Brentina, one of the United States' most successful dressage horses ever, has undergone a second colic surgery since her retirement in 2009. The 22-year old Hanoverian mare was operated on for an impacted colon on 14 August 2013.
The retired mare, who is kept fit with daily turnout and walks on the treadmill, was transported to Sawtooth Equine Service in Bellevue, Idaho, where she is recovering now.
"We gave it a safe amount of time to correct itself but monitored all of her vital signs and continued to do so until it got to the point where the pain was not as manageable,” Debbie McDonald told The Chronicle of the Horse. “So [the veterinarians] decided to go in, and [we thought,] ‘If it’s irreparable, it’s irreparable.’ Fortunately, it was just an impaction in the left colon with a 180 [degree] twist. We were very lucky to be able to rectify it that quickly and that well.”
Under Debbie McDonald Brentina (by Brentano II x Lungau) earned the United States its first World Cup Dressage Finals Champion in 2003 and represented the United States at both the 2004 and
2008 Olympic Games. At the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, they led the U.S.
to the bronze medal.
Brentina underwent her first colic surgery in February 2009 and fully recovered from it.
Photo © Mary Phelps
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