SueAnn has crossed the Rainbow Bridge. Sue Ann had been down for two days.  Possible Stroke?  She had no control over her back legs & could not get up.  Was treated 10/30/06 by Dr. Hoyme and he was again called out on 10/31/06.  After testing, it was determined that she did not have any neurological response in her hind legs and the decision was made to help cross the Rainbow Bridge.

This Donkey gal is amazing! The surgical site has healed very well and there is hair growing!!!!! We still must wrap her leg to protect it from flies and from being irritated when she lies down, but it is healed!

The flies have shown no mercy when it comes to SueAnn. Thanks to the Horse Clothesline of Norco who worked with us on modifying a fly sheet to fit her properly. Donkeys just don&rsquot have prominent shoulders & chests so a regular horse fly sheet doesn&rsquot fit right. The Horse Clothesline also donated fly leggings to help keep the pesky varmints off her legs. Poor SueAnne looks like Darth Vader in her leggings, fly sheet and fly mask with the nose covering. The outfit does help her tremendously.

Thanks to all who sent Vet Wrap, gauze pads, Elastikon, etc. Your generosity has allowed us to be able to care for her wounds and also brighten up the place with all the vibrant colors of vet wrap! SueAnne does have a spot above the surgical site that gets irritated from lying down and we bandage that area to provide some padding. Elastikon has helped us to keep the bandage up that high on her leg, and the brightly colored vet wrap keeps things interesting but our supply is dwindling.

SueAnn is home from her stay with the vet! She underwent surgery again, this time for skin grafting and hair transplant. We are not sure whether the hair transplant will take, but her leg is almost normal size and the wound is healing wonderfully!

The vet came out on 5/27/05 to change the bandage and to evaluate the healing progress of the wound. As you can see from the pictures, the surgical site is healing very well. Our vet is pleased with how well she is doing and is hopeful that the hair transplants will take.

Hair & skin was removed from Sue Ann's side to graft to her leg. In the pictures, you can see the vet removing the staples that had been put in to close the areas where skin/hair had been harvested.

We are so thankful to all who have written to us asking about Sue Ann! Your caring, prayers & healing thoughts have helped her tremendously! Please continue to send those healing messages to her as she still has a long road of recovery ahead of her.

A very BIG thank you to those of you who sent us supplies to treat Sue Ann's wound. The supplies are extremely helpful in dressing her wound, making her comfortable and keeping the cost of purchasing these items way down!! Thank you so much.

Of course, we don't want to forget to thank the wonderful donors who have sent funds to assist with costs of Sue Ann's surgeries! Without your monetary donations, it is doubtful we would have been able to help Sue Ann properly. Although we still have a HUGE vet bill for this last surgery/skin grafting, we are quite hopeful that the upcoming TIER Used Tack Sale/Fundraiser will bring in funds to pay the vet and to also help us with the feed/farrier bill for the TIER residents. If you have tack that you would like to donate for this fundraiser we would be most grateful. If you are looking for some tack, blankets, saddles, bits, gift baskets, etc. please come join us at Laramor Park in Mira Loma, CA on June 4, 2005!

Thank you all for being there for Sue Ann and the other TIER residents!

Sue Ann is home! She is doing well and wants to be able to cruise the property as she did before her surgery. Her wanderings are mostly confined to her stall w/shavings or the backyard where she can mow the grass. The more she moves, the more the bandage will move, rub on the wound and have to be changed more often. Since her return home I have changed the bandage once. The wound is large of course and it does weep alot. The vet has said he wants to encourage proud flesh growth to a small degree so that when Sue Ann goes back for her skin grafts the skin grafts will have something to adhere to.

I figure that by the time the wound is ready for the skin grafts I MIGHT have bandage changing down pat. My bandage looks nothing like the vet's, but it does the job.....so far. Sue Ann's Neon Rainbow of vet wrap was donated by her friend Stephani! BIG THANKS to Stephani for her thoughtfulness and caring. These rolls of vet wrap will help us get through the first month of Sue Ann's bandage changing. Hopefully I will get much better at wrapping and we won't have to change it as often! Thank goodness for Elastikon wrap! This is placed at the top and bottom of the wrap. The top piece of Elastikon is put halfway on the bandage and halway on her leg to keep the wrap from slipping down. Holy Guacamole that Elastikon is expensive!!!

Sue Ann had the surgery to remove the huge habronema yesterday. We are pleased to say that she is doing well!

Our vet has been busy with quite a few emergencies/emergency colic surgeries lately. He wanted to wait until things calmed down a bit to perform Sue Ann's surgery, as he was concerned about the length of time it would take and bleeding.

Our vet had been optimistic about the amount of skin he would be able to leave after the growth was removed which would aid in healing the surgical site. Unfortunately, the surrounding tissue was thickened scar tissue and too damaged to salvage. Our little girl may have to undergo yet another surgery to perform skin grafts.

Our vet & his assistant used a whole roll of cotton to wrap her leg right after the surgery. Although she did bleed a lot, the next morning when the wrap was changed showed that the wound was clotting well!! Yeah!! She is on antibiotics along with medication for pain/swelling.

When I approached her stall and called her name, she immediately turned to look at me. I went in the stall, hugged her and rubbed her beautiful face. I should have brought some grooming tools as she is shedding quite a bit! She is such a loving & patient girl! I talked to her, rubbed her ears, neck, back and legs while she followed my every move. I didn't want to overdo it and retreated to the side to just be with her for a bit. Sue Ann immediately started walking over to me. She seemed to like the attention and was glad to see me. I hand fed her some pellets for a while, but I don't really think she was hungry. She was just trying to please me! HA! She is such a lovely girl.

Sue Ann's aftercare will most likely be a long one. It depends on how well the wound heals as to when she will need the skin graft. In the meantime we will be stocking up on vet wrap, cotton, etc. Thank you to those who have sent these supplies, as they are really needed and very, very much appreciated!

Your contributions are helping Sue Ann to live a more comfortable life. Because of your generosity, we are close to having the full amount of funds needed to pay for her surgery/care. She will need to have antibiotics and pain medication for awhile, but we are quite hopeful that she will heal well and quickly. Prayers and good thoughts are needed please!

Thank you so very, very much for helping us to help Sue Ann. This should have never happened to her or any animal. It was left untreated for way too long. Her feet are another issue and we will have her trimmed by Michael LeGrone when she is able. The vet did trim the hoof that is turned under and he has also placed a supportive wrap on the ankle area.

More updates to come as Sue Ann travels this road to what we hope is quick recovery.

Thanks to the generosity of you very special folks, we are able to make a deposit on the surgery the surgery that is so desperately needed for Sue Ann.

Harry will be picking her up this morning to take her to the vet and she should have her surgery tomorrow. We are hopeful that we will have the necessary funds to pay the balance of her surgery, stall & post op care soon.

Because of the financial struggle to feed & care for the TIER residents, we have been saying NO to bringing horses in for some time. I'm just too soft. I couldn't say no to Sue Ann. I'm sure she never said no to anyone.

She arrived on 3/11/05. The vet was out on 3/12/05 to evaluate the habronema granuloma on her leg. Our vet indicated that surgery would cost about 700 with a year of aftercare. Aftercare costs would involve medication, tons of vet wrap & cotton sheeting. Pricey stuff! IF surgery/healing is successful, it is doubtful that hair will grow back. This means that we will have to watch her closely for areas of irritation from lying down and provide her with soft bedding.

The habronema is the most obvious concern right now, but the neglect also includes
farrier care. They didn't care for her feet either! The worst is her right rear hoof, which has been neglected to the point that she is now walking on the side of her foot. This will take a long time to correct. Due to the fact that she is walking on the side of her foot, carrying a huge weight on her right front leg, she gets tired of walking around and lies down often. The guy who transported her told us that she is really good with her feet (GRRRRRR!). He said when he was using the Saws-All on her right rear hoof, it got hung up and she just stood quietly!!! They had to use a saw to trim her feet before she came!! As soon as reasonably possible, we will have our barefoot trimmer work on her feet.

I step out to the horse area to feed and there is the sweet faced Sue Ann looking at me with interest. I greet her with a 'Good Morning Sweetie', check her leg while she snuffles me, and head off to the feed area to get breakfast for the residents. Sue Ann calmly follows me. She waits patiently as I fill buckets and carry hers back to her pen. She eats a bit and then comes back to supervise the breakfast serving. Once breakfast is served and everyone is contentedly munching we do wound care. Sue Ann stands quietly while we go about our ministrations.

I then leave her to enjoy her breakfast of pellets, orchard/timothy hay and go about my daily chores. Sue Ann comes out to check on me regularly. She walks about munching on grass for a bit, and then steps out to make sure I am performing my duties properly. After awhile she heads to the sand pile to roll and lie down for a bit as supervisory duties make you tired!

This wonderful Jenny is pure SUGAR! We just couldn't say no to her coming to TIER. Someone special has walked in among us. There is a certain something about Sue Ann that we can't put our finger on. It has wrapped itself warmly around our hearts from the moment she arrived.

Welcome Sue Ann! We will do our best for you as you have done your best for others. It's our turn to give to you as you have given. Thank you for the opportunity.