07/28/2026
A final Summer the Case Study mare update-
On Friday, Summer started acting oddly. Not quite a colic, but not right. She'd displayed very similar behavior before during her first heat cycle with us. So we managed her the way we had under veterinary advice at that first occurrence. She seemed to improve so we continued to watch. By Saturday morning, she had regressed, so we took her into a vet near where she was being housed. They did bloodwork, a belly tap, internal and external ultrasounds, internal palpations, drained fluid out of her stomach, diagnosed an impaction and treated her with IV fluids and pain management. Sunday morning, after additional palpations and such, we received a message saying she was basically in a holding pattern. She still hadn't passed anything and the impaction hadn't moved at all. An hour later, we received a message that her pain management had failed and were told they would manage her as long as she held out if we wanted as she was not a surgical candidate due to funding. We decided to call it and end her pain. We wanted to do further investigations to see what was really going on inside of her because things just didn't add up. When we opened her up, a tumor 1.5x the size of a basketball literally fell out and rolled towards us. It measured 12x16 inches and was attached to the descending colon, causing the impaction. The blockage was behind the tumor and couldn't get past it because of the pressure on the gut. Further investigation showed it also put pressure on her right kidney, ureter, and o***y. There was grit/stones in her kidneys and multiple cysts on her ovaries. Going further, we found a few additional thumb size tumors sprinkled around her abdomen. To say we were shocked by the findings is an understatement. We may have only had her a short time but she taught us a tremendous amount and we thank her and the ones who donated her for the opportunity to learn. We will miss that sweet little mare but are glad she's free of any further pain. Unfortunately, this was the best option for her and the findings confirmed this.
Looking back at the video of her behavior under saddle, we can only hope folks stop jumping to conclusions that "it's just a bad/mean/stubborn/lazy horse" or "she's just being a mare". Many times, there is a reason for the behaviors. Summer had several reasons. She wasnt mean. She was in pain. We hope she inspires people to listen a little closer in the future.
We will leave the raffles going to help cover her final expenses from her vet stay.
A few have asked if we will continue to do case studies and the simple answer is yes, if we can continue to afford to. Should the raffles produce any extra funds beyond Summer's expenses, we'll put that towards our next case when we come across one.
Thank-you, Summer, for the educational opportunity. You were loved and appreciated in the end. We're so sorry we couldn't save you but we are so appreciative of the opportunity to learn from you. You will not be forgotten.
