Help Baby Buttercup

Hi. My name is Charlotte. I am 60 years old. I have never put up a fundraising request before, even though we've had many needs over the years here on our small rescue farm. But this little filly has me so worried, and I just know that we won't have the money to save her without help!

She was just born in the picture you see above. It was taken on the 16th of this September. Her daddy, Trouble, who was my 1st horse born here on the farm, back in May of 2004, has just been killed this year, back in June.

We don't know who did it. The young woman that feeds for me, I'll call her V., just found Trouble, laid on his side in his favorite corner of the pasture, near my house. We think he'd been shot, but couldn't tell for sure because the vultures had been after the only wound he had in his side, that we think was probably a bullet exit wound. And he couldn't be turned over to have his other side examined for an entry wound. Maybe the one that could be seen was the entry wound that had been distorted by the deprivation. I don't know. It was horrible though!

I am usually at the farm all the time. But I just happened to be away that afternoon. V. called my daughter, who was with me, and told her the bad news, so she could break it to me.

I was so shocked! I could hardly believe it! I didn't want to see him like that. I got on the phone and, after many desperate calls, found a man that would bring his backhoe and bury my big boy right away. That way nothing else could try to scavenge him. He deserved some dignity in death. And V. was sweet enough to wait with him until he could be buried.. She later brought me a shank of his beautiful mane that she'd thoughtfully cut for me.

I tell you all of this, because I really want you to understand that his little filly means a lot to me, to our farm, and our whole farm family (me, my daughter and her family, and my mother, even V., our friend who we adopted to the farm, and her daughter). This is not "just a horse." This is a baby. A new member of our long line of beloved draft family from Trouble. The last member we'll ever have!

Anyway, when we lost Trouble, I was extremely thankful that we had one of his babies coming. That way I could have at least a little piece of him still here with me. And the mama is Promise, his favorite mare, that lived with him year-round, and I think, loved him as much as I did.

So,you see, this little girl is very special. She has been since before she was born. She is the last baby from my stallion, who was my original baby, and such a big, beautiful, sweet boy. I miss him every day!

When his daughter was born, all long-legged and fuzzy, some of my sadness for him was taken away. I went out to pet and rub and love on her each day, even though I have not been well myself. It felt so good to see her and know that she would carry on for her daddy here on his farm.

Then she started limping. I thought she might've pulled a muscle or something. But it didn't get better. It was on the weekend when I realized that my baby girl was getting to the point she couldn't stand long enough to nurse enough to sustain herself, even with me helping her to balance by her mama. I knew that she had to go to the vet's - even if I didn't have the money.

I had to wait for Monday. My son-in-law (who started calling her Buttercup), and V. helped me get the weakened filly into the stock trailer so I could take her to the vet. We had to bodily pick her up and lay her inside the trailer. She couldn't walk or step up on her own.

There wasn't room for her mama, so Buttercup had to go alone. I felt so bad for her! I put her mama into a stall in the barn and started for the vet's. I knew the little filly had to be hurting and now be very scared without her mama. So, I kept my head out the window and talked to her constantly on the way to the vet's. I drove extremely slow (5 to 10 mph mostly). And I stopped a couple of times to get out of my old farm truck and walk back to where Buttercup could see me, and I could check on her. She was scooting herself around and around. I felt awful that I couldn't help her understand where we were going and that she didn't need to be afraid.

I would increase my speed wherever the road smoothed out enough that I could do it without shaking her too much. But it took a long time to get to our vet, even though his office isn't that far from us (maybe 6-8 miles).

When I got there, they had me back right up to the main building. (I've never been good at backing a trailer, but I'll tell you, I was that day! I needed that baby helped ASAP! I couldn't think of anything else.) Anyway, our vet finished what he was doing with the horse he had in one of his exam stocks right then, and came straight out to Buttercup.

My poor baby was just laying there, unable to get up. We went into the trailer and helped her stand, so the vet could examine her. She started to shake. I thought it was because it hurt so much for her to have to stand. But the vet said she was having seizures! (That made me think of my granddaughter that we lost at 16. She used to have seizures.) And alarm bells started going off in my heart! I just wanted to cry. I could only think that Buttercup was way worse than I'd even dreamed she could be! I had to step away. An assistant came close, and I let him support the little filly for the rest of the exam. I wanted to go sit down, because I have health issues myself, but I couldn't. All I could do was pace, and wait, and watch.

Finally, the vet had some news for me. It wasn't good.

He'd drawn fluids from the joints of Buttercup's back legs, which seemed to be the problem. Where her white blood cell count should've been next to 0, it was nearer 37,000! That showed that she had a raging infection. Worse still; the seizures indicated that the infection was becoming systemic. If it got to her kidneys or liver, he probably couldn't save her. But he told me that he didn't think that had happened yet.

So, he laid out a plan to keep her and periodically draw out fluids that were building in her joints. And he would start her on a strong course of antibiotics to try to kill the infection. He needed her to stay close to him so that all of this could be done on a schedule, and he could monitor her. I agreed, knowing in my heart that somehow this would work out. Then I drove back to the farm to get Buttercup's mama, Promise.

Promise was so anxious about her baby! When I brought her out of the stall, she went right into the stock trailer and started smelling where her little girl had been laid on the floor earlier. I didn't know if she could smell any of the fluids or blood from the vet's examination and tests, but I didn't think she looked very happy.

I drove Promise to the vet's and they had me lead her back to a very nice, big, shaving-filled stall, where Buttercup was laying. A helper came and the two of us helped the filly up, and in position to nurse. Then I stayed and held her while she suckled. Promise cooperated by not moving too much, and I was able to help Buttercup nurse until she was just so tired that her long legs buckled underneath her, and she had to lay down.

So, I left the baby resting, and the mama eating hay, and went to talk to the vet. He had someone there asking a lot of questions about her horse's issues. So, I sat and waited for quite a while, worrying. Finally, it was my turn. I told him to do whatever tests he deemed necessary on my mare, to see if she might've passed something to the baby. I told him my mare's shots were due. They were due last month, I told him, but I hadn't wanted to trailer her, big and pregnant. He agreed about that decision, and said he would give her all the appropriate shots. And we talked, hopefully, about the baby not showing any signs of the infection reaching anything vital yet, and her now being on antibiotics and getting the care she needed. But we both knew he couldn't identify the cause of the baby's infection easily.

At this point I have left Promise and Buttercup at my vet's for 3 days. I am writing this during the 4th night they've been away from home. Every day I look out at the pasture and miss seeing them. I've called and asked after them. I've offered to come in and help lift the filly for nursing. I've worried and prayed. Earlier today the vet told me that the little filly has "turned a corner" and is getting up by herself to nurse. He has found her white blood cell count to have fallen to around 3,300; much much better than it was! I am so happy to know that Buttercup has a good chance of totally overcoming her illness and returning to her home pasture with her mama, Promise.

But, she can't come yet. She still has to have daily fluid draws from her joints. She still has to have regular doses of antibiotics and be monitored. And we don't know what else.. I am supposed to call my vet tomorrow (Friday). To see what our plan is, based on how she is doing after tonight.

So, here I am, at 2:30 a.m., writing all of this to you, whoever you are, because you should know that your generosity in giving your time to read about us, and then giving of your own hard-earned resources to help us, is appreciated. It really means something to me, my family, our farm - our farm stallion's last baby, Buttercup and her mama.

I want to thank you very much for sticking with me throughout the long telling of our problem. And I want you to know that we are so grateful for anything you can contribute to help. Thank you. You will be in my prayers. And just know that you are helping a worthy little filly carry on her life and her daddy's legacy here in our hearts, and on our rescue farm. Thank you again.