Sunday, September 22, 2013


So yesterday, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013 (my Aunt Patty's 83rd birthday), I went out to check the hive. What an eventful visit.
Not the bees so much, they're still there and seem ok, but sometimes I worry that there are less of them??
They're really packed tightly in the top box and it looks like honey in all the comb I can see against the windows, so we'll just have to see next spring!

The combs in the bottom box are beautiful and still white/pale yellow, so I'm not so sure that they are doing much down there, but I cannot see in the middle of the comb.

Well, here's my video from yesterday....



But that obviously, is not what made this visit eventful.
First of all, it was supposed to rain, so my task for the day was to ready my CME talk for next Wednesday on How to Manage a Cirrhotic Patient in the Outpatient Setting. I thought I would have all day. So the visit to the hive was a break from my reading and Power Point preparation.....btw, I'm supposed to be doing my presentation as I type this - never mind, it will get done :)

Alas, as I was leaving the hive, I heard one of the horses coughing rather forcefully, so assumed it was Main Man choking a little bit, or Bear, 'cause he's just old.

But no, it was Lady, green-tinged mucus was pouring (I mean pouring by 1/2 cupfuls at a time) from predominantly her left naris, then her right! She kept making a weird clicking noise and I realized she had an esophageal obstruction. No fever, pulse normal. Called Dr Heidi, the equine vet on call, who came out with her assistant.

They tubed Lady, hit up against the obstruction, and then started lavaging her - 1 1/2 hours later!!! - the grass/hay was disimpacted and the tube slid into her stomach. Banamine for inflammation and pain, long-acting antibiotic for infection, and we were done. Well, there went my afternoon!
She's fine today, in the stall, eating senior feed as a wet mash.

It's always something with old horses. Main Man did this 4 years ago!! So he primarily gets senior feed.

I'm not sure anyone reads this blog, so if you do, leave me a comment, ok? So I know my journaling is not in vain!

Signing off....