Famous painting horse battles 2nd eye malady
Metro Meteor, the famous painting horse who earns his keep by creating artwork with a brush and paint, has been stricken once again with an eye condition known to be the leading cause of blindness in equines. Six months after battling back from sudden onset blindness caused by equine uveitis, Metro began showing signs last week that the worrisome condition had returned, says owner and pet portrait artist Ron Krajewski. This time, however, the “squinty eye” symptom Metro had this week, a sent up immediate alarm bells. And the veterinarian rushed in to diagnose and treat the condition, says Krajewski. […]
TRF takes 6 hungry, abandoned horses into herd
Silver Cliff and Z Camelot, two Thoroughbreds discovered in a herd of abandoned horses linked to a Breeders’ Cup-winning trainer, were officially released yesterday to the safety of the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation (TRF). Following a decision by Mercer County Kentucky officials, which declared a herd of 43 horses to be legally “abandoned” and available to rescue workers, the TRF arrived and took the two Thoroughbreds, as well as other tattooed, unidentified horses and an unweaned yearling. Diana Pikulski, TRF director of external affairs, says the two OTTBs were picked up and delivered safely to the TRF’s Blackburn facility in Kentucky […]
TB ride across USA delayed by fall, cancer scare
A 60-year-old California woman attempting to ride her OTTB across the United States has been delayed by mounting medical issues. Valerie Ashker, the mother of four-star rider Lainey Ashker, sustained a broken clavicle and elbow in a fall last week, an accident occurring just weeks after a horse-kick fractured two or more of her ribs. And in a worrisome turn of events, doctors discovered a marble-sized “spot” on her lung during a routine, follow-up x-ray, and suggested the daredevil rider take time out to visit an oncologist in Provo yesterday morning. With great relief Ashker announced that the spot was suspected […]