Barbaro Faces 'Tough Times' After Surgery

High Fever, Infections Have Hindered Recovery Process for Kentucky Derby Winner

"I think we're in for tough times right now," says Dean Richardson, chief of surgery at the University of Pennsylvania hospital. "I'm being realistic about it. When a horse has a setback like this, it's a problem." (Al Behrman - AP)

After more than six weeks of nearly trouble-free recovery from life-saving surgery, Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro has begun to face the harrowing complications his doctors feared most.

Since shattering multiple bones in his right rear leg less than 50 strides into the Preakness Stakes on May 20 at Pimlico Race Course, Barbaro has been a model patient at the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center. Yet things have not gone well since the hospital's chief of surgery, Dean Richardson, replaced the cast on the injured leg for the second time on July 3.

On Saturday, after Barbaro began displaying increasing discomfort and a persistent high fever, Richardson operated to replace the titanium plate in the horse's leg and most of the 27 screws inserted during the surgery following the breakdown. Richardson also treated an infection that had developed around the pastern joint and another infection discovered in the sole of Barbaro's uninjured left hoof.

Yesterday, a long cast applied Saturday was replaced with a smaller one in another procedure requiring sedation.

It was the fourth time in a week Richardson had changed Barbaro's cast. On Wednesday, Richardson replaced the second cast and two screws that bridged the pastern joint because Barbaro had bent them being active in his stall. That day the small infection in the left hind hoof was discovered.

"I think we're in for tough times right now," Richardson told the Associated Press in a briefing yesterday. "I'm being realistic about it. When a horse has a setback like this, it's a problem."

Gretchen Jackson, who co-owns the horse with her husband, Roy, said Richardson had told her Barbaro was doing fine and the horse's life was not in immediate danger.

"Hopefully, he's back on the road to recovery again," Jackson said. "He's eating; he's biting at people and pinning his ears. He's not in any pain. That's the only thing I care about is he's not in pain. He's been uncomfortable, but not to the point where they say he can't deal with it. They are giving him painkillers."

Since the beginning, Richardson has described Barbaro's chances of survival as 50-50. While the main fracture is healing well, Richardson said in a statement the surgery to change the plate and screws Saturday was required because "it was in his best interest to remove the hardware and thoroughly clean the site of the infection."

It took Barbaro a long time to recover from the anesthesia, with the operation and recovery Saturday lasting a total of nearly 15 hours. The horse is receiving antibiotics and other care, including massage, Richardson said.

The long cast was replaced with a short one because "it is much easier for him to move around his stall and get up and down with a short cast," Richardson said.

The Jacksons have been visiting Barbaro daily, and Gretchen Jackson said she has been steeling her emotions in anticipation of rough times in the recovery process.

"It's to be expected," she said. "You hope it doesn't happen. We've been warned and through this before. We haven't given up the ghost. You take it a day at a time."

Barclay Tagg, who trains several horses for the Jacksons, including their rising star Showing Up, said Barbaro's recovery is fraught with complications because horses aren't meant to go through such demanding procedures.

"When a horse breaks a leg, you can't lay them in bed and put them in traction," Tagg said. "Horses weren't made to stand in a stall and eat carbohydrates. They are meant to stand in a pasture and eat grass. They have poor circulatory systems and digestive systems. You need miracles to get through this."

Racing notes: Tagg has elected not to run Showing Up this Saturday in the $1 million Virginia Derby at Colonial Downs, eliminating any chance the horse could sweep the $5 million Grand Slam of Grass after taking the first leg, the $1 million Colonial Cup on June 24 at the track in New Kent, Va.