Help Morgan Pay Brian's Medical Bills

I am not comfortable doing this, but at the urging of friends and family, I will.

First, a little about me, for those that might not know all the details.

My name is Morgan, and I am disabled. Among several major health conditions, I have a rare genetic collagen disorder called Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. This mainly affects my tendons and ligaments, which are too stretchy, causing daily dislocations of joints, and lots of tears to the surrounding tissues. There’s a lot more to it, but those are the basics. So far I have had 17 major surgeries, with # 18 already scheduled for December. I always schedule my surgeries for the winter, no matter how bad my injuries are, so that I can ride as much as possible during the nice weather.

Horses are my therapy, both mentally and physically. After every surgery, getting back in the saddle is always my goal. It gives me a reason to work hard at my recovery, so that I can do the one thing that brings me joy, and gives me a purpose to keep going. I have a great team of friends that help me be able to ride, and even build me adaptive equipment. Thank you, Kris Schmidt, all my horsey friends, and my barn family at Walk Trot and Kanter! I couldn’t do this without their help.

And then of course, there’s Brian! The love of my life!

Brian came into my life two years ago, when I decided that I was tired of riding in arenas, and I wanted to do what I truly love- trail riding. He is the best partner that I could ever ask for. He is cheeky, fast, and smooth because he’s gaited. He adapts to my wonky body, and my physical needs for whatever I managed to hurt that day. He picks up new tricks to help me so easily, and it feels as if me and him were meant to be. He will do anything for a treat! Brian is unforgettable to anyone who meets him. It also doesn’t hurt that he’s the most handsome pony in the world!

In February of this year, we had a new horse come into the barn. That horse shared a fenceline with the gelding paddock. So when the new horse developed Strangles, a potentially deadly upper respiratory bacteria, the four geldings in the neighboring paddock contracted it too. Brian was one of these horses. He was the last to show symptoms, and had it the worst. For the sake of this already long post, I’ll spare most the details. On May 31st, we tragically lost one of the horses to Strangles. Brian continued to receive medical care. By the end of June, despite constant veterinary care, Brian became worse, and the decision was made to send him to UW-Madison Veterinary hospital. He spent four days in ICU, under constant care. They could not believe how bad he was. If the treatment was not successful, Brian would have to be euthanized. Luckily, he did great! Brian was able to come home, and we had to wait the two long weeks till we could test him for Strangles and see if the treatment was successful. On July 15th, he was tested, and on July 18th he was finally pronounced negative!

Obviously I am overjoyed at this! It has been an extremely long and stressful 5 months! The stress even caused me to have several seizures (I am epileptic, too), and the physical task of caring for Brian took a toll on my body as well. I was recovering from hip reconstruction when this whole thing began. But Brian and I persevered! Unfortunately though, this has left me with approximately $6000 in medical bills. I have about half of that from UW that I placed on my Care Credit card, and several thousands of dollars still owed to Elkhorn Veterinary. As I am disabled, I have a very limited income! I have no idea how I will manage to pay his bills, but how could I have not done everything to try and save my best friend?!

I am humbly asking for help. Any donation, even a couple dollars, is very appreciated, and will go directly to pay off Brian’s medical expenses.

Donations can also be made by calling Elkhorn Veterinary Clinic at [phone redacted]. Tell them you would like to put money towards my bill for services rendered to Brian. They will take payment over the phone. Thank you so much, Donna Falls, for setting this up.

Donations towards my UW Veterinary bill can be made via Venmo or PayPal. User name is @morganhorse

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, and feel free to share if you’d like.