So, co-worker and his wife have two horses…an old arab mare and a late teens/maybe 20’s fat pinto thing. They got them several years ago for free - neither co-worker nor his wife know anything about horses and had ZERO experience prior to taking these two horses. They do not ride them; they are simply backyard pets.
I hadn’t seem them in a few years but knew the arab was older. I helped him get hay this summer with my truck, and when we got to his house, the arab mare was skinny. I told him that she was skinny and he said “yeah, I thought she looked like she had lost weight this summer…” My response was “If you want her to live through winter you need to do something different…if you lived where the public could see her, someone would have turned you in by now.” For real. He just didn’t realize she was “that skinny.” I convinced him to switch what she was eating (junk Poulin sweet feed, their cheapest grain basically) to Poulin E-Tec Low Carb Senior. I recommended soaking since she is old and it would lessen her risk of choke.
He comes in this morning and says “oh, skinny mare choked on that grain, it’s bad it has beet pulp in it.” I asked if he had been soaking it - of course not.
Horse choked Wednesday night.
Co-worker tried to use water from garden hose to flush it out. It didn’t work so he had the vet come.
Vet tubes the horse, says that he thinks its almost to the stomach based on how much tube he got into the horse. Gave horse banamine, told co-worker that when choke had passed horse would start drinking water again. He said to remove all food until that happens. Then he left. [this is per co-worker telling me this this morning]
Today is Friday. Co-worker says that horse still hasn’t drank water and seems like the obstruction is still there based on her behavior. I asked if she’s been getting banamine to help with the pain/swelling in her throat to encourage it to pass easier. Nope. Vet never said anything about that.
I encouraged him to call his vet back today, now, to not wait longer. He said he would call his wife (who doesn’t know jack sh*t about horses) and see what she wanted to do. 
I am hoping their vet will come back out and at least give the poor horse some banamine.
They aren’t neglecting the horse on purpose but it really gets under my skin that they are neglecting her because of ignorance. He knows I’ve had horses forever and have had my fair share of educational experiences, yet defers to the wife who doesn’t have a clue. Fine, dont’ believe me, but please CALL THE VET BACK!
