Meet TPDR Joe Blow

Here is Joe`s update as promised:  December 11, 2008

As mentioned above Joe came to us in early August and I took him to our veterinarian the very next day for a much needed gelding procedure. All went well and he continued an uneventful recovery for almost the next month. I was housing him in a run in shelter surrounded by a fairly large round pen. As Joe needed a cooling off period away from the stimulus of other donkeys, that facility was chosen as the best area to house him during his recovery. That certainly turned out not to be the case.

About daylight on September 11th I looked out to see Joe HANGING by his right front foot from the top of where two round pen sections join together. He appeared to be lifeless. A frantic call to the neighbors was next. I met them outside within minutes of my call. Yes, Joe was alive but as we released the two sections of the pipe panels that held his foot captive he literally dropped the rest of the way to the ground and just lay there. He made no effort to move. I next called our vet to have them make an emergency call on their way to work. Back outside and my wonderful neighbors David and Danny Showers and myself were able to get Joe into a sternal position and anxiously waited for the vet.

Pete Esterline D.V.M. from Kern Road Veterinary Clinic arrived very quickly. He checked Joe`s vitals and then administered several injections. In a short time our patient was up and standing on three feet. Films of the injured foot came next.

Late that same evening Dr. Esterline phoned to report that Joe had a significant break to a bone in his fetlock joint. I inquired as to whether it was a CHIP and was told that no it was more like a BOULDER. And one that attaches to a ligament. What to do about poor Joe!

We decided to support the leg and have the MSU Orthopedic surgeons evaluated his films. We did so, and they gave us the option of surgery approximate cost of $3500.00 and an outcome of likely arthritis at a later date, and of course a good possibility of infection following the joint surgery.

We made the decision to keep Joe here with a cast kept on his leg until the joint fused. He was kept in a stall for a period of only a week. He had an awful time not being allowed to SEE the other donkeys here. Keep in mind, he had only recently been castrated and prior to that had been used as a breeding jack. And even before that time had been a wild donkey captured by our government! We decided if he behaved himself we would give him access to the outside yard that adjoins his stall. That worked very well. He was a great patient as long as he had neighbors that he could see. For the first several weeks we changed his cast several times weekly. Then we were down to once a week.

We removed Joe`s last soft cast about two weeks ago, and he is getting along just great!  Lots of days I need to remind him that he just healed from a broken leg and to "Take it easy, Doofus!"  Some days he favors that leg a bit, and others hardly not at all.

Next on the agenda for him is training. I would also like to find a foster home for him with several GELDING horses. Too many girls here for poor Joe to forget his days as a breeding jack. If you are an experienced horse /donkey person and are interested in helping Joe please let us hear from you.

How did Joe get himself into trouble? I can only guess. There is a large farm field that closely adjoined the round pen. I would suspect deer moving through that area that he could hear but not see. The other thought was as a driveway adjoined the other side of the pen, perhaps a stray dog came up the drive and frightened him. Remember, he had been a wild donkey at one time and his best defense was flight!

******UPDATE March 17, 2010******

The photos below were taken September 30,2009 at Kern Road Veterinary Clinic. Pictured is Joe`s x-ray showing complete healing of his fracture. He is now a real pleasure to work with and has been integrated into a group of 5 other donkey geldings of various ages and sizes.

Oh the wonders that a castration on these former breeding jacks can make! Oh, and the last several hoof trims required NO additional restraints/sedatives of any kind. A good brushing and a few treats during the procedure was all it takes now to do his trimming.

Way to go Joe Blow!!!!