a very sweet, friendly horse. He appointed himself Twister’s sidekick and is never far from Twister. Buddy has a number of confirmational issues, especially in his hips. Unfortunately, a series of hard-to-resolve colics lead us to the decision not to keep him on daily pain medication and provide him with daily supplements to prevent ulcers.

Fortunately, Buddy is doing well and enjoying life with “da boyz,” our gelding corral.

 

Farewell Date:  March 1, 2024

 

On March 1, 2024 we suffered an unexpected loss.

Buddy came to us on September 22, 2019, through the County of San Diego Department of Animal Services. He was underweight but quickly ate his way to a healthy weight. It was clear early in his recovery that he wanted to be with other horses. Once he recovered, we began introducing him to some of our geldings. It did not take long at all for Buddy to find his best buddy in Twister, US Border Patrol, retired. Twister is the alpha in an all-gelding corral we affectionately call “da boyz.” When Buddy met Twister, he found the perfect role as Twister’s sidekick. Buddy never wandered far from Twister’s side.

We had recently noticed a subtle change in the positioning of Buddy’s right rear leg. The day prior to his passing, things changed dramatically.  Dr. Harlan examined him. It was immediately clear that Dr. Harlan was very concerned.

“The symptoms Buddy was displaying reflected a degenerative condition. The cause of this condition could be due to neurologic deficits caused by impingement of the spinal cord or instability of the joint between the pelvis and the femur. We think that in Buddy’s case the latter is more likely. Unfortunately, in either case, there is no adequate treatment for this condition and it will continue to get worse until he is unable to stand and walk,” Dr. Harlan explained.

Without a treatment option, it was clear that we needed to say goodbye to Buddy before he lost his ability to stand and walk. While we were unprepared for Buddy’s passing, we are so grateful to Dr. Harlan for being at the ranch and for helping Buddy.

Buddy was one of the sweetest, gentlest horses at the ranch. He had an unassuming personality but absolutely loved interacting with people. We believe that Buddy was born in 1989, making him 35 years old. As long of a life as he had, his time with us wasn’t nearly as long as we wanted it to be.

Twister stayed near Buddy as he passed and spent quiet time with him after his passing.  But Twister is really struggling with the loss of his best friend.  Please send love, prayers and healing energy to Twister during these difficult days.