Aubrey

2006 bay Thoroughbred mare
Registered Name: Scarab
Type of Rescue: Owner Surrender
Intake Date: 9/5/21
Length of Time with SAFE: 2 years, 4 months

Rest in Peace, Aubrey

Aubrey was originally surrendered to SAFE in 2016 by her owner who was unable to provide care for her. Although she was in pretty rough shape when she arrived at SAFE, she made a nice recovery. Aubrey was not sound for riding, but being a very sweet and affectionate mare, we knew she would make a lovely companion horse. Aubrey was adopted in 2018 as a companion for an older gelding, and enjoyed three years in her adoptive home. In 2021, her adopter contacted us to say that she could no longer have horses, so Aubrey came back to SAFE. In late November 2021, Aubrey sustained an injury to her pelvis after a fall, and had to be humanely euthanized.

Sad News

Sad News 

Last Saturday, Aubrey slipped on a wet stall mat at her foster home. When she got back up, she was not putting weight on her right hind leg. Dr. Fleck examined her and found that she was very sensitive in her pelvic area. He was fairly certain that she has sustained a fracture to her pelvic bone but could not confirm with x‑ray due to the thickness of this area on a horse. 

At the guidance of Dr. Fleck, we decided to put her on pain medications to see if there would be any improvement over the next few days. She was set up in a deeply bedded stall with hay and water within easy reach. Over the next two days, her vitals, heart rate, and respiration remained elevated but did show a slight improvement after medication was given. Aubrey did not move around very much in her stall, but would, at times, set her injured right hind down. She continued to have a good appetite, bowel movements, and was somewhat tolerant of her confinement. 

Dr. Fleck visited her yesterday morning to do another evaluation. He had been very realistic with us on Saturday, so we know that without marked improvement in the next few days, the kindest choice for her would be to euthanize. Sadly, she was still not bearing weight on that limb and any movement to put weight on it seemed very painful. We all felt that giving her a few days, as long as she was comfortable, was fair and would help us know we were making the right decision. Yesterday, we are comforted knowing that we were able to give her one last act of kindness and end her pain. 

Aubrey’s foster mom Jackie spent the last days carefully watching over Aubrey. She kept her hay raised up so she could easily and happily munch away at it. Jackie took Aubrey’s blanket off and gave her a nice long grooming, braided her hair, “did girl things.” She also did some light energy work to comfort her. While Aubrey was not the most affectionate mare, she clearly enjoyed the attention. She became very relaxed, started to fall asleep, and her heart rate even dropped a bit more. SAFE is forever grateful for Jackie’s love and care of Aubrey. 

Aubrey had beautiful last days. She was loved, fed, and her every need was attended to. Horses force us to live in the moment with them, and we are thankful that in the moments that Aubrey had with us, she was never mistreated, alone, or forgotten.

Aubrey Update

Aubrey Update 

Aubrey returned to SAFE without having had dental work in about 3 years. She has been seen by our vet and had much needed dental work to reduce the sharp points on her teeth. Aubrey’s ideal adoptive situation would be a home where there is a steady herd of retired horses. She does best with the 24/7 company of at least one other horse. From her race track years in confinement, she has developed some behaviors that help her deal with anxiety such as weaving, flipping her lips, and excessive water drinking. All of her anxiety behaviors are more exaggerated when she is enclosed in a stall, so the best conditions for her would include free access to go into and out of her shelter. Aubrey can be a bit dominant, so it would be best if other horses with her were somewhat submissive. Aubrey has ongoing thrush issues on her left side due to previous injuries. Her adopter will need to stay on top of preventive care for thrush.

Why Annual Equine Dental Care Matters: Annual dental care is important for horses so that the sharp points on teeth do not lead to painful ulcers in the horse’s mouth. It’s also important to have a vet look into a horse’s mouth on a yearly basis for other issues that may impact a horse’s ability to chew. This gives the vet an opportunity to look for any emerging health issues before they become serious.

The Return of Aubrey

The Return of Aubrey 

Aubrey spent two years at SAFE before being adopted as a companion horse in 2018. Sadly, Aubrey’s adopter experienced a medical issue and could no longer care for Aubrey or her elderly gelding, Ro. Upset and unsure what to do, the adopter called SAFE for help. We talked about both horses, the time needed for her to recover and the difficulties caring for them as she herself was aging. Ro had been in failing health for some time and the vets had told her that a peaceful euthanasia would be a gift, given the pain he was experiencing. Aubrey, while having her own health issues that prevent her from being a riding horse, is only 15 years old and has many good days still ahead of her. While she did not need to be rescued, she was in a difficult situation and needed our care once again.

While our hope is that all horses find their forever home when they leave SAFE, we are also always aware that life can change for their families. We are grateful that Aubrey’s adopter was able to reach out to us and that we have the space to take her back into the herd. She is overdue for her dentals and vaccinations but looks to be in good health, with a shinny summer coat and bright eyes.
Aubrey is a sweet mare but does have some behavioral issues to note. She does best in an outdoor living situation. In stalls, she can begin to weave and drink excessive amounts of water (which is a sign of boredom or stall anxiety). Aubrey was used on the race track as a pony horse for the Thoroughbreds heading to and from the race. She has very tender hooves that may require shoes or boots at times if they bother her. We had x‑rays done before she was adopted and found no signs of founder but there was some damage to the tip of her coffin bone. She also has an old bowed tendon on her LF. Let’s just say as far as TB types go, Aubrey is a delicate flower but we love every bit of her, imperfections and all!
We look forward to getting reacquainted with Miss Aubrey and helping her transition back to the herd and helping get her on track again for adoption. We want to always be there for the horses who come into our lives. Knowing that they have a lifetime of safety is one of the best parts of our mission. Welcome home, Aubrey! You are safe again with your friends!

Photo Update: Aubrey 

Aubrey’s gentle eyes

Jessica Farren was able to visit Aubrey at her foster home with Jackie. She got some lovely photos to share with us. Aubrey is doing very well in her pasture with Annabelle. They are very good pals and she is relaxed and content with life. Can’t wait to see her all shed out this summer. She is such a sweet mare to be around!

Annabelle & Aubrey: The Best of Friends 

You never know when you introduce horses to each other how exactly they will get along and there is always a risk it might not work as well as you had hoped. I have to say whatever told me to try Annabelle and Aubrey together was right on! These two are inseparable and have become the best of friends. Jessica Farren was able to catch some incredibly beautiful photos of the two mares. You can see great relationship they have together as they wait for their adopters to find them!

New Friends: Annabelle and Aubrey 

It’s always interesting to pair up two horses for the first time…you never quite know how they’re going to get along. Happily, Annabelle and Aubrey, two mares looking for companion homes, hit it off right away when turned out together for the first time. Since this video was shot, the two have been seen grooming each other in the field, the sign of a true friendship! Good girls!

Foster Update: Aubrey & Marta 

Cute check in with the ladies, Aubrey and Marta…as you can tell they are loving the good life! Both of these lovely ladies are ready for their forever homes. Email adopt@safehorses.org for more information.
Here is a short note from Eileen, their foster mom and SAFE’s President:
“The ladies lead a life of leisure. They had their pedicures done yesterday while nibbling on dinner. Today they sunbathed and ate a few apples from a tree in their pasture. Tomorrow they will enjoy a late breakfast with a spot of jasmine tea that they often manage to finish off for me. In short, life is tough.”

First meeting of new friends 

With Shay’s recent passing, Marta was in need of a new friend to join her at her lovely foster home in Fall City. Since we’ve determined that Aubrey is not sound enough to be ridden, she seemed a good choice. Here are photos of the two mares meeting for the first time (thank you Jessica Farren!)

Aubrey: Health Update 

Aubrey-02-24-16-06Dr. McCracken came to examine Aubrey and check her soundness to see if she could be a light riding horse. After palpating the front leg she determined that the bow tendon is very old, so there is no point in ultrasounding it. Dr. McCracken confirmed that Aubrey has Fibrotic Myopathy in left hind but also noted another possible underlining lameness issues. Both her hocks and fetlocks tested positive after being flexed. Most likely this lameness is being caused by arthritic pain or other old injuries.

Fibrotic Myopathy is a mechanical lameness of the hind limb, caused by an accident that results in the loss of muscle tissue “stretchability.” This is usually due to the scar tissue that is laid down as the injury heals. This results in a gait that makes it look like Aubrey is slapping her left hind hoof to the ground as she brings it forward. For the most part, Fibrotic Myopathy is thought to be pain free however there may be some discomfort in other parts of her body from compensating to this irregular gait. It only shows up only when she trots. Overall Dr. McCracken said that she is pasture sound.

To determine if her lameness is pain related, Dr. McCracken gave Aubrey 2 grams of Bute and waited 15 minutes to recheck. We saw significant improvement, proving that she does have more going on than just Fibrotic Myopathy. We could block and search for the problem but it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. It would take quite a lot of tests to come up with a diagnosis and we have a slim chance of finding just one root cause. It’s unlikely that anything we find would be treatable. Given her racing career, it is likely she has some degree of arthritis. Because we are dealing with an older, chronic lameness, Dr. McCracken agreed that we can continue to turn Aubrey out without having to worry about making things worse.

Dr. McCracken floated Aubrey’s teeth today as well. We found some very sharp points to the back on the right top and an overbite in the front that needed some correction. She will need to be redone in 6 months and possibly every six months going forward. But this will be determined after we see how she looks on the recheck.

I gave her an antifungal bath to clean up all of her rain rot and treated it with Skin Care X — a product that seems to do a very good job of clearing this up quickly. She was an angel for everything. She’s going to be a very easy going companion and a lovely family pet. Aubrey is now available for adoption as a companion.

Aubrey Intake 

Aubrey was surrendered to SAFE by her owner who was unable to provide care for her. She’s had it pretty rough for a while now, and has rain rot over most of her back and hooves that are in bad need of a trim. She also had a badly bowed tendon on her left foreleg which was hot to the touch and swollen. And she appears to have fibrotic myopathy in her left hind leg, a mechanical lameness that causes the hoof to slap the ground as the leg descends. She’s a very sweet and affectionate mare and she would still make a lovely companion horse. 

She has a sweet disposition and loves people. Like any thoroughbred, she can get excited at times, but for the most part is a very calm horse. She is quite the character, flapping her lips to make noise, and nickers for grain and treats. Aubrey likes her buddies and is not as confident on her own. She does best in an open field turnout with another horse.