Carol

Arrival Date:  February 2020

Farewell Date:  March 31, 2026

 

Corey and Carolita “Carol” arrived at the ranch in February of 2020. These two Thoroughbred sisters were part of a County of San Diego Department of Animal Services case. While they were very much loved by their owner, her battle with dementia prevented her from caring for her animals as she once had. Her family made the difficult decision to move her closer to them, and her animals were transferred to Animal Services.

When we were initially asked to take the two sisters, there were discussions about Carol She had a number of large external melanomas, something very common in grey horses. While her melanomas had not impacted her quality of life, it was only a matter of time before they did. The question was it fair to move a senior horse that already had a large number of melanomas. In the end, the decision was made that the two sisters should come together. This would help Corey transition and would give us an opportunity to love Carol for whatever time she had left, regardless of how short that time turned out to be.

On January 18, 2022 we lost Corey to seizures that did not respond to medication.  When we agreed to take in the two girls, we did so knowing Carol has a significant number of large melanomas. We tried to prepare ourselves that Carol might not be with us for very long. We were completely unprepared to lose Corey first.

Fortunately, Carol adjusted to the passing of her sister, and in recent years her neighbor has been sweet Josie, who looks like a mini-Carol.

 

Farewell Date:  March 31, 2026

 

On Tuesday, March 31, 2026, Carol was not interested in eating breakfast. We quickly discovered that she had a fever. After a quick phone consultation with ECLAP, we administered medication, only to see her temperature increase. While her temperature had decreased when Dr. Rivett arrived, it was still above what it should be. After an examination and blood tests, it was clear Carol was likely dealing with an infection. Dr. Rivett suspects that an internal melanoma may have burst. Given her poor prognosis, we chose to spare her suffering through humane euthanasia.

As Carol left us, we found solace in knowing that her sister Corey was waiting for her at the Rainbow Bridge. As sad as we were to say goodbye, our hearts are lighter picturing these two beautiful girls running free of pain across endless fields of green.

Run free beautiful girls!