Doing Fantastic! 04/19/2012
I am baffled to see I apparently have not made a post since November? Farletta is doing fantastic! It has been nearly six months since Farletta went to have her eye removed. I am happy to report she has two eyes, no flare-ups and has had a completely normal horse life with daytime turnout! We are so blessed! I've been in a very intese graduate program and unfortunately have not had near enough time to spend with Farletta. But graduation is near (8 days!) and then I will have lots of time to spend with my girl! I can't wait to start riding again! Add Comment Fifteen Day Anniversary! 11/22/2011
Farletta has been on her Previcox for 22 days and has been on all-day turn-out for two weeks (15 days). She continues to do well and looks great! Her attitude is good and she seems happy and comfortable. I am still only longeing her but her enthusiasm for work and the effort she puts into it have both increased. Both of us have embarked on a “get back into riding shape” program with hopes to get back in the saddle (at least for a walk) in 3 weeks. It will be several months before either of us will be able to return to the level of riding we were at before Farletta’s diagnosis but I am in no rush…I am just glad to be planning a future for us again! We have restarted our riding program several times in the last year or so – so far we haven’t been able to maintain it for a variety of reasons but primarily Farletta’s health and my schedule. I look forward to spending time with her in this way. I haven’t scheduled it yet but Farletta is due for a check-up appointment soon – likely will be the first week in December since the one month check-up falls during Thanksgiving weekend. I am hoping Dr. Shaarda will see a healthy eye (inside and out) and Farletta’s blood panel comes back looking good. Her right pupil remains a bit smaller than the left but other than that she looks totally normal. I am optimistic at this point that Farletta has received a wonderful miracle! First Full Week of Turn Out Success! 11/14/2011
One week ago today Farletta had her first day of all-day turn out. She continues to do well – her eye looks clear and she is comfortable as far as I can tell. I do still notice a difference in the size and response of her right pupil as compared to her left pupil but that is the only indication of an abnormal eye which can be seen by the naked eye. Farletta is due for a check-up at the end of November – at this time Dr. Shaarda will be able to use his scope to view the back of her eye for any indication of inflammation. She will also have her blood tested to see if her new medication is having any adverse affect on her liver function (Dr. Shaarda feels this is unlikely but we both feel it is important to monitor this). I had a good look in her eye recently as I finally have a working flashlight again. One this which is quite noticeable is how her cataract is larger -- it apears kind of whispy like a light fog. It seems slightly transparent so she likely has some vision through it. I am NOT in this Alone.... 11/13/2011
I am NOT in this Alone.... 11/13/2011
As I’ve stated many times before, I really struggled with this “decision” (really a non-decision on my part as Dr. Shaarda removed the option of eye removal) to try yet another treatment option for Farletta. Up until now nothing has really made a huge difference in her suffering. The cyclosporine implant definitely shortened the length of treatment needed for a flare-up but I’m not sure it really reduced the number of flare-ups. However, it is difficult to know if the latter is true as no one knows how Farletta’s uveitis would have progressed had she not received the implant. One thing was quite clear in the months leading up to my decision to have her eye removed: she was experiencing significantly more severe flare-ups and she was not responding to treatment (which resulted in increased amount and frequency of medication). Ever since the cancellation of Farletta’s eye removal surgery (now about 2.5 weeks ago) I have wondered why this happened in this manner. The decision to NOT remove her eye was made as she was being prepped for surgery to remove the eye. In that pre-surgery exam Dr. Shaarda observed Farletta’s eye to look normal and healthy – more so than it ever has since he began seeing her in February 2010. Why now? I wondered; what has changed? I’ve worked so hard at controlling Farletta’s suffering and preventing her pain. I prayed for her comfort and for an end to her suffering but I never once asked for healing or a cure – it never occurred to me to ask; science tells us there is no cure for uveitis. But I do believe in God and I do believe in miracles – so why couldn’t I believe Farletta could be the recipient of a miracle? Why did I take all the responsibility to help Farletta on my own shoulders? Why did I try to carry the load on my own? The simple answer is it is my nature to forget I can’t control everything that happens to those I love or even to me…some things are just out of our hands no matter what we believe. A couple nights ago I was reading a book when a sentence seemed to jump from the page and demand I pay attention. I read the sentence over and over as I tried to absorb the meaning of what I was reading: “Sometimes God waits until the last minute to heal someone in order to prove to us that He is God and we are not.” God's Most Wonderful Gift 11/08/2011
Today after a long day of work and school I drive out to the barn in the rain to visit my Farletta. As I step out of my truck I can see the barn lights are on and I know my Princess is inside waiting for me. I suddenly get a jolt of that childhood excitement you feel when Santa brings you the greatest gift you could ever hope for or you catch a glimpse of your favorite teen idol -- I realize how completely excited I am to have the opportunity to spend time with my horse..even though I'm just going to pet her and brush her a little..I am in that moment fully aware of how blessed I am to have stewardship over one of God's most amazing creatures -- my beautiful friend, Farletta. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I wish I had great news to report but the news is mediocre at best: While Farletta's eye looks clear and she appears comfortable her right pupil is not responding to light today. It appears to be back in that state of being "stuck" which is indicative of inflammation. I'll call Dr. Shaarda in the morning to see if he has anything to offer in the way of advice or next steps. I don't know what else to say. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2nd full day of turn-out: today was cloudy and overcast. 57mg previcox 1/day All Day Turn Out Tomorrow! 11/06/2011
It is still quite difficult for me to comprehend this may become reality for Farletta to live outside during the day time, in the sunshine. I find myself feeling neglectful allowing her to be outside during the day as this treatment previously has been considered an invitation for much suffering. Is the previcox a miracle drug for us? As always...time will tell. Today was a gorgeous day for November in Michigan -- sunny with temperatures in the mid 60s. A perfect fall day -- the kind of day I really hated to have Farletta stuck in the barn all by herself. But today, Farletta was outside for 6 hours and was able to enjoy the warm breeze and the sunshine. She seems to be doing well with the turn out. When I visited her today I found both pupils to be closed the same amount and she seemed comfortable. I took her in the barn and put her in her stall for observation. Both pupils opened up in the darkened barn to almost (but not quite) the same size. I took Farletta out to longe her and she seemed comfortable though I noticed her blinking both eyes frequently. I am not used to being able to see her eyes while we work outside as she always has her mask on so I can't say if the blinking was excessive or normal. Tomorrow she will be on all day turn out (and all night if the weather is nice) for the first time. So far things seem to be going well. I am cautiously optomistic and working at dropping my pessimism entirely as I want to have faith and I don't want to bring bad energy into this trial. This will be difficult for me to let my guard down as this also means opening myself up for painful disappointment -- but I will try. Prayers for my Princess... New Turn-Out Schedule 11/04/2011
The previcox trial continues... Farletta has had two 57mg doses/day for five days and starting today (11/4) she goes to one 57mg dose/day. Today Farletta was turned-out OUTSIDE for two hours (from 12:30-2:30) with no adverse effects so far. Tomorrow she will get 4 hours and Sunday she will get 6 hours. If all goes well she will get full day turn-out starting Monday 11/7. I am still quite torn on all this...I so want to believe this is the answer we've been searching for all this time. For anyone who has read the rest of this blog or is at all familiar with what Farletta has been through in the past 20 months or so, you understand why it is so difficult for me to be optomistic on this. Meds were supposed to make this manageable, then the cyclosporine implant, now a new med...I usually am able to be much more positive but I feel the need to protect my heart on this one. Farletta is in good spirits today and is definately ready to go back to work! I hope things will be normal for us again soon. In the mean time I will keep loving her and caring for her as best I can. I wish I knew what to expect..I wish I had all the answers now -- but I don't. I do know when the time comes to purchase another horse I will think of the health of the eye in a totally different light than I ever have before. I get that this disease is not directly life-threatening but it is certainly life-limiting and painful....for the horse and for the owner. Previcox Update 11/01/2011
Farletta started the previcox on Saturday evening (10/29). She was not interested in eating the pill “like a treat” which didn’t really surprise me…after all she is a Princess…not a dog. However, a fellow boarder carved a hole in a baby carrot and I pressed the pill into the hole – Farletta gobbled the carrot up and only made a couple funny faces when she realized she had more than carrot in her mouth. However, the taste of the pill must not have been too offensive as she did not spit it out. Typically if I give her a treat with (gasp!!) any foreign substance in it she not only makes a huge production of spitting it out but also refuses to eat any treats for the rest of the day and occasionally the next day as well. I was lucky she went for the pill-in-the-carrot trick. Since then she has been receiving the pill pressed into an apple slice which by all accounts has been quite acceptable to her Princess palate. Some may ask why we don’t just toss the pill into her food…most horses would go for that. However, past experience tells me not only would this be offensive to Farletta but she would then make a huge production of tossing her food all over the stall and then refuse to eat for the next 2-5 feedings. I’m not kidding, she has actually done this. Anyway…Farletta will be receiving two previcox pills each day for 5 days (thru 11/3) and then go to one pill/day for the duration of the two month trial. If she is not able to live a normal life (outside in the sunshine) we will revisit the eye removal option. If the medication is a success, Farletta will stay on one pill/day for life. MEDS: 57mg Previcox AM&PM 10/30 – 11/3 57mg Previcox 1/day 11/4 until forever(?) Change of Plans... 10/29/2011
I still have a two-eyed horse. On Thursday morning (10/27) Dr. Shaarda called saying he had done his pre-surgery eye exam and her eye looked "better than he had ever seen it." The pupil was responding to light for the first time in months (it has been nearly a year since I first noticed her right pupil was consistantly smaller and less responsive than the left). Long story short, the surgery was cancelled. To say this has been an emotional roller coaster is as inadequte as saying WWII was a minor scuffle. I had agonized over my decision to remove Farletta's eye for months. I finally made the decision and made peace with it knowing I had found a way to end Farletta's suffering. When I received the call from Dr. Shaarda all I could think about is the way I found to help my horse was being taken away from me. I felt so helpless and guilty knowing I had failed to keep my promise to Farletta that she would feel no more pain from that uveitis eye. It has been two days now and I am able to take a less emotionally charged look at what is going on. Farletta is back home and she looks and feels great so far. Upon cancelling the surgery, Dr. Shaarda suggested a two month trial of a new medication called previcox. Previcox has been used to treat pain and inflammation from osteoarthritis in small animals and recently has been used on horses with uveitis. Dr. S feels there is a good chance Farletta will be able to have a normal quality of life with significant reduction of flare-ups and faster response to treatment if she does flare-up. The previcox is gentle on her stomach and has low risk of side effects. It sounds perfect and I want to be excited but I am scared to hope, scared to believe this medication could be the answer that will allow Farletta to have the most ideal outcome of all: two eyes and a normal life. The new medication arrived today and Farletta has had her first dose. Within a couple weeks, Farletta will be outside during the day for the first time in almost two years. Two years of never napping in the sunshine or feeling the warm sun on her back as she relaxed in the pasture or played with her buddies. I believe in miracles and I want to believe Farletta has received one. Only time will tell. Meds: 57mg Previcox | About the Author:
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