Titan's Eye Surgery

Hi! Thank you for taking the time to read about our sweet Titan. I am hoping to share his uplifting story so people can see what a true gentle giant he is, and how he deserves the best care ever!

NRL was lucky enough to buy Titan March 25, 2022. It seemed like he was all we needed in a draft horse from their ads, appeared to be healthy in the videos and we were so excited to bring him home. Although his training was great, he was not at all what the videos portrayed. He was an Amish horse, which means he was used up, used as “equipment” and discarded when no longer useful. His spirit seemed broken when we got him home. There was no spark in his eye, no acknowledgement of people, and he didn’t even know how to take treats. He also came with a vast array of health problems: MAGGOTS literally in wounds on his legs, overgrown hooves, morbidly obese (tested for Cushings which we found out he had), terrible teeth that needed to be floated, and was sold to Nicole as 15 when vets estimated his age between 20-25. However there was no way we were giving up on him, even though it took a few months for him to get past some of these health problems. And happy to say that through love, wonderful veterinary & farrier care, and proper nutrition he started to have the best personality. He is now a barn favorite and a silly guy that literally anyone can ride whether on the trails, in the arena, etc. We have even had 5 year olds on him!

When Titan arrived along with his myriad of health problems, he came with a tiny spot in the corner of his eye that the vets said to monitor but were not overly concerned about. Fast forward 10 months later and the spot has grown tremendously. An Equine Ophthamologist confirmed it is squamous cell carcinoma, which needs to be surgically removed. Surgery can be upwards of $2500 including aftercare, medicines and the surgery itself. His prognosis is that he will return to normal work and never have it again! Thank you in advance for the help. We just want to be able to do everything for all our wonderful horses!

A note from Dr. Katie (who will be performing the surgery herself):

Titan has been diagnosed with a cancer which affects his right eye, called squamous cell carcinoma. This is most commonly a locally invasive cancer, meaning it does not tend to spread to other body parts, but can cause significant problems in the affected location. Titan’s cancer was just in the outer corner of the white of his eye, but has spread onto his cornea, the clear part of his eye. The good news is that the tumor is still small enough that it can be removed surgically. Following surgery, Titan will require several weeks of medication and intensive aftercare to give him the best chance at minimal vision loss, maximum comfort, and the best chance of removing his cancer before it becomes too large to remove. Following surgery and recovery, there is a good chance that Titan will live the rest of his life without ever needing a second surgery. Fortunately, this surgery can be done standing and at the farm, which helps with costs.