Norman the Wonder Horse

Tom and Norman in less confrontational mode

So, there I was minding my own business, passing the time of day with Robbie the farrier as he worked on Norman's front right. Next thing I know I am flat on my back unable to move my arms, and being stared down at by both Norman and Robbie with decidedly confused looks. As I reconstruct the event it seems Norman was growing tired of standing on three legs and moved back and upwards. I stopped that little sorte, but leaned forward as he came forward and down. Norman's head then moved with the speed of a striking cobra, and I was taken out with an uppercut to the jaw that Mohamed Ali would have been proud of. Lifted off my feet I performed a backward swallow dive (and probably one and half twists, a reverse pike, a double lutz and sundry other contortions!) landing on my shoulders and, ultimately, my head. Now I swear by the good old British working class cloth cap - goes with the whippets, and fish and chips. Mine is actually Donegal tweed, and as good a protection from a hard, earth floor as you can want. My paralysis of the arms was momentary, and as I had no visual or auditory impairment, staggered to my feet in a jiffy. I did, however, have a continuous tingling down both arms, and extremely sensitive upper arms. Needless to say trimming was suspended, and Jorg on hearing the news proscribed immediate rest, and a visit to the ER as soon as she got home.

Well I don't know about anyone else but I don't like to leave jobs unfinished, even if I should be resting, so I put out the horses waiting for trimming, milked the cow and took the muck spreader out to empty! All ready for when our volunteer Becky arrived. Of course Jorg didn't quite see my valiant efforts at normalcy in quite the same light, especially as I didn't answer my phone (loud mower!). After a short reminder that blows to the head, even with a miniscule brain like mine, are dangerous, and blows to the butt painful if not terminal, we set out for the ER.

With all the discussion going on at the moment about the healthcare system and its failings, it was quite impressive to see the triage system up close and personal. Whenever I have gone to the ER in the past, there has always been that 20 minute period after being seen that is devoted to examining the contents of your wallet to ensure payment can be expected. Not this time. I'm sure I wasn't in any real danger from the blow to the head, but they didn't take any chances, and I was seen by a doctor within 10 minutes of being admitted and had had a CT scan, all before the inevitable discussion about my healthcare provider. Top marks to Centra Southside Community Hospital, with treatment every bit as good as you would expect from a big city outfit.

So back to Norman the wonder horse. What he succeeded in doing was to show that I had some arthritis of the upper vertebra, with a bone spur that pinched a nerve and caused the arms problem. I'm now due an MRI to check this out, and have the indignity of a "soft" collar to keep my head straight (fat chance!). So, thank you Norman, and I will remember next time not to lead with my chin!

Risk Management

Whilst I hesitate to return to the rather dismal happenings of a month ago and the current economic forecasts, they do raise the issue of managing a rescue (especially when inextricably bound up in one's own life and finances!) in trying economic circumstances.

Our role as a rescue, to paraphrase our mission statement and tag line, is to: rescue, rehabilitate and (where appropriate - my italics) rehome at-risk horses, and enable them to live in safety and dignity for the rest of their lives. Finding homes (whether as adopters or fosters) that will fulfill that mission is a careful process, not to be taken lightly, hurried or glossed over. And if such a home cannot be found for a horse, then we become that home for life. We cannot, and should not, so extend ourselves that we compromise the care of those we have already rescued. It is tempting, and Lord knows there are enough sad cases out there, to max up to the total capacity of one's space and energy. After all it is much simpler to say "yes" to someone with a genuine need to place their animal than to say "no". This is one of the most difficult decisions in animal rescue. But my premise is that, in the long run, saying" yes" every time does no one any favors if it puts the rescue at risk.

Risk Management has been a particular interest of mine in recent years, and the line between being overly cautious and overextended can be a difficult one to draw. This especially true when dealing with living things. However, there are some basic parameters that we try to consider (and could equally be considered by either a first time buyer or an owner looking to increase their herd). We offer these as suggestions to others in the hope that they may help in deciding whether to take on another animal, and determining whether you are becoming overextended in these difficult times.

First, we try to put our emotional response to a rescue request into some sort of context. One reason for doing this is because there may be other options. We have found that what often sounds like a crisis in an e-mail can be resolved with some ingenuity and thought, or additional time, and without necessarily adding another animal to the rescue. In other cases, the owner has other options that they prefer not to exercise. As we are an urgent need rescue, we must stay focused on the need of the horse as our first priority, rather than the convenience of the owner.

In evaluating our capacity for accepting another horse, we must consider the following:

1. Open space - do we have the space, acreage, paddocks, and ability to separate incoming horses of unknown temperament or condition? Can we accommodate the horse's special needs?
   
2. Shelter - if we have space, do we have adequate shelter against heat, rain, wind, cold and insects?
3. Stalls - if the weather turns really bad (remember the snowfall of '96!) can we bring everyone safely in? Senior and arthritic horses must always have their own stalls.
   
4. Hay - can we store enough hay for at least a few weeks ahead, better still do we have enough hay, either promised, bought, or from our own resources, for the entire winter?
5. Feed - do we have feed for more than our immediate needs, do we know what we expend in feed costs and can we maintain (increase?) this expenditure for the foreseeable future with the same (more, less?) number of animals?
6. Water - can we supply water to paddocks and barns under all conditions, what is our fallback for loss of power, frozen pipes, standpipes or hoses?
   
7. Medication - do we have meds just enough for immediate needs or for some period ahead, do we know our med costs for a month, do we have a regular supplier at a known cost, are we in regular contact with our vet to maintain continuity of supplies, do we know what we are taking on with a new horse?
8. Sufficient reserves - do we know how much it costs to keep one animal for a year, what is the likelihood that we can adopt an animal out, and how long will it take, where our funding is likely to come from - donations, us?

This may seem a hard-nosed way of looking at rescuing animals in need, but my whole reasoning is based around not subjecting our rescued horses to further risk by overextending ourselves. Too many rescuers are having to close their doors because at a certain point, their hearts began to override their heads. While compassion is an admirable human trait, it does no good to rescue 20 or 30 or 70 animals, only to have them once again put at risk because the rescue has to shut down. The suggestions above are good ones regardless of the financial climate, but these are particularly hard times. We are all fearful of the fallout from the current economic situation and rescue organizations are reeling from the sheer numbers of requests for help that they are receiving. Most of us will survive, I am sure, but it will require careful management on our part. Our animal charges rely on us to make good decisions on their behalf, and we are duty bound to make those decisions based on the best information we have available. As a consequence, we aim to continue to give the best care we can to all our current and future rescues.