Emergency horse rescue in Tayibe
Lucy and her small team were called out a few days ago to an emergency by the municipal vet of nearby Arab village, Tayibe, in Israel, to help a horse.
The poor boy had been stuck in a muddy, flooded ditch for days, he was very weak and starving and had to be airlifted out (sadly not so professionally) by a local man with a JCB, but at least he was lifted out to safety. After all the terrible things Lucy witnesses, she was very moved to see a group of men so concerned about the life of that dear horse. When Lucy got there, there were lots of men hanging around and watching, including a fire crew and a couple of policemen who were trying to get the horse to drink water from a syringe.
Lucy and her helpers tended to a few wounds he’d sustained, which were fortunately just superficial. They then set him up so they could administer a few liters of IV fluid therapy to help with the dehydration.
With help from a lady Lucy knows called Sharon, who is very active helping all animals in Israel, they were able to arrange to take the horse to a safe place where he was going to receive intensive treatment.
We all had such high hopes for him and somebody had already offered him a good home once he would have recovered, but tragically it wasn’t to be.
After the first two days of his recovery treatment he suddenly showed signs of severe colic and the vet noticed that he was excreting a lot of sand. They tried in vain to treat him, but they just weren’t able to save him.
The time he’d had to endure lying in that ditch must have meant he’d swallowed so much sand and mud as he would have struggled trying to free himself. The vet said it had obviously blocked his intestines.
The only comfort we can possibly take is that at least towards his end he’d had people around him who cared and he was shown love. At least he did not die all alone and suffering in that terrible ditch...
Lucy does all she can to respond to call outs and help donkeys and horses who depend on her, sometimes in situations similar to that of this poor boy. They can and often do, lead intolerably sad and hard lives in that region, and Lucy dearly wants to ensure that she will always be there for them.
But she cannot do that without your help. Please consider making a donation so we at Lucy's UK Donkey Foundation can continue to support Lucy's sanctuary and her rescue work. Your donation, however large or small, will be deeply appreciated.
Thank you so much!
