Is there a donkey tooth fairy..?

Abraham donkey had a bad tooth. A molar, at the very back of his mouth. It was broken, and food was catching in it. The vet told me it was painful. She took a look but didn't feel confident about removing it, and referred us to an equine dental specialist. Did you even know there was such a thing? There is, and she came to the farm two weeks ago. She took blood work and x rays. She tranquilized our little donkey friend and poked around in his mouth. It was decided that she would return the next week, after ordering smaller tools to get into the tight space way in the back. She came with an assistant, and they hauled in stacks of equipment. Abraham got another dose of tranquilizer, and then a catheter was inserted in his neck. This was a tricky, fiddly process, but finally it was in place. IV fluids were started, along with a more serious tranquilizer. A nerve block was injected so he wouldn't feel any pain in his jaw.

 I locked the goats up in the Cozy. They ate some hay, then napped while Abraham was worked on in the next room.

The donkey ladies stayed close to the door, curious about what was happening. 

Once he was sleepy, his mouth got a good rinse with a medicated wash. 

Next, a heavy, metal, speculum was buckled to his head, and his jaws were opened wide. 

Many tools were used, as the veterinarian tried to remove the broken tooth. 

After much effort, some of the offending tooth was removed. A shard, attached to the infected root, remained. This was disheartening, but the vet told me that at least food wouldn't be getting stuck there, and his pain would be relieved because the wiggly, broken part was removed.

She said Abraham was a very good donkey, and then said, "I rarely use those words together in a sentence." He had been a wonderful patient throughout the hours he was worked on.

They took the speculum off, and unhooked his catheter. Wobbly, he wandered outside and relieved himself the liters of fluid he had been given. Then came and put his head in my lap. For a long time.

The vet and her assistant carried all the tools back to her truck. I set the goats free. After a while Abraham was more awake and began looking for food. I gave him some hay and he ate it. I paid the doctor, was pleased that my donkey was alert and hungry, then found myself sighing deeply. The whole experience had been more stressful than I had anticipated. Watching my little donkey go through that long, arduous process was hard. I felt wrung out.

Just then the phone rang. It was the man I was borrowing the buck goat from. "I'm on my way, I'll be there to get Bon Homme in 20 minutes." The buck is cute as can be, but wild as a March hare, and I knew catching him would be tricky. Back out to the pasture I went, with some goat grain. The lady goats recognized the bucket and came running. The buck was hot on their heels, because he wanted to be with them EVERY SINGLE SECOND. I locked them back up, just in time. The goat farmer arrived, and was pleased that he didn't have to chase his buck around the big pasture.He tied a length of baling twine around the goats neck and hauled him to his truck, and they were off.

Suddenly the farmlette seemed quieter. The donkeys dozed in the sun, the goats nosed around for late autumn plants to eat.

Later we had a fire in the back yard, then Chris and Evans teamed up to create a fabulous supper for us to share.

 Now we wait to see how donkey boy heals up. So far he is being a good sport, swallowing 14 antibiotic pills a day, and tolerating my fussing over him. He and I are both looking for a visit from the donkey tooth fairy.