[AnAmericanMother]

The sling runs between the surgical suite and the recovery pool. I saw the video at the time.

After the horse recovers in the water, he is run via the sling back to the surgical suite and removed from the sling. Then he heads back to his stall under his own power.

Note that the surgical repair itself was perfect and healed beautifully -- it was the laminitis that killed Barbaro. The laminitis developed not as a result of the surgery itself but was a byproduct of the recovery process -- restricted motion, compromised circulation, favoring the fractured leg, or a combination of all of them.

[PayNoAttentionManBehindCurtain]

Note that the surgical repair itself was perfect and healed beautifully

Note:) it did not.

I did not follow this story close, because I didn't think it was right to try to fix him. But I did catch a few reports, and saw some video of when they led him out to graze the first time. I remember thinking then, they never really showed clear pictures of that leg.

They showed clear ones in this program, and it did NOT heal perfect and beautifully. It was very very crooked. He moved it in a horrible way when he stepped. It slapped the ground hard with every step. I thought when I saw it, that would never hold up, if the horse ever got the chance to be turned out to run and play on his own.

And in one sense it was the laminitis that killed him, but it was more, at least from what you gathered from this program, that the horse was just wore out from pain and discomfort, is why they finally gave up.

Now, I'm just trying to figure out what the reality of the situation really was.

Becky

[CindyDawg]

I didn’t see the program so I can’t comment on his leg but most bodies are going to be stiff and guard extremities after surgeries. I think many of us had an idea what the outcome would probably be but as long as he wasn’t suffering I was ok with it. Look at heart surgery for humans. When I first got out of school, it was a last resort and most didn’t survive long. We learned so much , almost to the point that it is common now. If they learned anything to help other horses from this, I’m ok with it and if the owners put all that money out without breeding him them the horse community owes them a big thanks IMOOC.