Luv is her name. Everyone who meets her comments that she lives up to her name. Luv is a 14-year-old quarter horse mare who has been my equine partner since I bought her when she was two years old. Luv is an accomplished fl ag, drill team, parade, harness, trail, and cow horse. She has been such a pleasure to work with and over the years, we have developed a special bond.

In June 2008, we had a serious accident during a drill performance at the Reno Rodeo. With a change of music, the pace was brisker and the timing was off in a maneuver called the “suicide charge” that resulted in a collision with another horse. The impact was so fast and hard, a thunderous crack was heard throughout the arena. From where I landed, I could hear Luv struggling to get up as several people piled on top of her to keep her down. Once I was able to get up and make my way to where she was, my heart sank when I saw the look in her eyes. It was a heart-breaking look of pain, fear, and confusion. There was blood spraying from her nostrils and her sides heaved with labored breathing.

Immediately, Luv was sedated and transported out of the arena. After the sedative wore off, they were able to get her up and with some maneuvering, managed to get her to a nearby stall. It was clear that her injuries were severe. When she tried to put weight on her left front leg, that shoulder would appear to slip to the left and nearly buckle under her. She was too unstable to trailer her to the nearest animal hospital. With the help of close friends, we created an icepack for her shoulder, and the vet gave her some medication to help her through the night.

Luv had many visitors that evening. Her fan base was amazing. Luv was the horse that was always there to help other girls get in the arena, shield them from the crazy stuff that happens in the alleyway and be on “standby” to run a sponsor fl ag if needed. It was heartwarming to witness the fondness and sincere concern people had for her.

I spent the night with her in the stall on a borrowed sleeping bag, with my dear friend Claudia sleeping outside the stall, keeping an eye on me. Many people came forward to help and supply whatever was needed; I was and am overwhelmed with gratitude and can’t thank these people enough.

Amazingly, Luv had an appetite and settled into eating some hay and drinking water. She sniffed me with her bloody nose, with a look of curiosity as to why I was there. When she tired of her hay, she would help herself to the bale I was lying on.

We transported Luv to the hospital the following morning, where she stayed for seven days. She had a broken nose. However, the real damage was to the nerve in her shoulder, a condition known as “Sweeney.” I was told that the muscles in Luv’s shoulder would likely atrophy over the next several weeks, which they did. For the next four months, she required stall rest. The prognosis was dim as to whether the nerve would regenerate and, if so, how long it would take or if Luv would ever fully recover.

Initially she spent all her time recovering in her stall. Later, I patiently hand-walked her for fi ve minutes, three times a day, adding another fi ve minutes to her walk each week. The daily walk was slow and labored, with toe dragging and quite a bit of effort on Luv’s part to get that shoulder to cooperate.

On one of those walks with Luv, a farrier told me about a special, new therapy. I followed up on his information. Could this be the next step for Luv’s rehabilitation program? I discovered Molly Wells, a local certifi ed Acuscope Therapist, and Luv began her treatments. Within about a week, we began seeing positive results.

Luv’s toe was dragging less; she became exuberant on her walks. Luv was easily out-walking me! Within two weeks, she broke into a trot. It was the fi rst time since her accident that she attempted anything more than a shuffl e. Keeping Luv’s daily exercise controlled started to become my challenge.

We have now completed more than four months of Luv’s treatments. Her shoulder is much more stable, the atrophied muscles are about 75 percent regenerated, and her daily exercise is about four miles of walking and trotting uphill and downhill. Luv runs at liberty as she used to in a large arena. Getting her back “under saddle” is in the not-too-distant future.

Sherry Davis is now a certified Equine Acuscope Therapist and treats other people’s horses as well. The Electro-Acuscope is FDA-approved for use on humans. It has been used in doctors’ offi ces, physical therapy practices, and hospitals since 1978. In equine therapy, the Acuscope has been used for more than 20 years to treat a vast number of conditions and injuries. The Acuscope assists the body in healing itself by improving the circulation of blood and oxygen in the involved area, and normalizing the electrical circuitry in the nerves and muscles of damaged tissue. For more information on this therapy, you can visit www.equinessence.com.

Animal Ark
Saving the Little Ones

     Located just north of Reno, the Animal Ark Wildlife Park is well known in the world of animal providers for its tremendous care and treatment of its non-releasable wildlife inhabitants. Thirty-nine critters are currently being cared for, ranging from large (Yogi the Bear) to small (Krystal the Kestrel).

Visitors are able to see two of the world’s fastest animal species: three cheetahs on the ground, and the fastest animal anywhere, Whoopi the Peregrine Falcon. Two of the slowest creatures, desert tortoises, also share the limelight.

Supporting the idea of how all life is connected through the Web of Life, Diana Hiibel, co-founder of Animal Ark, enjoys seeing the benefi ts the park provides for its charges and also helping the natural critters that live in the area. The summer of 1999 was a disaster for the Animal Ark, as a wildfi re laid the ground bare around and throughout. The natural succession of plants and animals has been assisted by the care and feeding of the caredfor residents.

Critters to watch for are not only those that are cared for, living quite comfortable lives, but also those that live in and around the Ark in a natural state. Their needs can be quite dangerous; for example, rodents rush in to grab food from the bear enclosure and then have to make a hasty retreat back through the fence. Birds need to fl y off quickly with their morsels before a bobcat or bear can pounce on them.

The number of native animal species one can see around the Ark is quite large, including eagles, badgers, deer, and antelope. Nearly two decades ago, Donna Haggerman placed many birdhouses throughout the Ark’s expanse for the state bird, the Mountain Bluebird, and they still inhabit the area to this day.

In order to enhance their experience, visitors should be aware not only of the animals in the enclosures, but should be on the alert, looking up, down, and around. They are literally surrounded by the Web of Life.

Decades later, Bob is still living his childhood dream of photographing and writing about the outdoor world.