Lee

On June 19th, USERL was contacted by Franklin County Animal Control about a donkey they had seized last year. The donkey had horrible overgrown hooves that knuckled over when they seized him. Franklin County gave the donkey to a kind humanitarian who provided diligent farrier work to get the donkey back up on his hooves, but then became overwhelmed with the care this donkey requires in order to walk properly. Franklin County Animal Control offered the suggestion of giving the donkey to USERL in order to further his recovery and the owner agreed. The donkey has been named "Lee" and is undergoing evaluation of his hooves to determine a treatment and prognosis. It is hopeful that his deformity can be treated and we will update you on his fate.

On June 22, Lee's front hooves were radiographed to determine the health of the structures of his hooves and joints, particularily, the coffin bone and coffin joint. Based on the radiographs, it is difficult to tell if treatment will improve Lee's prognosis for a comfortable life. So it has been determined to go ahead with the first step of surgery, a tenotomy, to cut the contracted deep flexor tendon. This will free his lower leg to enable Lee to stand upright on his hooves. His front hooves will also be worked on to correct his severe club hoof angles.
Currently, Lee lies down most of the time due to the pain he is in, leaving USERL no choice but to pursue a treatment or humanely euthanize him to end his suffering. This first surgery is critical in that if Lee's joints, etc are not able to handle this new position, then his prognosis for a better life will dwindle. USERL is hopeful that Lee will overcome his first, biggest obstacle and continue through the rest of his rehabiliation.

July 6, 2006:
There have been many inquiries about General Lee, the crippled donkey. I am happy to report that his surgery went very well. It was performed on Monday, July 3rd. Dr. Bob Meyer of Neuse River Veterinary Hospital and Danny Glover, a very talented farrier, worked several hours to correct General Lee's problems. A tenotomy of the deep digital flexor tendon was performed to release contraction of his front legs. A remodeling material was used to give General Lee toe extensions on his front hooves to help keep him upright. His back hooves were also worked on.
Following his surgery, splints and a solid bandage were applied to his front legs to give him stability as he relearns this new standing posture.

General Lee stayed at the clinic 2 nights and is coming back to his foster home today. He's already more comfortable on his new legs! General Lee can now stand and graze more comfortably then he could before surgery. Prior to surgery, he could only stand for a maximum of 30 minutes before needing to lie down due to the pain. Yesterday, he grazed comfortably and had to be pulled back into the clinic!
General Lee still has some obstacles to overcome, but has passed this first big hurdle very well. Stay tuned for more updates on his progress!

General Lee is loaded onto a trailer to go back to his foster home. His splints have been removed, although one may be resplinted due to his lack of muscle strength in that leg. He will need stall rest and therapy for a few weeks more to determine his longterm prognosis. A special thank you to to Dr. Bob Meyer and the staff of Neuse River Veterinary Hospital, and to his farrier, Danny Glover. General Lee's future is looking brighter!

General Lee is right on track in his rehabilitation. His right leg was weaker than the left following surgery, but has responded very well to support bandages and a simple splint. Within 2 weeks, General Lee had enough strength in that leg to remove the splint altogether. He now sports support bandages only on both legs to continue proper healing. He will continue to wear these (changed every 2 days) for at least one more month while the tendons heal completely and will have to remain in "confinement" to prevent him from too much exuberance that may undo his progress.
Speaking of which, General Lee broke into a trot a few days ago while being led out to his "outdoor" stall. The look on his face was incredible! His whole body shook with excitement. It's honestly probably the first time he's experienced trotting. Unfortunately, he must be confined to refrain from this type of activity, so he was reined in quickly!
As you can see from the pictures, General Lee is quite the personality. And now that we know his legs can handle it, he's now in a weight gain program, too, and has gained approximately 25 lbs..

October 3, 2006:
General Lee has been doing well, although he's had his good and bad days. But now he's able to go bandage free finally! He still has some issues to overcome, but we are amazed at how well the "General" has dealt with his confinement and even more amazed at his recovery! He's not through with rehabilitation yet, and it is hopeful that this incredible donkey will continue to do so well.

December 24, 2006

General Lee gets festive as he heads out to his paddock for the day. His legs are doing incredible! He's now past the critical part of his rehabilitation and is looking forward to a great 2007 thanks to Neuse River Veterinary Hospital veterinarians and Danny Glover, farrier extrordinaire!