Week5
From AlexBrownRacing
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Sunday June 18
Update 111: Peter Brette visited Barbaro this morning (Sunday morning). As previously, he's looking very good. Dr. Richardson was there. They walked him around and he continues to progress very well.
Updated Sunday 11:40am.
Update 112: Excellent article from Sports Illustrated: 'Everything right so far' Doctors are thrilled with Barbaro's steady progress which notes many aspects of Barbaro's recover and prognosis (thanks Lisa). Here is an excerpt:
Today, Richardson is guardedly optimistic. He says the odds are "going up," and adds: "Until he actually walks out of the hospital with no cast on, the radiographs look normal and he's bearing full weight, it won't even jump to 75 percent.
"If and when that happens, it will probably creep up ... and when I decide it's time to leave the hospital, maybe I'll finally admit that something worked," he said.
The next major concern is the healing process: Will the bones heal before the hardware begins to loosen?
"He's a large active horse and the metal really isn't meant to bear the weight for a very long period of time," Richardson said. "There's always this race between healing the fracture and continued structural support from the implant. If they start to fail, that could be a problem, so that is a continued concern."
New York Times is carrying the same article (thanks Lynda) as is the Bloodhorse.
Monday June 19
Update 113: Another good night for Barbaro last night (sunday night). I caught up with Michael Matz and Peter Brette on the way to the track this morning. We are now four weeks post surgery!.
update 9:20 am, monday morning
Update 114: I asked Kathy Anderson (Barbaro's Fair Hill vet) about the 'hardware' and what happens in the long run. She said it would most likely remain with Bobby, but would essentially no longer be serving any function. It is all necessary until the bones reknit together etc. Of course I did not really know that it was the bones that were going to take back over. That is good to know, having ridden many horses with some kind of 'hardware' added.
Update 115: We have added a new movie to the Fan multimedia page. Thanks Karen! Penn has added some new Barbaro pictures from June 16, thanks Superfecta.
Update 116: Looks like another good day for Barbaro (monday). His visitors today included Michael Matz (who I think visits most days, either coming to or from work, given how close to New Bolton Center Michael lives) and Kathy Anderson. Peter Brette called me to let me know everything looks good for the day (he spoke to Michael).
Tuesday June 20
Update 117: Another good night for Barbaro last night (monday night). Spoke to Michael Matz this morning who had heard from Dr. Richardson. Peter (Brette) also mentioned that Edgar Prado and his family visited Barbaro yesterday. On another note, Miraculous Miss (Acorn filly for Steve Klesaris) is also doing well.
And finally, this article from Daily Local News (Philly): For the love of Barbaro (thanks Lisa) demonstrates the impact Barbaro is having:
New Bolton recently was presented a check for $13.5 million from Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell. The state funds are earmarked for new medical facilities at the center, including a new isolation/gastrointestinal facility and a chemical digestion building. Donations to the Barbaro Foundation now total $560,000.
The Jacksons are pleased Barbaro's story has spurred a closer look at the horse-slaughter bill in Congress and better housing for workers on the backstretch, a debate on increasing the time between Triple Crown races and installing safer, synthetic racing surfaces.
update tuesday June 20, 8:20 am
Update 118: If you ever wonder the reach of concern Barbaro has generated just consider his updates are appearing in New Zealand media: Barbaro's odds improving every day. This piece also includes a great picture of his new cast.
Update 119: Another good day (tuesday) for 'Bobby'. Just spoke with Peter Brette and they continue to be very happy with his progress.
Wednesday June 21
Update 120: Another good night for Barbaro last night (tuesday night). Michael Matz informed me this morning on the track. A nice article from the Baltimore Sun: Barbaro making healthy steps (thanks Lisa) which also highlights the progress Barbaro is making at this stage of the recovery. It includes the following excerpt:
Just before Jackson left Barbaro yesterday, the exit door beside Barbaro's stall was opened for another horse, and Barbaro was obviously ready to go, too. He came to attention and moved swiftly toward the outdoor light.
When freedom didn't come, he let his irritation be known, bucking and slamming his good hooves and his bad one on his stall floor. Jackson says she was glad to be there to calm him, and talked soothingly to her horse.
He is clearly feeling well enough to want to get out!
update, wednesday June 21, 8:50 AM
Update 121: Confirmation that Barbaro is feeling comfortable in his new cast from New Bolton Center's press release today: Barbaro adjusting nicely to new cast. It includes:
One month after his life-threatening injury at the Preakness, Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro is adjusting well to his new fiberglass cast and life in the Intensive Care Unit of the George D. Widener Hospital for Large Animals. "He's a lively, bright, happy horse," said Chief of Surgery Dean W. Richardson, who replaced the cast on Barbaro's hind leg on June 13. "He's enjoying carrots and other treats, and is friendly and frisky. I'm very pleased with the progress he's made in the last month."
Update 122: For a little light relief I wanted to do some exploring on google to see how popular Barbaro has been in the last month or so. I compared Barbaro with "Paris Hilton" and it is good to see that for six days at least, Barbaro was a more popular search query! Unfortunately for June this is not the case (despite the continued press references). There does not seem to be a scale that lets you know the volume of queries. We did run a google adwords campaign to alert people of this site beginning the sunday after the Preakness. We received 3k visits in one hour, much of the traffic coming from google (when Bobby came out of surgery). The site crashed and Eliza has been adding bandwidth ever since.
Update 123: Just spoke to Peter Brette who visited Barbaro today (Wednesday afternoon)...he remains in great condition. So it looks like another good day for Bobby.
Thursday June 22
Update 124: Barbaro had another good night last night (wednesday night). Just spoke to Michael Matz who had the phone call from Dean Richardson.
I am sitting here with Fair Hill regular Kathee Rengert, who was cited in the article from the Baltimore Sun yesterday which we included in update 120. Kathee (in conjunction with Walnut Green) was the bloodstock agent for the purchase of La Ville Rouge (Barbaro's mum).
I asked Kathee to tell me a little bit about the Jackson's, friends of hers.
Kathy: "They are very compassionate people, and Gretchen noted the fact the situation with Barbaro has elevated her awareness of the unique nature of each individual horse. She herself said that her awareness of the horses other than Barbaro has been elevated, as to their unique personalities and varying needs. She is heavily involved in the care and awareness of retired racehorses."
"Gretchen was asked by the reporter of the Baltmore Sun what the plans were three months out for Barbaro, but she defered and considered this a day to day situation."
Kathy also went on to note: "The horse looks fabulous, I was amazed at how well he looked when I visited."
update 7:45 am, Clockers Stand, Fair Hill
Update 125: A very nice article on our Fair Hill vet (and sometimes contributor to this site) Kathy Anderson: Barbaro her best bet: U of S grad shares close relationship with Derby winner (thanks Lynette). I mentioned to Kathy this morning this article had been published, it was from a phone interview yesterday (it is amazing how news and the internet work). The article includes the following excerpt:
Anderson will never forget watching Barbaro's life change on that Saturday afternoon which, she says, "vacillated between blustery threats of rain and tranquil sunshine." Anderson and a crowd of more than 200 settled in to watch the Preakness on television from Barbaro's home base at Fair Hill.
Their hero was hobbling less than one-eighth of a mile into the race.
"Shock became horror as we realized the seriousness of Barbaro's gait," Anderson wrote in her journal. "The race was run but we did not see it, for our hearts were crying out for Barbaro to stay upright and be able to leave the race course in one piece." Soon after, Anderson's cellphone began ringing . . . Dr. Dean Richardson called from Florida . . . Dr. Scott Palmer phoned from the Preakness track in Baltimore . . . and trainer Michael Matz called for Palmer's number.
Much of the above is from an e-mail Kathy sent to her friends sunday night, which she kindly let us reproduce as update 14. It remains my favourite article on this horrific incident, although I am not yet prepared to reread it! As one of the 200 or so present at the party I can recall vividly the moment of the tragedy, Kathy was positioned just to the right of the TV, her head dropped to her hands. I left the room (I don't think or certainly recall watching the finish of the race) and remained outside for the next hour or so, talking to others who were in shock. Kathy walked by, I asked her if she knew the current status of Barbaro (I think she knew that we were covering Barbaro's Preakness preparations on this site). I was amazed at her openness to share exactly what she knew at the time, based on the phone calls she had received / made.
We still have a long way to go, lets hope the news continues to remain very positive!
Update 126: As we noted in update in update 117, the Jackson's are pleased that Barbaro has highlighted issues close to horsemen's needs. One such issue cited is the horse-slaughter bill. According to recent comments this bill is coming up for vote sometime in the next several days. You can access: Home Stretch for Horses to learn more about what you can do.
Update 127: Another good day for Barbaro (thursday). Just spoke to Peter Brette who provided the news. Keep the good thoughts coming, its a long road ahead.
Friday June 23
Update 128: Another good night for Barbaro last night (thursday night). I spoke to Peter Brette this morning who let me know. I also asked Peter whether there was padding in his stall (this question has come up in the comments) to protect Barbaro from doing further damage from kicking the stall walls etc. The answer is no. Peter had previously asked Dr. Richardson about this (clearly it would seem to make sense to have padding) but apparently the padding is much harder to keep clean and thus could raise the likelihood of infection etc (its nice to know the reason). Peter said it can be frightening to watch Barbaro get up and down!
update friday, June 23, 7:50 AM
Update 129: A few nice articles have been posted in the comments. Broken-down and busted but with something left in the tank is further illustration of the 'reach' of Barbaro, this article coming from Australia. The following excerpt signals this:
Prof gives Barbaro a "good chance" of recovery. "It's always hard," he went on, "because it was a monumental traumatic injury. They have put a bucketload of hardware in. That's not always the complete answer, but I'm sure it's been done by capable people. The longer he goes the better chance he has."
Not sure how many vets in the states would use the term 'bucketload' to describe the amount of hardware involved.
As many already know, Barbaro is joining the Breyer line of model horses:
Barbaro becomes a model. What is perhaps less known is this is not the first of Michael Matz's horses to join the Breyer family:
Barbaro's trainer, Michael Matz, also has a prior connection to Breyer, which made a model of his Olympic show jumper Jet Run in the 1980s.
Ten dollars from each sale will be donated to the Barbaro Fund.
Finally, a nice article on the New Bolton Center itself: Now known for Barbaro, Pa. vet hospital has other patients, tasks which describes the work NBC does for many types of patients:
Some are more cooperative than others. On one recent day, it took at least three veterinarians to coax a bull back into the barn after it had undergone a castration operation.
And then there was the curtain-chewing colt, a patient in Widener's neonatal intensive care unit. The horse's feistiness seemed to please veterinarian Jon Palmer, who had recently performed surgery to correct an intestinal problem.
Earlier that day, Palmer finished treating an alpaca with a newborn that did not know how to nurse. He also was monitoring one mare's high-risk pregnancy while keeping an eye on another who had just given birth.
Palmer sees about 180 animals a year in the neonatal ICU, including goats, pigs, sheep and cattle, with the occasional deer, camel, zebra and antelope.
Saturday June 24
Update 130: Barbaro continues to do well. Just spoke to Peter Brette this morning (saturday morning). He may visit later today, in his words: "If I can get finished here in time" (I spoke to him as he was working in the barn). Peter was actually holding court to some visitors visiting Fair Hill and Michael Matz's barn this morning, answering many questions (well I just arrived as it was finishing). It is nice to see people visiting Fair Hill during training hours, even on a gloomy morning as we experienced today. I would have got this update completed earlier but it was a busy morning's work (rode nine horses).
update: saturday, June 24, 10:50 AM
Update 131: A couple of nice articles from the comments. We should start by wishing the Jackson's good luck: Showing Up Center Stage at Colonial (thanks Lisa). The article further highlights the Jackson's, Babaro's prognosis and a quote from Barclay Tagg. The following are excerpts:
The feeling is mutual. Tagg trains about 20 horses for the Jacksons and was impressed with the way they coped with Barbaro's breakdown.
"I was there when he got hurt, and I was there when they loaded him on the ambulance," said Tagg, who also trained 2003 Kentucky Derby winner Funny Cide. "I talked to the Jacksons, and they were very upset and very nice. They're understanding people, and they know what kind of game they're in. We all fall in love with the horses, I don't care what anybody says. If you didn't, you'd be crazy to be in the game seven days a week."
and
At the New Bolton Center intensive care unit, reports on Barbaro's progress are uniformly positive, but no one should assume he is out of danger, said Corinne Sweeney, the hospital's executive director.
"I think it continues to concern us that the public might not be aware that he still has a way to go," she said. "Dr. [Dean] Richardson and the whole team are extremely pleased with his progress, but they are also realists and he has weeks ahead that contain potential complications. It's a fine line. It's realism, not pessimism. If you're in the field of medicine or veterinary medicine, it's the animal body and there are many elements to healing. It's not like changing a spark plug."
Lets hope Showing Up can prevail at Colonial Downs for the Jacksons, it would be a nice distraction. Showing Up was actually trained at Fair Hill last summer / fall before Barclay's horses left for the winter.
The second article: Barbaro wearing new cast well; remains 'grand patient' (thanks Daphne) highlights some of Barbaro's new skills:
"To amuse him, besides feeding him some snacks, some of the nurses on the ward line peppermints up on the edge [of his stall], and he's gotten very clever at being able to get to each one between the bars before they fall off the edge," Sweeney said. "Any patient that is there for an extended period of time, all of the staff here forms a good relationship with. He's now been a resident of the hospital for almost five weeks, and he certainly has endeared himself."
