Marybelle

Marybelle arrived at Flicka from the continent with a foal at foot. She was painfully thin, had wounds to her legs and body and was emaciated with worm infestation. Some of her teeth were loose or so sharp they had caused ulcerations all around the inside of her mouth. Marybelle is a very aged donkey.

The weeks that followed were so tentative with our vet suggesting on more than one occasion that it may be time to ‘let her go’. Our hope was that, despite spending most of her days lying down, she still wanted to eat. We kept a 24/7 vigil and lifted her up bodily to encourage her to eat standing, rather than be hand fed. Dental surgery had to be performed, which in itself was a worry as she was so weak. Marybelle had to be separated from her foal because he was quite playful.

After six weeks of worry, antibiotics, mouthwash, creams, supplements and lots of nutritious food, Marybelle turned a corner and has never looked back. What a lottery win for us, and what a lovely old lady.