Jimmy Tries To Jump Into The Outdoor Arena

I got a text today at 4:30 from Julie: "Jimmy took down fence he is injured".....OH. MY. GOD. NOT the thing I want to hear when I'm already thinking "30 more minutes until I get to leave & ride Jimmy".

A boarder was there & saw the whole thing: Jimmy & Mick (17hh TB) were playing & when Jimmy tried to pull a fast one, he saw the fence & tried to jump OUT of the paddock (fence is approx 5'+) & into the outdoor arena. He didn't make it, and took the whole fence line of the arena down with him. Mick, Maverick (another TB) and Jimmy then proceeded to run around like idiots and not let anyone catch them in the outdoor arena. Julie called me & hadn't caught Jimmy yet, but reported that he was very very lame and definitely injured. I cry hysterically at work & call Bill.

Fast-forward 15 minutes. Julie calls back, Jimmy has been caught, is very sullen, but doesn't seem too terribly injured. Everything looks superficial and although he's gimping, his wounds aren't as severe as they thought. According to the boarder who watched, JC cleared the front end (WHOA, JIMMY! 5'!? Really??) and didn't quite make the back end coming down. To me, it seems like he hit the fence at about a 45º angle and really tore himself up pulling the fence down. Was I worried then? Not at all. I know wounds heal....So I went to the next important place: his fetlocks. Front fetlocks. As in, the joints he just had major surgery on 8 months ago....fetlocks. They were puffy and very hot. :-( Ohhhh Jimmy. Just when I thought we were out of the woods. The jarring from landing from that high of a fence must have been more than they were ready to handle, so this will be what I'm watching the closest over the next few days.

I asked that they give him a gram of bute immediately to try & nip the superficial swelling as much as possible right off the bat. I got out there as soon as I could and doctored him up. He turned to face me at the door, very slowly.

While I scrubbed out the wounds and applied the dressing he did nothing. He stood like a statue, staring forward. He knew what he did was wrong and I could tell he hurt so bad he wanted to just lay in my arms all night long and cry that he was sorry. I scrubbed, sanitized, dressed, vet wrapped, pillow wrapped, and standing wrapped both back legs & he didn't move a muscle. I left him with his door open while I rummaged around the tack room for two more wraps to wrap his front legs for support, since the swelling had me so concerned. I left him alone for probably 5 minutes and had honestly forgotten in the whirlwind of things that I'd left him alone, loose, and unattended. When I turned the corner with my arms full of wrapping supplies for his front legs he was in the identical position, but staring at me, instead of straight ahead. Had not moved a single muscle. Oh yes, he is hurting.

I called John on my way home & he said yes a gram of bute every 24hrs and start him on 13 SMZ's AM & PM. Luckily Jimmy is good about eating pills and you can feed them to him like cookies- right out of your hand. Julie is a saint and going to John's for me tonight to get the meds. She is a Godsend.

So now that the post is long enough and you've been warned, I'll show you photos of Jimmy's legs. These aren't too terrible, but they aren't for the weak stomached. You won't hurt my feelings if you decide to close your browser....NOW.

Left hind – wound is deeper than right hind but
very small. Minimal swelling & very little heat.

Right hind. Minimal swelling & heat here as well.
These wounds are much more shallow.

Needless to say - he will be staying in for the next few days to rest & heal. John laughed when I called him & told him what Jimmy did, as thought he wasn't surprised at all. My little nugget sure has a lot of spunk!!! Apparently this was his way of telling me it's TIME TO JUMP HIGHER!!! This too, shall pass and when he's all healed up and ready to go back to work we'll start slow again and let him get comfortable before we do ANY kind of work again.

I can't be mad – it wouldn't be Jimmy if he wasn't causing trouble ;-) I wish he felt better now and obviously I wish he hadn't have torn the entire fence down, but I know he will make a full recovery from this and life will continue to move forward! I'm grateful his injuries are as minor as they are - LET'S KEEP IT THIS WAY!!