Foal with scoliosis beats euthanasia odds
Fri 05 November 2010
Roseanna Langmead, Bachelor of Journalism
Euthanasia is often an easier and kinder option for animals suffering from birth defects, but a Gympie foal is being given a chance at life.
The RSPCA Australia National Statistics stated that from 2009 to 2010, over 70,000 domestic animals were put down.
A large percentage of these were for medical or behavioural reasons.
Although the rate of euthanasia of cats and dogs had decreased since last year, other animals including livestock, wildlife and small animals had increased by 5.67 per cent.
Nicklin Way Veterinary Surgery vet nurse Chris Burrows said minor birth defects were the most often seen.
Concerning treatments for animals that do suffer from defects, Mr Burrows said it often depended on the owner and their financial situation.
“It’s really going to be up to the owners,” Mr Burrows said.
“Full time breeders, if their animals have defects they’ll usually just euthanize.
“Sometimes we have surgery to correct the defect but it’s really hard for that to happen.
“Most [people] don’t want to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars.”
Gideon, an eight week old Clydesdale cross Percheron foal, was born with congenital scoliosis and suffered from many other complications which affected his normal bodily functions.
Hope Reins Inc was a farm in Gympie where humans and horses found confidence within each other.
Owners Kylie Read and Ruth Polley had worked tirelessly with their volunteers to save his life.
Ms Read said that, although the cause of Gideon’s condition, future complications and even his life span were unknown, confirmation from the vet that he was not in pain was the main reason they decided not to put him down.
“[The vet] said if it became an animal welfare issue, if he became in pain, he would tell us,” Ms Read said.
“We needed to know [Gideon] was going to have some quality of life.
“What right have we got, really, to take that away?”
Since Gideon was born, both women, along with full time volunteer Katie Palmer, had set a routine of feeding, medicating and caring for the foal, day and night.
This currently included tube feeding, as Gideon was unable to drink himself, which was very agitating for the horse.
“It’s not good for him to be that stressed,” Ms Read said.
“And we get stressed too.
“He’s still got a lot of things that he’s going to have to do to be able to survive.”
All three women admitted caring for Gideon had not been easy, taking a toll on all areas of their lives, with large vet’s bills, exhaustion from lack of sleep, and disruption to their daily lives.
“We’re getting up with him at 1am, and 3am, and 5am, we’re exhausted,” Ms Read said.
“There have been times when gee, [euthanasia] would have been the easy road to take.
“There have been times when we’ve lost hope.”
Although Gideon would not be a horse to ride or breed from, he had already shown his worth as a beacon of hope for the children and adults who visit Hope Reins Inc.
“He’s got a totally different personality than most foals, but he’s incredible, he fights, he wants to be here,” Ms Read said.
“The world sees this as something you just throw away, just get rid of.
“Actually that horse can have intrinsic value.
“He’s already touched a lot of people’s lives.”
All the volunteers at Hope Reins Inc were aware that their knowledge and support could not be available to all owners whose animals give birth to young with birth defects as severe as Gideon’s.
“I hate that animals get put down, particularly if it’s because people have been careless or have not looked after their animals,” Ms Read said.
“The easy thing then is to put it down, and that’s not right.
“If [Gideon] was born somewhere else, and even if they knew he wasn’t in pain, if they couldn’t do it, I’d understand."
All three women agreed they could not have helped Gideon at all without the help of each other, their volunteers and vet.
“I think that support is crucial and that relationship with the vet is crucial,” said Ms Read.
“It has been a doozy, but yes, I’d do it again.”
Image(s) designed by Roseanna Langmead