[Cava Pony]

**UPDATE 2/9/2013**
The horse has been placed! Thanks to the reach of this wonderful board and the kindness and openness of one particular heart, Bally has been given a 2nd chance by a COTH member! He arrived the other day to his new home in Colorado, into the care of someone who will be getting him the surgery. My family and I could not be more grateful, and his new owner seems thrilled, but it appears as though Bally is truly the one who has hit the jackpot. He will be getting pampered by his own new person, as well getting his hernia repaired and getting the chance to recover in a top-notch rehabilitation center. His owner has plans to resume his training once he is cleared to do so.

I am so appreciative and amazed by the kindness that exists in this world (and by the power of the internet and this great network!)

Thank you to all those who offered advice and kind words, as well as all those who expressed interest.

Original post--------------------------------------------------


Located in NJ.

9 year old branded danish warmblood; 16.2h (perhaps even 16.3h); EXCELLENT hunter mover, beautiful presence, scopey. Dapple grey.

Free to a good home.

The horse has massive potential-- was an investment horse that could have been a 6 figure horse.

Unfortunately had to have 2 colic surgeries that have left him with a large hernia on his belly. Needs to have corrective surgery on it (some sort of mesh apparatus), estimated cost ~$1,500-$2,000, before he can go back to being ridden. But vets see no reason why he can't go on to have a successful riding/performance life after it is corrected. We want to do right by this horse rather than resign him to a life as a pasture pet (he has SO much potential), but due to financial restraints we really are already in way over our heads already.

Full disclosure of his full medical history is available, of course. Contact with the vets who have treated him since the surgery (which was ~2 years ago) can be provided.

Willing to give him for free to a good home that is willing to take on the cost of getting him the surgery.

Pictures (prior to the surgery):
http://i1030.photobucket.com/albums/...ony/bally3.jpg
http://i1030.photobucket.com/albums/...ony/bally2.jpg
http://i1030.photobucket.com/albums/...ony/bally1.jpg

[Couture TB]

Do you have any video of him before the surgeries? Would possibly be interested depending on talking with the clinic that has done hernia surgery for me in the past.

[Cava Pony]

I had video footage, but unfortunately it was on a computer that has since crashed. I so wish I had footage to share, just to show what a truly nice horse he is.

He is very nice mover-- could easily do well in hacks, if he should go the hunter route. I can also see him being a very nice eq horse or even jumpers. Honestly, his potential is massive. Its unfortunate that it has come to this.

[sketcher]

Would he like to be a pleasure horse? Has he grown out of the baby spookies you mentioned on the other thread?

[Cava Pony]

I can see him enjoying a non-competition life-- like I can see any horse enjoying one. He was quiet when schooled at home.
But truthfully, I can't attest if he's grown out of his under-saddle spookiness since he hasn't been ridden in quite a while now.

[wilbur77]

A friend of mine sent you an email about this horse. She's interested in him and would like to speak with you about him. Let me know if you didn't get it! She's really a sweet person and maybe you can work something out!

[Cava Pony]

I just realized that the email I had listed is outdated-- I just changed it. Please have your friend send me an email to the new address or send me a PM on here!

[wilbur77]

pm sent with her contact info!

[HorseKrazy]

Shoot! I would scoop him up in a heartbeat if I wasn't in California! Anyone know a good shipper? $2000 would be a steal if he is sound and otherwise in good health

[2tempe]

Shoot! I would scoop him up in a heartbeat if I wasn't in California! Anyone know a good shipper? $2000 would be a steal if he is sound and otherwise in good health

There are several good coast to coast shippers; search other threads. I checked a couple years ago and it was about $2600 from Cal. to Fla. It is a long road trip, and there are layovers. They told me to figure a week. I would check w/ horse's vet to get opinion on the trip.

[pony4me]

Sent a link to this post to a person I know who occasionally takes a chance on a horse like this, just in case he's interested. Thanks for going the extra mile to try to find the right situation for this horse.

[jewll27]

I know you are in NJ, but I can ask where he had the surgeries, and if they were the ones who said he had to have the hernia repairs before being ridden again? Just curious if there had been more than one vet agree, b/c Ive seen other horses with hernias have full show careers.

Feel free to PM, he is so handsome. What is his temperament like? how far into training was he before the surgeries?

[Cava Pony]

He had the surgeries at Mid-Atlantic. They were also the ones that recommended the hernia repair. He has since seen other vets, but all agree the hernia needs to repaired. It is large (about the size of a nerf football).

He is a sweet boy who was schooling 3ft. As I said, we were dealing with spookiness issues so we didn't want to show him until he was going to do well (since he was a sale horse). He is kind natured and easy to handle on the ground.

To everyone interested-- I will get back to you if I haven't yet. I am a full time student and am currently in the middle of final exams, so I am extremely busy. But I will call/respond via email asap!

[threehearts]

any news on him?? still available or placed?

[Cava Pony]

Bally is still available! I really hope we can find a home for this special boy...

[2ndyrgal]

With more than one colic surgery, the risk that it will happen again goes up quite a bit. Add the hernia and well, that makes it a very risky proposition.


My beloved DWB had his colic surgery (2nd one) at one of the finest hospitals in Lexington, about 10 years ago. Developed the same type of hernia, and they said that when the muscle wall gets that compromised, there really isn't anything to be done. I had heard of the repair operation, and was told then (perhaps it is different now) that there were some people trying it, but it really wasn't effective, and you've opened the horse up again. Money did not matter, this horse was the love of my life, and one of the best vets in the country said that there was nothing to be done for it. It broke my heart.

I would advise anyone considering what seems like a simple solution to do lots of research done by prominant veterinary doctors and clinics.

[Lucassb]

I know of two horses that had the mesh repair and both went on to return to successful show careers. The literature that I have seen on the subject indicates around a 46% success rate, but noted that there are several factors, including quality of anesthesia monitoring, that affect that rate significantly.

[mandimai]

What a cute guy! Is he still available? If so, I'll refer him to a friend who might be interested. She is a wonderful person with a ton of experience, and might just be interested in this boy.

[Cava Pony]

Just bumping this up to those who may be interested! Bally has found a new home! Update included on original message.