Monday Memoir May 8, 1965

 I mentioned this last week and by this time. stuff was going wrong and bad wrong fast. May was a hard month that year. Thankfully the wet and colder weather had ended at last. That was the one saving grace, really.

May 8, 1965  Sat

 Got up early and found Buzz sick as I rather expected that I would.  Brought her up and saddled her as soon as I fed. Lyno seemed ill too, so I led her and rode Buzz. I stayed behind while the folks went out. First we gave the fillies shots as Buzz had fever. I let them graze up the canyon for half an hour. We watched Buzz nearly all day and she was quite restless and colicky. I rode up for mail. Got letters from Dusty and Shirl. He just squeaked under the wire this time. I led Dingbat and Wowie both before the midday chores. Went to buy grain in the afternoon.  Let the fillies eat more, only Buzz seemed worse. She’s got me bugged. Took Chief out and bred Rita. Also brought Tina and Rico home from June’s. Her fever was 102.2 again but she’s hungry which is a good sign. Buzz got an enema and we gave them shots around. Now it is 11:00 and I am holding a ‘wake’ for Buzz. Have to go check on her about every half hour. I don’t know how long I’ll last but no one is telling me to get to bed for a change. Right now I am pretty wide awake on coffee. Maybe I could use a “bennie” or two… Damn this colic, virus or what-have-you anyway.

Note:: An adult horse at rest should have a body temperature of 99 - 101.5 degrees Fahrenheit. Anything above that level can indicate an active infection. .Normal temperature varies in horses, just like in people. An adult's normal temperature will range from 99 degrees to 101 degrees. Once you get over 101, for most horses, that would be a low-grade fever. For clinical studies, we often define fever as greater than 102 degrees.

Two years in a row we had severe bouts with sick animals. This was the first. To begin, Tina got sick within a few days of foaling with Rico. Our friend June Parsons who was then managing the Dead Horse Ranch after Ireys moved and before it was sold, offered to keep her and Rico a few days and try some "Indian" medicine on her. It helped for a bit but then she relapsed. Dr Shauffler at first diagnosed foaling fever but later changed that to blood worms. Through it all, she nursed Rico and he grew and thrived but I was scared to death for her for most of the month. By June she was okay and lasted almost a year longer.  I realize now we should not have bred her again so soon after her first foal; she was eight when Bravo was born and nine with Rico. I am still sad over that. I can only plead ignorance.

Next were the two red Quarter Horse fillies or young mares. Buzzie was well trained by now though just over two. Lyno was a bit harder to settle down but I rode her quite a bit too. Buzzie was very prone to colic and eventually several years later after I had sold her got a bad attack, twisted an intestine and died. I think Lyno, then with other owners, lived a normal span, was raced a time or two and had several good colts.

For awhile, I got very used to sleeping on the kitchen floor in my clothes with an alarm to wake me frequently to go check on sick horses. Many nights I walked one or more up and down the alley for hours and worked to keep them on their feet. Getting down and rolling from the pain is the worst thing they can do, so you avoid that in any way possible. This was the era when I began to be a real coffee-holic. 

Often I would want to stay up and read or something and would be ordered to go to bed. I guess my light bothered everyone and of course I did need to get up early and get on with the chores. I could manage on less sleep then but often took a nap in the heat of the afternoon. Proof of how disturbed I was over the horses, I made little of Dusty's letter--it seems I got it just before an arbitrary deadline I had made. I think B&B 6 had moved from Flagstaff to Adamana, near the New Mexico border, at this point. 

No photos of sick horses! That would not be pretty nor me while caring for them. Instead, just the ones I mention:  The first shot is Buzzie with her colt. Nancy and Don Shellman bought her and Leo from me and they produced  a filly, registered name Buzzie's Miss Leo. This was early in 1969. Next is Lyno, then owned by Kit and Richie Lewis down near Camp Verde, also in 1969. Then Buzzie and Lyno as I was working them, probably that same summer--1965. And finally, Tina, very PG with one of her colts--not sure which one.but suspect Bravo in 1964.