While I do not rule out an emotional component, it appears that Rodney’s overreaction to his minor injury [Back Issues] had more to do with me using the wrong meds.
In medical school, my husband Greg was told that the world has many more horses than zebras. Therefore, don’t go looking for zebras. In other words, the most obvious diagnosis is probably correct. Don’t go looking for obscure diseases. Occam’s razor for medicine.
At the beginning of the year, I did a post on gentian violet [You Know You Are A Horse Person When]. My mother commented that my great-grandmother used it in her ears. Purple ears? Not obviously. The goal is to place it down in the ear canal. I started doing this to address a minor ear irritation that occasionally blossoms into an ear infection. Success. I also use it for those annoying, painful, winter fingertip cracks, as well as for equine dings and dents. I came to think of it as a miracle liquid.
So, when Milton scraped Rodney’s back, out came the Blu-Kote. The layer of loose skin sloughed off. When a second layer of skin began peeling, my medical advisor thought something was odd. He researched the purple goo and emailed me, “It is drying and cytotoxic. Both are good for keeping infection at bay, but not so good for fast healing.” Google tells me that cytotoxic means toxic to living cells.
I switched to slathering the injury with Vetasan (chlorhexidine gluconate), as much for the moisturizing as for the medication. Rodney immediately relaxed and has stopped flinching. The abrasion is now healing normally. So much for my elaborate psycho-social theories.
Sorry, Dude.
OTOH, Greg points out that Rodney remains a drama llama, “We’ve all gotten some of the purple goo on us and none have taken to the fainting couch quite like he has.”
~~~
Driving Thursday will be intermittent until the weather cools off. We’ll do some ground-driving with Milton and saddle seat driving lessons at SSF. We will do fewer treks up to Whip Hand Farm in Tennessee for combined driving. Little car [What’s in Your Stocking] has an awesome set of squirrels, but an economical approach to air conditioning.
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
Virtual Brush Box 