Update: George

March 31, 2007

George is looking very good these days -- just a slight limp. The warm weather is suiting him just fine. We have high hopes that he will make a full recovery!

George got his last dose of anti-inflammatory meds on Tuesday, March 13 and to date seems to be doing as well as expected. The vet predicted that George's condition would deteriorate once meds were stopped. As long as his limp did not go back to what it was in early February, then we could rest assured that the injury was a strain and that nature is slowly taking its course to repair the damage.

Update: George still needing meds

George continues to have problems with his left front leg. The vet, Dr. Brian Willows, paid a visit to the reserve on Tuesday, February 27 to have a look. He told us deerkeepers (Wendy, Don, Jane and Allan) to continue to give him his anti-inflammatory meds once a day for another 10 days and then stop and see if he reverts to the way he walked when we first noticed the injury or there is some improvement. The vet was encouraged by the fact that George is putting weight on the leg and at one point, he actually "pronked" for a few yards.

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If no improvement after we stop the meds, George will have to be tranquilized and examined hands-on. Fortunately, Dr. Willows can bring a mobile x-ray to investigate George's shoulder and leg joints at the reserve. It appears to be a severe strain which can take 6 weeks or more to heal, but it also could be that something has lodged in his hoof. Dr. Willows did not see any swelling to indicate this. In the meantime, we are doing our best to keep George and the rest of the herd as calm as possible.