Meet Molly

was abandoned by her owners when Hurricane

Katrina hit southern  Louisiana .  She spent weeks

on her own before finally being rescued and taken

to a farm where abandoned animals were stockpiled.

While there, she was attacked by a pit bull terrier

and almost died.  Her gnawed right front leg became

infected, and her vet went to LSU for help, but LSU

was overwhelmed, and this pony was a welfare case.

You know how that goes.

But after surgeon Rustin Moore met Molly, he

changed his mind.  He saw how the pony was

careful to lie down on different sides so she didn’t

seem to get sores, and how she allowed people to

handle her.  She protected her injured leg.  She

constantly shifted her weight and didn’t overload

her good leg.  She was a smart pony with a serious

survival ethic.

Moore agreed to remove her leg below the knee,

and a temporary artificial limb was built.  Molly

walked out of the clinic and her story really begins

there.

‘This was the right horse and the right owner,’

Moore insists.  Molly happened to be a

one-in-a-million patient.  She’s tough as nails,

but sweet, and she was willing to cope with pain.

She made it obvious she understood that she was

in trouble.  The other important factor, according

to Moore , is having a truly committed and compliant

owner who is dedicated to providing the daily care

required over the lifetime of the horse.

Molly’s story turns into a parable for life in

post-Katrina Louisiana   The little pony gained weight,

and her mane finally felt a comb  A human prosthesis

designer built her a leg.

The prosthetic has given Molly a whole new life,

Allison Barca DVM, Molly’s regular vet, reports.

And she asks for it.  She will put her little limb out,

and come to you and let you know that she wants

you to put it on.  Sometimes she wants you to take

it off too.  And sometimes, Molly gets away from

Barca.  ‘It can be pretty bad when you can’t catch a

three-legged horse,’ she laughs.

Most important of all, Molly has a job now.  Kay,

the rescue farm owner, started taking Molly to

shelters, hospitals, nursing homes, and rehabilitation

centers.  Anywhere she thought that people needed

hope.  Wherever Molly went, she showed people her

pluck.  She inspired people, and she had a good time

doing it.

‘It’s obvious to me that Molly had a bigger role to

play in life,? Moore said.  ‘She survived the hurricane,

she survived a horrible injury, and now she is giving

hope to others.’

Barca concluded, ‘She’s not back to normal, but she’s

going to be better.  To me, she could be a symbol