An owner has thanked her vet for the care given to her thoroughbred gelding after he suffered a freak accident in his field.
Twenty-year-old Baz was found with what appeared to be a fairly minor wound on his hindquarters, but when he was examined by vet Keesjan Cornelisse of Penbode Equine Vets, a large metal hook was found embedded deep under his skin.
Keesjan said the chunky, 10cm-long hook is one of the most unusual foreign bodies he’s removed from a horse in his 32-year career.
He had visited Baz in his field near Gunnislake after being sent a photo of a horizontal laceration. While it seemed relatively small at first glance, he was suspicious that it could be deeper than it looked and warranted a veterinary check.
On examining the wound, Keesjan could feel something hard under Baz’s skin and probing a little deeper he discovered the chunk of metal.
After sedating Baz and giving pain relief, Keesjan carefully removed the hook by making the entry wound slightly larger and with the help of a pair of forceps. He then thoroughly cleaned the wound to reduce the risk of infection and closed it with sutures.
“We are often sent images of wounds by horse owners, and a vet visit is usually recommended if the wound is large, bleeding profusely, very dirty, contains a foreign body or is near a joint or tendon sheath,” said Keesjan.
“Baz’s laceration didn’t seem that serious at first glance, but there were a few things worrying me about it, and I recommended it was best if I came out to look at it.
“Even though I had my suspicions, I couldn’t have imagined what was hiding inside the wound, and to say I was completely surprised to find the hook is an understatement.
“It goes to show how important it is that wounds are carefully checked, even seemingly minor ones.”
It’s not known how Baz injured himself on the hook, which was one of four attached to his wooden field shelter, but it’s thought he may have rubbed against it or was spooked or chased by his field companions and backed into it at speed.
“What doesn’t make sense is that the hook is blunt-ended and coated with rubber, and it would have needed a lot of force to push it through the skin and deep into the muscle tissue,” added Keesjan.
“Also, the position of the hook on the shelter wall was lower than the height of the wound entrance, so Baz would have had to push down onto it.
“I guess we’ll never know what happened, but I am very pleased that the wound has healed nicely, and five weeks after his accident Baz was able to be lightly ridden again, and is happy and sound.”
Star of Stories from a Cornish Stable
Baz is owned by Mary Framptom-Price, 78, who enjoys hacking the ex-racehorse out.
Baz’s journey from racehorse to happy hacker is chronicled in a series of children’s books, and Mary and writer Jane Thomas have produced Stories from a Cornish Stable with Baz featured as the lead character in three books.
Since Baz’s accident, Mary has removed all of the hooks from the field shelter.
She thanked Keesjan for preventing Baz from suffering further discomfort and, potentially, an infected wound if the hook had gone undiscovered for longer.
“The wound looked fairly minor and never in a million years could we have guessed that there was a hook inside Baz’s quarters,” said Mary.
“The hooks have been here for years, and I’ve never noticed Baz going near them before, so what happened is a complete mystery.
“I’m so grateful to Keesjan for being so thorough and attentive and for recommending that the wound needed checking, or the hook could have remained there for a lot longer and caused all sorts of complications.
“He has been my vet for many years, and I know that I can trust him and he’ll always do the right thing for Baz and the ponies. Baz and I have a lot to thank him for.”
