A Bad Beginning (Dr. Carr/Madison)

[Sir Peter Solomon]

Peter was making his usual rounds, looking in one each of the mares, especially the ones that were close to term. He knew that the next few months would be busy, but he was looking forward to it, as well. He was about to look in on Suede when he smelled a rather pungent smell. He wrinkled his nose and looked into the stall, careful not to disturb the mare. As he saw the small foetus in the corner, he sighed, "Poor, poor girl." He stepped back into the aisle and called the vet, telling her that one of his mares seemed to have aborted overnight, and he would like it if she checked Suede, the foetus, and the other mares, just in case something infectious had passed on. After concluding the call, and while still watching the mare, he typed in another number, and sent it a text message, two lines that read "Madison, Suede miscarried during the night. Please come in as soon as possible, tell your teacher that I'll take care of it later."

After that, he slipped his phone back into his pocket and turned towards the mare, "My poor, poor girl, why did you have to go and lose him?" He didn't rub the mare's nose, not that he wanted to, but from fear of spreading infection, if there was anything.

[Demeter Carr]

Demeter was already at the clinic, up to her armpits in filthy shavings when her phone buzzed in the back pocket of the jodhpurs she wearing. Stepping out of the stall she was emptying out, she pulled the phone out of her pocket.

After a quick conversation with the Evening Primrose manager, she shoved her phone back into her pocket and snapped into action. Hurrying into the medical room, she grabbed her vet-bag and grabbed a stethoscope, which she hung around her neck, and hurried out of the clinic before breaking into a jog, and heading toward the broodmare barn. With all of the mares being pregnant, and a handful of them so close to term, they couldn't chance Suede having something viral that could already be running rampant through the cozy barn.

Slowing down to a quick walk as she reached the barn, she strode down to where she could see Peter standing outside the mare's stall. "I would rather be here for a happier reason." She commented with a half smile as she pulled a pair of latex gloves out of her bag and pulled them on. "Heya girl." She greeted the mare as she entered the stall. "Let's get you checked out and have a look at your baby." The veterinarian then gave the mare a full physical, before she took her temperature - being as gentle as possible - and then taking a vial of blood from the mare's neck.

Leaving the stall, she walked outside where she could do a handful of tests with the blood there and then and left them as she walked back in. It was now time to inspect the body of the foal.

Entering the stall, she drew in all of her professionalism and walked over to the body and knelt down. Pulling on a fresh pair of gloves, she went over every inch of the baby and then - while on her knees - began to search the floor of the stall until she found what she wanted, the placenta.

Walking back out to the tests, she checked them and released a relieved sigh as they all showed a negative result and walked back to Peter. "Just because I'm here, I want to check on the other mares anyway." She told him. "Good and bad news about Suede. Although it's horrible that she lost her baby, it seems that it is no more than a case of MRLS, or Mare reproductive loss syndrome. Just make sure that she's eating well. Her udder is pretty full so at least you might have a spare set of teats if you need them."

[madison]

Madison was in class when she received the text, taking notes on government actually. At first she ignored the vibration in her pocket, though as it continued on unique to that of one of her equine related profs Madison pulled it out of her pocket. Teachers generally understood that most students would be in class at this time of day, so it had to be something serious. Her heart raced instantly, she didn’t even finish reading the text. While there was instant relief that both Dillon and Tilly were fine her heart was equally as crushed for Suede. Gathering her books she shoved them in her bag and headed to the front of class, she quickly excused herself due to an equine emergency and sprinted out of the building. It wasn’t too far of a run from the school buildings to the Evening Primrose Barn, Madison was glad she had put on her boots this morning and while her attire was barn oriented or particularly warm she had no interest in stopping to get a coat. When she got close to the buildings and horses Madison slowed to a hurried walk, her bag bounced around off her slender hips. She recognized Dr. Carr instantly, Madison was out of breath and the tears were visible in her eyes, she didn’t let them roll down her cheeks quite yet. With the loss of her sister still fresh in her mind Madison mourned for the mare the way a human would another human, perhaps it was foolish or whatnot but she held herself together in the presence of others.

She nodded, listening now to Dr. Carr she looked to Suede for a moment but focused back on what the vet had to say. Madison didn’t go to the mare, she didn’t know the reason of the abortion quite yet and didn’t want to pass anything around. Instead she looked to Sir Solomon, frowning. Her mind ran through the words that she pieced together from Dr. Carr, Mare Reproductive Loss Syndrome, she had heard the term before but didn’t exactly know all the details – for some reason it rang a bell that made Madison think of caterpillars. She almost blurted something out but contained herself instead, taking a few moments to process Madison decided she couldn’t pass up the learning opportunity.

“Dr. Carr do you think MRLS is related to caterpillars, I remember reading something along those lines.”

She didn’t want to ask directly whether or not what had happened could have been avoided, the mares were given the best care and diet available – Madison knew it. She tried to think of her time with the mare, and while in reality she spent most of it grooming and hand walking in the arena she had taken the mare outside and she did get turned out as usual. Madison didn’t think it was something she had done, she wracked her brain to conclude that she had never fed the mare anything aside from her regulated diet as assigned by Sir Solomon. She looked up from the ground to the two adults, part of her wanted to run to her own two horses and check that they were well before allowing herself to breakdown and process. Normally she could keep composed through such an ordeal but the already brewing emotional mess she hid from the world made things harder to compartmentalize.

“Is there anything I can do for her?”

ooc: sadface :[ - clothes

[Sir Peter Solomon]

Peter looked up as he heard the vet's voice, "I'm sorry to say, I was hoping not to see you here for a professional reason quite so soon either." He smiled at her, "Thank you for getting here so promptly." He stepped back to allow the woman access to the stall, before moving forward again to watch her examination. As Madison came in, he looked over to her, and nodded to her, "Which class were you in?" He would have to talk to the teacher, of course, but it wouldn't be too problematic. As Dr. Carr gave her opinion, Peter nodded, "Feel free, I was going to ask the same thing of you anyway." He held a hand out to the mare, since he knew now that she wasn't infectious, as he listened to Madison's question. Since she didn't ask him, he didn't offer an opinion, although he knew what the girl had been talking about. It had been in the news, although he would have thought the big investigation had been a bit before Madison's time, since it had taken place in 2001-2.

As the girl asked about anything she could do for the mare, Peter frowned, considering. Since the mare wasn't infectious, she might be able to brush the mare, but he didn't want the mare stressed out even more, and she did seem to be rather tired, "Perhaps let her recover a little bit, but later today, after classes, you can brush her down and turn her out, try to get her to relax a bit more."

[Demeter Carr]

Demeter gave the barn manager a comforting smile. "There was nothing you could have done, if it makes you feel better." She told him.

She rolled her eyes at Madison's comment about caterpillars. "That happened once, and eleven years ago at that." She said. "Also, that was in March, when the caterpillars were hatching. It was a freak accident, almost as common as humans spontaneously combusting." She turned back to Peter. "Had it been Late Fetal Loss, or LFL, the mare would have shown more obvious signs, puss-like discharge. And the outcome would have been so much worse for her."

The woman made her way toward the mare in the next stall and turned back as she heard the student's question and the manager's reply. "I am sorry, and I don't want to step on any toes, Sir Solomon." She said. "But Suede isn't going to be going anywhere for the next day or so. I would also rather she was handled by as few people as possible. Her immune system is currently at its lowest. I'll prescribe her some antibiotics." She pressed her lips together, knowing that her next statement might be indeed stepping on toes. "You also may want to talk to Cara about herbs you could offer her."

[madison]

Madison looked from adult to adult; she felt uncomfortable but couldn’t quite figure out why. Looking to the mare she sighed, she didn’t look sick still the student kept her ground. She wiped the tears from her eye, her sisters memory still nagging at her, combined with the tired individual she was Madi just wanted to go home to bed and cry in her pillow. She saved her tears for her pillow, she didn’t share those feelings with others. Looking up to Sir Solomon Madison spoke, her tone soft – not wanting to draw attention.

“I was in Government with Mr. Matthews.”

Her tone was strained, evidently distracted though she waited for an answer to her question that she had remembered reading about. Yes it was a study done years ago, but there had been an update and warning of sorts for last breeding season and she had caught tidbits about it from around the farm. When she looked to Dr. Carr Madison felt that her assumptions about the woman disliking her were just her being paranoid but just watching the woman roll her eyes and felt her jaw drop. She had never in all her years showing internationally met a vet who would treat any horse owner that way, keeping her composure she resisted the urge to spin on her heel and leave the “adults” to deal with things. Instead she remained composed and listened to the woman finish then let her tone hit the air, she stayed calm and polite her tone even though obviously appalled.

“I apologize; I thought I had read otherwise. Though since you’re the vet and I’m the student trying to learn, please make your corrections rude and embarrassing – be the adult!”

Silence, it passed. She looked to the mare, her attention on the horse. While she liked the creature Madison felt that she could never speak with Dr. Carr again and be content, maybe she was reading into things due to her current emotional trauma but Madison knew neither of her horses would ever see the vet, she would sooner have her parents fly out her vet from home. She was at the school to learn, as far as she was concerned it should be a learning experience all round – questions welcomed and used as an opportunity to teach students – it was an equine university. Once more Dr. Carr spoke and Madi clenched her fists, her tone was even – composed and always polite.

“You know what Sir Solomon don’t bother contacting Mr. Matthews, I am heading back to his class right now. I don’t really feel welcome here at the moment. Despite the fact that I regularly handle Suede, please Dr. Carr feel free to contact me when I am welcome to touch her again. Hope you both have a pleasant evening.”

With those words she turned on her heel and headed towards the barn door, she couldn’t handle it any longer. She was a mess, it wasn’t totally the vet’s fault but she certainly hadn’t helped, she had lit the fuse. Even worse Madi felt like she had no one to turn to, no friends or anyone that would listen and understand. She didn’t dare call her mom or brother because she didn’t want to worry them, instead she stopped a few feet after the door swung shut behind her. The cold pushed her over the edge, it stung her eyes and couldn’t help herself. She started to cry, the tears fell involuntarily and soon she found herself leaned against the building her face in her knees as she crouched and sobbed. Embarrassing or not she wasn’t exactly present at the moment.

ooc: I have been waiting for this opportunity since she joined, excellent! - clothes

[Sir Peter Solomon]

Peter nodded as the girl told him which teacher's class he had interrupted. Since the man was one of the teachers who did indeed keep horses, he was sure that he would be able to pardon the girl from class. As the vet started answering Madison's question, Peter felt the tension in the barn, and forced himself to stay calm, knowing that the aura they were giving would affect all of the mares around them. Anyway, the women were giving off enough bad vibes that he didn't need to join them. While he didn't agree with how Dr. Carr had dealt with the question, he didn't speak up against it, until the girl responded, rather rudely, "Madison, that is no way to speak to the woman who is here to help what is in a way your horse." His voice was calm, measured, although it held just a hint of disappointment. Leaving it at that, he listened to the vet, nodding as she told him, in effect, that the mare had been lucky, despite the mishap.

As the vet stepped in on his decision, Peter nodded just slightly, "As you say, Dr. Carr." He turned back to Madi, "I'll let you know when she gets the all-clear, then." He heard the woman's last suggestion, although it was overshadowed by what Madison spoke right after. He sighed slightly, ready to speak up again at the girl's command, but she had already stalked out of the barn. Peter shook his head and muttered to himself, "I'll have to talk to her later." before he turned to Dr. Carr, "Not that I would criticize a fellow staff member, but perhaps a bit more tact would have won her over better." While the woman was only a few years younger than himself, Peter felt secure in his words, although he had a very good idea of who this woman was.

[Demeter Carr]

Demeter arched an eyebrow at the student's response to what she had said and then she shook her head at the girl, not even bothering to reply to her. It was the girl's own fault for trying to use some information she had obviously pulled up off the google-web to try and make herself smarter - as the topic of MRLS was hardly something that the average person would bring up.

However, Madison's next explosion and storming off made the vet's mouth drop open. "I said she needed to be handled by as few people as possible." She said to the barn manager. "I never once said she couldn't handle the mare." I want her treated with kid-skinned gloves, as though she is infectious." The vet looked at the mare and then back at Peter. "Yes, I could have used more tact, but that girl has never proved to me that she can follow a simple instruction without it being as blunt as possible." Sure, she had done well with her rescue project, but the rescue horses were also handled by her vet students.

"I'll go and do that check-up of the other mares." She paused before she made her way down to the next stall. "How many of them are about ready to pop?" Since this was Peter's barn and he was trained to take care of the mares she kept out of the man's business as much as possible. However, with the Academy having lost one foal already, she now wanted to be in the know.

[Sir Peter Solomon]

Peter nodded his understanding as the woman rationalized the sentence, "I'm sorry, Dr. Carr, I'd misunderstood you." He felt bad, realizing that he was partially at fault for the entire fiasco, then shrugged it away. Time to move on, everything would have to be dealt with at a later date. He nodded as Dr. Carr gave him a few more instructions, "As you say, then. I'll notify the barn hands to keep away form her, and she'll only be handled by myself or..." He trailed off, "Well, I'll have a talk with Madison. If we can work things out, then it will just be the pair of us handling her." If he didn't, though, Peter had no problem with taking over the mare's care himself.

He listened as Dr. Carr gave him a short reason for her bluntness. He had seen that the girl needed strict rules, or else might err on the side of being a bit too loose, but hadn't really had a problem with her up until that day, "If you think it was best, then, I won't interfere." He took a step back, unwilling to get into problems between another professional and someone who was, apparently, also her student.

As the woman moved on to the first topic at hand, Peter felt a relaxation of tension in the barn. It was back to business as normal, then, which he much appreciated. As the woman asked which of the mares were close to term, Peter pointed around the barn at three specific stalls, "Charmander, the dapple grey Thoroughbred; Memo, the black Arabian; and Shiloh, the flaxen Haflinger." He smiled briefly at the woman, "If it's alright with you, I'll go put up the paperwork on Suede. I'll be in my office."

[Demeter Carr]

Demeter nodded her head. "I'll also have a word with Madison." She commented. "Or at least send her a text as I can guarantee that she'll be screening her calls. The way Suede pricked her ears forward when the girl entered showed me that they have a strong bond, and the mare is going to need the girl more than ever right now."

She smiled her thanks when she had the names of the mare closest to foaling. "I'll check those ones first then." She nodded about the paperwork. "I'll come and see you before I leave." She told the barn manager as she headed off down toward the stall that housed Charmander and gave the dappled grey a tickle on her muzzle.

It didn't take too long to check on all of the mare's, and reading through the notes that their students had left about how much food they were consuming. Her eyebrow arched when she saw the extras that Cara was feeding the mare and she made a note to pick the girl's brain at some point. She frowned slightly when she read more about Shiloh but was pleased that the mare was almost at full term and still had a live foal.

Once the mares were checked, she headed toward the manager's office and tapped on the door gently. "Sir Solomon?" She said as she looked around the door frame. "The girls are all looking well, your students are doing a remarkable job. I would say that the dappled Thoroughbred will be the next to drop. Give me a call if you need anything." With a small wave, she left the office and the barn.

Madi, now would be a good time for Madison to slink back into the barn. She could possibly heard the last of what Demi said to Peter about Suede needing Madison.