**sigh**
So yesterday afternoon the farrier was coming out to trim the horses and replace Lucky's shoes and Raja's only shoe (trying to heal up a quarter crack). Raja doesn't mind having his feet trimmed or filed down, but he cannot and will not stand for the hammer and nails part. Thus we have been sedating him (mildly) for the procedure. It has been this way every 6 weeks for the past 10 months.
Well, yesterday, I was not informed of the farrier's visit until 10 minutes before his arrival. I live an hour away now (thanks to distance + traffic). So my friend, the one who owns the house/property, said she'll handle everything. Heck, the farrier has even done the horses all by himself when he's had to. Even Raja.
I don't know why the brain farts occured, but after Raja was trimmed and whatnot, they decided to keep on going since he was standing so good. Yeah....after that first nail hit, he went berserk. He started trying to rear up and was lunging forwards and back. The farrier backed off and went to the truck to get the tranq shot. My friend, afraid Raja was going to hurt himself on the stand, for some reason bent down in front of him to grab the stand and fling it out of the way. She doesn't really remember exactly what happened, but the hand she put against the outer stall wall (he was tied in the aisle) ended up getting crushed when he went forward. She just remembers feeling the lead rope on her hand and then her fingers hitting metal.
The result is 2 completely crushed fingers, 3 ripped off fingernails, and a tiny portion of the tip of one finger being gone. And a sprained hand/wrist. She is at the doc's right now (an orthopedic hand surgeon) and I'm waiting to hear the final outcome.
I feel horrible about it and I can tell she and her husband are a bit pissed off. She is just telling me it was a freak thing and not to worry about it. She's had horses for 30 years so she knows the risks. But yet both her and her husband gave me a few quips on "working with him and getting him under control". I feel like a whipped puppy.
But..........I am pissed at the farrier for NOT sedating him beforehand. He knows he's supposed to sedate. We've done it this entire time with no problems. And I feel my friend should know better than to put herself between a freaked-out horse and a wall.
I offered to pay her medical bills, but she said they are at a 100% coverage point with their insurance. Even so, she said she wouldn't take anything.
Am I at fault here? Did my actions, or lack thereof, cause all this as I'm underhandedly being led to feel?
So yesterday afternoon the farrier was coming out to trim the horses and replace Lucky's shoes and Raja's only shoe (trying to heal up a quarter crack). Raja doesn't mind having his feet trimmed or filed down, but he cannot and will not stand for the hammer and nails part. Thus we have been sedating him (mildly) for the procedure. It has been this way every 6 weeks for the past 10 months.
Well, yesterday, I was not informed of the farrier's visit until 10 minutes before his arrival. I live an hour away now (thanks to distance + traffic). So my friend, the one who owns the house/property, said she'll handle everything. Heck, the farrier has even done the horses all by himself when he's had to. Even Raja.
I don't know why the brain farts occured, but after Raja was trimmed and whatnot, they decided to keep on going since he was standing so good. Yeah....after that first nail hit, he went berserk. He started trying to rear up and was lunging forwards and back. The farrier backed off and went to the truck to get the tranq shot. My friend, afraid Raja was going to hurt himself on the stand, for some reason bent down in front of him to grab the stand and fling it out of the way. She doesn't really remember exactly what happened, but the hand she put against the outer stall wall (he was tied in the aisle) ended up getting crushed when he went forward. She just remembers feeling the lead rope on her hand and then her fingers hitting metal.
The result is 2 completely crushed fingers, 3 ripped off fingernails, and a tiny portion of the tip of one finger being gone. And a sprained hand/wrist. She is at the doc's right now (an orthopedic hand surgeon) and I'm waiting to hear the final outcome.
I feel horrible about it and I can tell she and her husband are a bit pissed off. She is just telling me it was a freak thing and not to worry about it. She's had horses for 30 years so she knows the risks. But yet both her and her husband gave me a few quips on "working with him and getting him under control". I feel like a whipped puppy.
But..........I am pissed at the farrier for NOT sedating him beforehand. He knows he's supposed to sedate. We've done it this entire time with no problems. And I feel my friend should know better than to put herself between a freaked-out horse and a wall.
I offered to pay her medical bills, but she said they are at a 100% coverage point with their insurance. Even so, she said she wouldn't take anything.
Am I at fault here? Did my actions, or lack thereof, cause all this as I'm underhandedly being led to feel?
I don't think you're at fault.
