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| May 2009, arrival. |
Firelight was a horrifically starved horse in danger of dying when HPS
first discovered him. He was not even a 1 on the Hennecke BC scale. He suffered from extreme diarrhea, his tail
and legs were covered with manure. The poor gelding was so weak he could barely stand. His starvation had
been so long and severe that his muscles were being reabsorbed by his body to the extent that he could no longer move his
tail. Only little stubbles of grass remained on the property where he was found. There was no hay, no feed, and
no salt or mineral blocks.
Animal Control had been to the property several times; however, the horse's
owner claimed that the horse was under veterinary care and had actually been worse at one time but they could not offer
any proof.
The horse was signed over to the care of HPS but unfortunately 2 other horses were left behind: a bred
mare already dripping milk and her 2-year-old ungelded brother.
At this time we do not know how old Firelight is.
His front teeth had been filed down, an old horse trader's trick, to make him look younger since a horse's teeth continue
to erupt throughout his life. The longer they are, the older the horse's appearance. Hopefully, his back molars
will give an indication of his age.
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| July 2009, recovering. |
Upon arrival at the sanctuary, Firelight was treated for rainrot.
His coat was too long and shaggy for May and he was still bald underneath. Thankfully, he has now recovered from this
and has grown a nice coat again. He was too weak to have his hooves trimmed immediately but our farrier trimmed one
of his hind hooves, that was about 3 inches too long, to prevent tendon stress.
To date, Firelight has gained
over a hundred pounds and is rapidly returning to health. His coat is a beautiful faun color and he has a flaxen mane.
We have not been able to track down his brand: the rocking CL.
UPDATE MARCH 2010: Firelight
has developed canker in one of his hooves and will be having surgery with Dr Meeker to remove it.
UPDATE JULY 2010:
Thanks to the support of Angel Sponsors and the dedication of HPS members, Firelight no longer has canker in his hoof.
HPS members spent almost 5 months treating & wrapping Firelight's hooves approximately 150 times in their efforts
to save him.
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| August '09 |
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| September 2010 |
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