April 2, 2010

Good Bye Old Friend

One of the paddocks he freely loved and roamed.

Last year I posted about our beloved horse Tony. To get the full picture of our time with Tony, you can check out: Bread Power

Lately our Tony has been doing it tough. About six weeks ago we noticed his tongue hanging out of his mouth. My hubby says it's because he had lost nearly all his top teeth. He had one tooth left. It made it very difficult for him to graze and chew grass. He was losing condition by the day. We fed him bread regularly to help him get by. (Thanks to our local bakery for all the free bread).

Yesterday I went out to find him unable to get up. With hubby away interstate and Mitch at uni, I was truly alarmed. He neighed at me in desperation and I patted him to help him relax. Then I raced down the hill and lugged two buckets of water up to him. By the time I got there, he was gone. I looked over to find him under one of the nearby trees but he did not come toward me. I took over the water and he drank half of one of the buckets.

Racing back down the hill I was exhilarated that he got up and I fooled myself into thinking "oh he's okay". I returned with three bags of bread and fed him for what seemed like ages. He couldn't really eat it properly, but he managed to get the whole lot down. Proud as punch I patted him and said "see you tomorrow buddy". I was glad because the water trough was not far, so I figured he would be alright.

Driving home I kept ignoring my gut instinct which was telling me I should go up the valley and fetch one of the horse farmers to put him down. Then I told myself I was overreacting and he was fine.

Today is Good Friday and I went out with Mitch. We found him lying not far from the water trough. He most likely laid down and was simply unable to get up. I cannot imagine the strength he mustered yesterday to lift himself when he saw me. I now firmly believe if I hadn't appeared he wouldn't have struggled to get up. Tony looked much worse for wear today. He was deteriorating. But, I was still in denial. And my denial was not helping Tony. He was clearly suffering. As he had probably being doing the past few days.

Mitch was angry at me. He saw the state Tony was in and said "ma forget the damn bread, he needs to go. Just look at him ma, just look at him!" And of course he was right. We called. They came. They were experts. Without a doubt. Tony had run his course. I turned my head. It was over. We thanked them. And that was that. Good bye old friend.

11 comments:

  1. AAWWW I'm sorry about Tony, Mariana :( But i guess he has reached his time and I know he had a good and happy life with you and your family on your wonderful farm. It must have been pretty hard to put him away. I can imagine.

    We have to live on memories sometimes don't we? so long theyre good ones :) Take care Mariana xoxoxo Zurin

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  2. Oh, that must have been so hard. Letting go, even if it is for the best, is never easy. It seems you did the right thing. Rest in peace, Tony.

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  3. Ouch! That is hard! Life can be so gut-wrenching ! At least time heals, so they say!

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  4. Thanks zurin, Denise and tasteofbeirut. I was upset so I sat down and unloaded my thoughts and relived the experience at "through my kitchen window". It helped actually. My daughter read it afterward and cried. And that's okay. Tar for the kind words. xxxxxxxxx Mariana.

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  5. I type through a cloud of tears for the loss of your beautiful friend Tony.

    Thinking of you all, Tony RIP and may you gallop in the fields of heaven.

    Millie xx

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  6. That silly lady next door always said you guys didn't know how to look after "that poor horse" as she called him!! What is the hell did she know .........she should be reading this but I guess she would still find fault as that is what she does!!

    Good bye poor old Tony but his last days would have been very nice up on the farm. (the previous ones weren't too bad either???

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  7. Hey Gayle. Thanks for dropping in. When one considers the lives of so many animals and how they end up, I guess we cannot be too sorry for Tony. He had a marvellous life in his twilight years. Thanks for the support.

    As for that "other person", I have no comment.

    Mariana xxxxxxxx

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  8. Oh Mariana, Poor Tony, but lucky Tony too to have lived his life surrounded with love. When you think of the life that some animals lead, he was a lucky boy indeed to spend his days in your care. I'm thinking of you.Dx

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  9. I'm so terribly sorry to hear about Tony. An animal is a wonderful companion...they listen without comment, understand without judgement and speak in a silent language that only you can understand. I am sure Tony appreciated your companionship and comfort.

    Diane

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  10. Thanks for your kind thoughts Debora, Athena and maninas.

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