Dakota

25 yr old Tennessee Walker Gelding

Pasture Mate

Dakota was surrendered to the rescue in February 2023. He arrived underweight, with poor teeth and a sinus infection that he may have lived with for some time. When pulling his teeth, the vet noticed that the infection from one necrotic tooth had eaten through his jaw bone, leaving a fistula, or hole connecting his sinus and oral cavities. Food would pass through and even get stuck in this hole, prolonging his sinus infection. He couldn't remain on antibiotics indefinitely, and the infection wouldn't heal as long as the hole remained open.

Dakota was taken to the NC State Veterinary Hospital for CT imaging and a surgical procedure to repair the fistula and flush his infected sinuses. While there was a concern that he may have had a form of skin cancer, which would have prevented the fistula from healing over, biopsies and further check-ups confirmed that Dakota is cancer-free and that his fistula has completely healed. Dakota is on his way to a healthy weight and we hope that he has many more years ahead of him.