She will be missed...

It was Tuesday, January 5 at 4:45 pm and I was on my way to deliver some dog food and shavings to June in Durango. I decided to take the long way to Durango so I could pass the house and quickly check on the horses. Coming down Old Hwy Road and turning onto Siepple I noticed that Lola was rolling. At first thought this was not unusual. Lola and JD tend to roll a lot, for example when it was feeding time each one of them would roll twice by the time they were fed their Purina feed and hay...However, as I watched Lola when I drove by and kept an eye on her in my rear view mirror I noticed that she put her feet out in front of her like she was going to get up but then laid back down on her side and kicked. Plus, Lola had a lot of snow on her and as most of you from the area know it is darn cold out and snow really isn't sticking to anything unless its wet. With all of that combined I knew something wasn't right. I turned the truck around and pulled in...she was still rolling. I ran into the garage, grabbed a halter and lead rope, put it on her and got her up and walking around. For those of you with horses you can probably already guess what the culprit is...for those of you that don't own horses the signs/symptoms that Lola was exhibiting is an indication of colic. (Source of image to right: "Equine Colic". TheHorse.com. January 7, 2010. .

As I was walking her around I first called Dr. Robert Beecher, Lola's vet. I informed Dr. Beecher of what was happening and he said he would be out immediately. Next I called Jane McCall with the Humane Society to keep her up to date on Lola's situation. Jane told me that she would be out as soon as she could to check on Lola and talk to Dr. Beecher. Next, I began to call for 'reinforcements'. First call was made to my friend Danyn who was out at the house around noon checking on her horses. I asked Danyn and Lola had gotten any of the new hay that was brought in, any feed, and what Lola's demeanor was like. Danyn said that Lola was her normal perky self, Lola was even eating some hay that was left over from her morning feeding and she did not receive any of the new hay nor did she give her any grain or treats. I told Danyn 'thanks' and told her I'd call her later with more details on Lola. The next call was made to my friend and neighbor Julie Kunde who has a training barn (Kunde Performance Horses) just down the road from us. I called Julie because I needed an extra set of hands for a short time. Julie came up immediately and luckily was not picked up by the cop that passed her as she sped up to the house! We actually watched the cop drive by the place a couple times but I think he quickly figured out why Julie was in such a hurry...thank you Mr. Sheriff! Julie helped walk Lola around while I outfitted myself in warmer attire because a long sleeve shirt, a puffy vest, and some gloves were just not going to cut it...I was going to be out there for awhile. Next, Julie and I put a blanket on Lola to help warm her up because she was shivering. Lola did try to lay down and roll a couple times but Julie did a great job keeping her up. After about 20 minutes I told Julie that I should be fine and she could be on her way....thank for your help Jules! As I continued to walk Lola around the pen my next reinforcement calls were made to my parents. I called Dad and asked him to come home as soon as he could...I knew that at some point I may need some extra hands....and muscle that I don't have...to keep Lola up and walking around. I then called my Mom, who was at Wal-Mart at the time, and informed her of the situation...I can only imagine what it looked like when my Mother probably dropped everything out and hurried out of the store. Mom was the first one to arrive with Dad and Jane McCall right behind her.

Dr. Beecher arrived at the house and assessed Lola and her vitals. Her heart rate and respiration rate was up and there were absolutely no gut sounds. Dr. Beecher agreed that we were dealing with a case of colic. Dr. Beecher felt that the case of colic was brought on by the severe temperature changes and the very cold temperatures. He mentioned that since Sunday alone he has dealt with four other colic cases. Plus, in the cold weather horses have a tendency not to drink enough water and become dehydrated, even with a water heater being installed like it is at our house. Treatment began with an intravenous shot of banamine and phenylbutazone (aka: bute). Both drugs are pain killers. The banamine is "shorter lived" pain medication where as the bute is a longer lasting medication. After the medications were administered Dr. Beecher instructed me to walk Lola around some more then after a while he wanted us to offer her some hay. She put her nose down into it and acted like she wanted to eat but just couldn't. We continued to walk her around and observe her actions. Soon we noticed that she began to shiver, we were loosing ground being out in the cold temperatures. The bad news is that our barn is not heated but the good news is that we are blessed with good friends. I contacted Jim Connolly who owns Connolly Saddle Shed and a barn where his son, Joe, trains horses in Bernard, Iowa. Their barn is heated and Jim told us that he has an empty stall and we are welcome to use it. Well, the kicker is that our family trailer was being lent out so we had no transportation...Jim offered to drive over and pick Lola up. With in 25 minutes Jim, Joe, and Katie Connolly were at our house with trailer in tow. We loaded Lola up and Katie and I hopped in my truck and followed behind and Dr. Beecher would be bringing up the rear in his van.

We arrived at Connolly's barn and took Lola out of the trailer and lead her into the stall. She seemed to be doing OK and wasn't not attempting to lay down and roll. We let her relax in her stall as we waited for Dr. Beecher...who we thought was right behind us as we made the trip out to Connolly's. Since Lola was stabilized for the moment Dr.Beecher ran to Wal-Mart and picked up a chicken and some cola! After spending close to two hours out in the cold I can tell you that the warm chicken looked absolutely delicious. Thank you Dr. Beecher! Plus to go with the chicken Tammy Connolly, Jim's wife, brought us out some amazing cookies...thanks Tammy! When Dr. Beecher arrived at the barn he checked on Lola's vitals and her heart rate and respiratory rate had come down but she still didn't want to eat. Dr. Beecher administered some more medication and we walked her around the arena. When things did not improve it was decided that Lola would be tubed and two gallons of water would be flushed into her. After about two minutes it seemed as though the flushing worked...Dr. Beecher checked Lola's gut with the stethoscope and in his words..."The gut is humming! She is humming away!" This was a good sign. We walked her around the arena some more and offered her some hay...she took a few nibbles. Dr. Beecher stayed with us to keep an eye on her for a short time. As we waited we listened to the end of the Hawkeye game on the radio and had a few more bites of chicken and a few cookies. When Dr. Beecher felt comfortable about Lola's current status he left her in the hands of Joe, Hannah Bergfeld, and myself. We kept an eye on her and she remained content in her stall occasionally laying down to rest...but she was not rolling. Hannah stayed for awhile and left shortly before I did at 11:30 pm. Joe told me it would be fine and that he would even consider donating two weeks of training when Lola fully recovered so we could make her more adoptable. Through out the night Jim and Joe periodically checked on Lola and she was ok.
Before work on Wednesday morning I stopped at the barn around 6:30 am to check on her. Though Lola seemed content in her warm, cozy stall I did observe something that was not right...she had not yet pooped. This sent up a red flag, by this time we would have hoped that she would have passed something. I got Lola up and put my ear to her side to listen for gut sounds...there was a very slight gurgle and when I let her go she tried to lay back down and roll. I stopped her from rolling and as she laid their, up like a dog would, she kept putting her nose to her barrel (stomach area). She still was not feeling well. I immediately called Jim and him and Joe came to the barn. It was decided that Dr. Beecher would have to come back out sooner that what he had expected the previous night. I called Dr. Beecher and told him about the situation, he said he would be there shortly. Joe told me that it was OK to go to work and that he would take care of it. I left the barn around 6:45 am. At 8:00 am Joe called my phone and asked for Jane's number. I asked him if everything was ok and he said it wasn't the best and he would keep me in formed. By 8:15 am I had a call from Dr. Beecher...Lola would have to be put down, she had a twisted gut and unfortunately surgery was not an option.

Lola will be missed. She was a great horse and our family, friends, and even people that we don't know have grown very fond of her. It's amazing how one can get so attached to an animal in such a short period of time. I'd like to say that I really enjoyed the experience of fostering a horse and helping it recover. But I'd caution folks that taking one on is not for the light hearted. Remember that things can go really good or bad. Not knowing an animals health history and the complications that can come from abuse and neglect can bring with it hidden problems. For example, in Lola's case her starvation complicates the digestive system and can make her prone to colic.

I am very grateful though that we were able to provide Lola with a loving home in the last few months. I'd also like to take a moment to thank many of the people who helped Lola through out her journey...

• The Dubuque Regional Humane Society for helping to rescue Lola and placing her in a better home where she could recover.
• Dr. Robert Beecher for aiding in Lola's rescue and providing her veterinary care. I really appreciate the passion you have for horses and ensuring their health.
• My parents, Kevin and Janell Kotz for willingly taking Lola into our home and helping me in her care from feeding, grooming, and even construction!
  
• Three Rivers and Purina Mills (Fran Minnaert) for providing feed to Lola.
  
• Aimee Dix for donating her farrier services.
• Tim "Trapper" McDermott for donating his farrier services and helping Lola recover from the nasty abscess that she had.
• The numerous amount of family and friend that helped feed Lola. Your help, especially at the beginning on her recovery was extremely helpful when she was being fed four times a day. Thank you to: Jodi Chapman, Madeline "Grandma" Kotz, Danyn Maroney, Lauren and Karl Kotz, and Julie Kunde.
• Danyn Maroney and Lauren Kotz for not only feeding Lola but also grooming her and making her feel loved.
• The Connolly Family for their help over the last two days in providing a warm barn, transportation, and help in watching over Lola when I couldn't.
• Julie Kunde for not only feeding but also coming in Lola's time of need.
• Kenny and Hannah Bergfeld for their construction skills while building the shelter for Lola.
• Dr. Christine Woodford with Integrative Performance Services for donating her services to float Lola's teeth.

"Lot's Of Love Always"

If you'd like to post a memory or note about Lola you may do so on our Facebook Fan Page. Under the discussion tab their is a topic named "Lola".