It is a happy ending to a story FOX16 first brought you more than a year ago. A horse was so badly injured one of its legs eventually rotted off. Now, Lovey is getting around just fine thanks to a new prosthetic leg.
Lovey lost a leg after getting tangled in a fence. Her former owners tried to treat the injury by wrapping the leg with a PVC pipe. The injury got so infected, her leg rotted off.
Kay Simpson of the Humane Society of Pulaski County says Lovey is a fighter. “It was down to a nub, she should have died within a week of when it happened."
But Lovey didn't die, and now thanks to Frank Snell of Snell Prosthetic and Orthotic Laboratory, Lovey is getting a second chance and is now believed to be the only horse in Arkansas with a prosthesis.
"We saw this story about Lovey and Kay being interviewed. My wife said call her tomorrow and make that horse a leg," said Snell.
At first Lovey bucks at the idea, but soon understands this will help her get around like any other horse. Once the prosthetic is on, Lovey successfully tries it out. For the first time in more than a year, Lovey can graze without the fear of falling over, thanks to her new prosthetic leg.
"We're basically able to give the horse much of its normal life back, that's what prosthesis is all about," said Snell.
With all four legs, Lovey is now able to do anything other horses can do.
Lovey's former owners who treated her leg injury by wrapping it in a PVC pipe were not charged with a crime. Simpson says that this is not a case of intentional cruelty. The owners cooperated and surrendered the animal to her custody. Lovey's prothesis was donated free of charge by Frank Snell of Snell Prosthetic and Orthotic Laboratory
