Update of Sig

First of all, THANK YOU to all who have answered our call for prayers and donations for Sig, the response has been just so wonderful and we have received donations for Sig and all the equine at the ranch which is such a tremendous help.  

Sig is doing better as each day goes by.  His appetite has picked up and his snarky attitude is starting to return which are all good signs he is on the mend.  But he is not out of the woods yet.  He still coughs but not as much and still has opaque drainage from his nose but not as frequent as before.  

He finished his doses of Excede and today we started him on a round of Uniprim based on the lab results from the culture sent in last week.  I may also put him on an expectorant help with the phlegm. We are very glad we did the culture because the results were not as expected.  The pneumonia he has is from an uncommon bacteria and we can't rule out that it could have been caused by the dental issue we have been dealing with, periodontitis, the infection in his gums causing his canine teeth to be loose. We will continue to treat the pneumonia and treatment for his periodontitis over the next several weeks. 

Additionally concerned about lungworms we have given him a dose of Moxidectin (Quest) since he has already been treated twice with Ivermectin.  I was surprised to find this in his stall this morning and likewise happy that we gave him the addition treatment which is eliminating more worms from his system.   You can see the small white deceased worms being eliminated in his manure.   I know the picture is gross, but hey, this is a learning process for us all.  We usually do Moxidectin once a year because it will treat tapeworms and Ivermectin doesn't, so we will get them all the equine a dose of it soon too.  I costs quite a bit more than Ivermectin, but with the recent donations I can get enough for all 22 on-site. 

I am happy with how his recovery is coming so far.  I am tearfully joyful that you have helped us so very, very much.   This is such a huge team effort and we all can play a part.  Thank you, thank you so much for being part of the team the cares for these donkeys and horses in need.  

YOU ARE AWESOME!!!!!  

Christine