Monet's Garden fighting for his life

krizon said:
Not necessarily terminal, Shadz. There are many cases of survival following rotation, but they may not want to put him through the months of treatment involving expensive vet bills, boots, magnesium, and special diets. Obviously, he's retired and won't work again, but if they want to keep him if he can be saved, it can be possible. The snag is that with any lasting deformation, if there is some, there's an imbalance in weight bearing, and a chance of laminitis flaring up in future.

Do we know what caused the infection to kick off?
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Rotation of the pedal bone often leads to the condition being terminal as, although if it rotates only slightly they should be ok, the problems are in halting the degrees of rotation. The worry is that the pedal bone rotates to the extent that it pretty much comes through the foot, which is, unfortunately, often where rotation leads. It's often very difficult to save horses that get laminitis, for example, as severe laminitis in horses (as opposed to laminitis in ponies which is often controllable and not as severe as laminitis in horses) very often results in that rotation of the pedal bone to a fatal extent.
 
Yes; it was the saddest racing day I can remember dilysb, and I've spoken to people that were there at the time and said they thought they might never go racing again. Strangely enough there has been something going through my mind today, and that is seeing Choc Thornton shaking Joe Tizzard's hand on Saturday having been beaten by him on a horse that had nearly killed him last year. There are aspects of racing and people in it that are missing from the everyday world.
 
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Shadz - yes, been looking over a number of vet sites showing all sorts of foot problems, from lami to navi, as it were. Interesting, in a slightly morbid way, how the internal bones of the hoof can deform to where the point of the pedal can come right through the frog, for example - and how a good farrier can so often help, along with vigilant diets.
 
In case no one has mentioned it. There is a particularly good memorial photo site on the Racing Post website.
 
I know that, but calling something a 'memorial site' would suggest to me they were brown bread, rather than retired.
 
The word relates to the recollection of something rather than the subject being necessarily dead (although I concede it is often used when someone has died, e.g. memorial service, etc). But in the case of retirement (i.e. the horse won’t be taking part in any more races) there is nothing wrong with using it… As I say, I apologise if I scared anyone.

Of course it’s also not unheard of for people to go to their own memorial services or to have memorials erected to them while still alive.
 
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Sir:

Wouldn't the word 'commemorative' be more apt for something being remembered? I've never heard of anyone having a memorial erected to them while they're alive - it's a statue or a 'commemorative plaque', etc. Surely, memorial comes from 'in memoriam' - that is, 'in memory of'. As in, gone, passed over, no longer with us, cloud jockey, harp player, as a doornail, etc., ad nauseam and ad infinitum?

Yours
Pedant of Brighton
 
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Ahem! Back on track a bit - for those not privy to the RP online, he's apparently spent a nice quiet night, eating up and 'happy', according to the clinic where he's being treated.

Lovely to see so many messages of heartfelt goodwill on the RP, not necessarily a repository of goodwill messages at the best of times!
 
krizon said:
Sir:

Wouldn't the word 'commemorative' be more apt for something being remembered? I've never heard of anyone having a memorial erected to them while they're alive - it's a statue or a 'commemorative plaque', etc. Surely, memorial comes from 'in memoriam' - that is, 'in memory of'. As in, gone, passed over, no longer with us, cloud jockey, harp player, as a doornail, etc., ad nauseam and ad infinitum?

Yours
Pedant of Brighton
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No doubt there are better words I could have used... I’m sporting sackcloth today by way of penance.:(

Nevertheless, for your reference (Guardian article): “Friends of a ninety-two-year-old Tewkesbury church warden invited him to his own memorial service as a way of celebrating his life…” [with friends like that eh?...]. People with terminal illness also sometimes elect to have a memorial service before they shuffle off.:p
 
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If it's any consolation, when I first saw it on the RP site I started looking at the photos and felt very uncomfortable about it, because it did seem like a memorial, and that was the first word that sprung to my mind.
 
I'm the only eejit so far to have put a retired horse up on the memorial thread - Star De Mohasion!

I thought he had so much potential to be a gold cup horse though..
 
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Don`t sound to good. C`mon old fella.



Monet's Garden owner 'clutching at straws



BY LEE MOTTERSHEAD 5:35PM 7 JAN 2011

MONET GARDEN'S owner David Wesley Yates on Friday admitted to "clutching at straws" after reporting that the hugely popular chaser's condition continues to show no signs of improvement.

RELATED LINKS
Watch the 2010 Old Roan Chase
View our Monets Garden photo gallery
The courageous front-runner contracted a life-threatening hoof infection soon after his third victory in Aintree's Old Roan Chase, since when the Nicky Richards-trained 13-year-old has been retired.

Wesley Yates, who has also watched Monet's Garden win three Grade 1 races, said: "He is stable. He isn't getting any worse, but I'm afraid he isn't getting any better and the antibiotics are not working.

"We are clutching at straws and the next few days are going to be critical.


Monet's Garden with groom Joey Richards


PICTURE: John Grossick

"The vets said two weeks ago that the chance of him recovering wasvery remote, but he is so well in himself and he has such guts that I feel we should give him the chance to get better, particularly as, due to the painkillers, he is not in any pain. However, to go on much further down the line would be cruel to the horse."
 
Doesn't sound good at all. At least he's not suffering, but it looks like a miracle is needed here.
 
I love Monets Garden. Put him up for the Peterborough anti-post years ago on TRF. What a fantastic racehorse get well soon fella.
 
lovely photo on cover of RP today, and a headshot taken yesterday, he looks grand, for whatever that means in the long run. still hope for the miracle to happen, of course!
 
I don't do optimism, but I'm beginning to feel quite hopeful. I'll be first in the queue if he starts making public appearances again, don't care how far I have to travel.
 
Wow - look at him fly the new Easifix hurdles on the second page (after racing) - now that's what I call good style! (With Brian Harding as pilot!) Thanks very much for those, Hamm - makes you remember just what a smasher he was when at work.
 
Great news!

Sporting Life today:

Owner David Wesley Yates is hopeful his gallant grey Monet's Garden will soon be back in his own box at Nicky Richards' yard in Greystoke.

The hugely popular 13-year-old has valiantly fought back from a life-threatening injury, showing many of the characteristics that marked his racing career.

"He's doing very nicely and we'll have him home fairly soon. We've had hundreds of flowers, emails, and gifts for him. It's been phenomenal and has all helped," Wesley Yates told Racing UK.

"They have done a great job with him, the care and attention he has received has been first class. We need to be certain he is 100 per cent to get him home, we don't want to be taking him back to the vets. They have briefed us on his after-care and treatment.

"The next step is to give him exercise to strengthen his foot tendon, nothing too boisterous, he needs walking in a straight line rather than a horse walker.

"He needs a lot of TLC basically. We need to plan an active retirement if we can because he's an active horse. He has a wonderful temperament and that has undoubtedly helped his recovery.

"He'll be in his own box, have his own bed with his own pals and that will give him plenty to think about."
 
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