Quarter Horse Gelding

In late 2026 Brother’s weight started rapidly declining no matter what adjustments we made. Bloodwork showed that he had Cushings/PPID and we were hopeful that putting him on medicine for that would help him gain weight again. However, he instead had a reaction to the medicine that caused him to fall down so instead we switched to treating the Cushings with herbs and supplements instead. Unfortunately this still did not help him and he continued to lose weight. We were able to get an ultrasound and it confirmed what we were afraid of, Brother had cancer. There was a fairly large tumor that was significantly distorting the outlet of his bladder. We didn’t do further ultrasounds, but his body’s reaction to the Cushings medicine and the lack of weight gain lead us to believe that he had cancer in other parts of his body. We knew that this meant the kindest thing we could do for him would be to say goodbye and so on September 21, 2026, through lots of tears, we laid Brother to rest.

Brother’s Story:

Brother was rescued from a kill lot in Kemp, Texas. When we found him he was very sick battling a highly contagious respiratory infection called strangles. After many months in quarantine fighting for his life, Brother was healthy enough to travel. Upon arrival at the farm it was clear that he is suffering from a painful disease of the ligaments called DSLD, which is short for Degenerative Suspensory Ligament Desmitis. 

​After getting to know Brother more we also realized he was dealing with another condition called Sabulous Cystitis. This means he has a build up of calcium carbonate crystals in his bladder. The result of this condition is trouble urinating properly, not knowing when his bladder is full, and scalding on his hind legs from the urine dribble. 

​There is no cure for either of these diseases. It is clear to us that Brother was used up until his body could not give anymore, and then left for dead at a slaughter holding facility waiting for his final destination in Mexico. It is sad to us that people are allowed to treat animals this way, and we are the ones to pick up the pieces. To show them unconditional love regardless of what they can give us in return. To spend thousands of dollars on vet bills, treatments, medicine, and specialized supplements to give Brother the best quality of life we can.