07-30-2018, 09:18 PM
<link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Cinzel|Yanone+Kaffeesatz|Armata' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'><center><div style="width:500px; background:url('https://i.imgur.com/LeC9gIW.png');border:1px solid #000; padding:0px;"><div style="width:490px; background: rgba(238, 238, 238, 0.75); padding:5px; margin:20px 0px 20px 0px;font-family:yanone kaffeesatz; font-size:18px; color:#000; text-align:center;">everybody seems so far away from me now</div><div style="width:450px; background:#eee; border:1px solid #000; font-family:armata; font-size:12px; color:#000; padding:10px 10px 0px 10px; margin:5px 15px 5px 15px;text-align:justify;">Pond takes notice of the awarded scores, the teacher’s remarks, and collects herself in the face of minor defeat. Her mother had taught her how to lose with grace and continue to hold her head high. As she listens to the teacher’s statements, she nods to herself and clenches her jaw, eager for the next chance to prove herself. If Breckin was the one to beat, she should learn from the other mare’s previous presentation and do her best to match it.
Her next assignment comes: a presentation on Pigeon Fever.
After a brief expedition to gather information from Vulgaris, a stallion she considers to be her mentor and someone she knows is well-versed in the world, she believes she has learned enough to complete her report on the subject. She steps forward as meagerly as before, shadowy wings tucked against her shoulders and avoiding contact with any of the others, and begins her presentation as such:
<b>“Pigeon Fever is a disease also known by the name ‘dryland distemper,’ although it is sometimes confused with the Strangles infection. It is induced either by open wounds or mucous membranes coming into contact with contaminated soil or transmitted by insect bites once a fly has bitten an infected horse or contacted contaminated soil. It is very highly contagious to horses in close proximity with an infected horse.”</b> She pauses to let the information settle in and gives a minor glance to Zain and then to Breckin out of curiosity for their reactions thus far.
She continues: <b>“It’s likely that the ‘dryland’ name comes from the fact that it is often spread by a bacterium found more frequently during periods of drought and in areas that contain dry and warm earth. If possible to locate, some cures include natural herbs such as peppermint or small bulbs of garlic to be used as natural insect repellents. Any open wounds should be cleaned regularly. If the infection is internal, consumption of blue-green algae, carrots, and very fresh grass should help as these all provide essential vitamins to help ward off the illness.”</b>
She pauses to remember what else she had learned from her mentor Vulgaris and tilts her head before continuing onward, determined to try and gain a better score this time. <b>“Often, treatment of Pigeon Fever is to simply allow the illness to run its course. Cold, such as snow or ice, or heat, such as hot springs or warm sand, may be used to negate the effects of external swelling, but internal infections may need more specific treatment to be administered. Obviously, for us wild horses, this may not always be possible and the infection may become deadly.”</b> The very thought saddens her, but she imagines that is why her parents moved her away from the deserts when she’d been so young - so that she could remain well-fed, watered, and healthy with them once they had stepped down from their thrones rather than roaming alone in her youth as each of them had done.
With a short, deep breath, she continues her work. <b>“The disease’s name, ‘Pigeon Fever,’ comes from a tendency of an infected horse’s chest to swell up, giving it the appearance of a fluffed-up pigeon’s chest. However this can often be mistaken for a deep bruise or a muscle strain, which could be a severe mistake to make.”</b> This somehow reminds her of her brother Harking and how he’d always been so strong, with his powerful chest and wings that were so strong and avian, but she had never seen him fall ill. Then again, he hadn’t lived for very long after her birth and had fallen in battle. Who knows? <b>“However the disease comes in several different forms including limb swelling, other external abscesses (such as the swollen chest), or internal organ infections that can be life threatening, but that form is fairly rare.”</b>
She pauses again to collect her breath and steady her nervous heart before she goes on once more. <b>“It typically takes anywhere from three to four weeks to incubate the disease and there are not always immediately identifiable symptoms. It depends on the age and health of the infected horse to determine which form of the disease has been contracted,along with physical symptoms, and specific examinations are often required to pinpoint the exact form the disease has taken. Most likely, though, the disease manifests in abscesses and will abate with tender treatment or, if need be, a lancing of the abscess to allow the fluid to drain away.”</b>
The thought of such a thing afflicting any horse, let alone herself, makes Pond shudder slightly. <b>“However if an abscess is lanced, it should be cleaned regularly and the infected horse kept away from all other nearby horses to prevent further infection, like I mentioned before.”</b>
With her report finished, she recedes to her place in the group, waiting attentively for the next assignment.
<b>Bold</b> text indicates actual essay portions. Word count 431.
Bonus: The Paint horse is an actual breed of horse that can be registered with official horse registries whereas a pinto horse indicates a horse with a multicolored coat (aside from the Appaloosa and other such spotted breeds).
<div style="text-align:right; font-size:30px; font-family:cinzel;line-height:20px;">POND.</div></div><div style="width:490px; background: rgba(238, 238, 238, 0.75); padding:5px; margin:20px 0px 20px 0px;font-family:yanone kaffeesatz; font-size:18px; color:#000; text-align:center;">everybody just wants to be free</div></div></center>
Her next assignment comes: a presentation on Pigeon Fever.
After a brief expedition to gather information from Vulgaris, a stallion she considers to be her mentor and someone she knows is well-versed in the world, she believes she has learned enough to complete her report on the subject. She steps forward as meagerly as before, shadowy wings tucked against her shoulders and avoiding contact with any of the others, and begins her presentation as such:
<b>“Pigeon Fever is a disease also known by the name ‘dryland distemper,’ although it is sometimes confused with the Strangles infection. It is induced either by open wounds or mucous membranes coming into contact with contaminated soil or transmitted by insect bites once a fly has bitten an infected horse or contacted contaminated soil. It is very highly contagious to horses in close proximity with an infected horse.”</b> She pauses to let the information settle in and gives a minor glance to Zain and then to Breckin out of curiosity for their reactions thus far.
She continues: <b>“It’s likely that the ‘dryland’ name comes from the fact that it is often spread by a bacterium found more frequently during periods of drought and in areas that contain dry and warm earth. If possible to locate, some cures include natural herbs such as peppermint or small bulbs of garlic to be used as natural insect repellents. Any open wounds should be cleaned regularly. If the infection is internal, consumption of blue-green algae, carrots, and very fresh grass should help as these all provide essential vitamins to help ward off the illness.”</b>
She pauses to remember what else she had learned from her mentor Vulgaris and tilts her head before continuing onward, determined to try and gain a better score this time. <b>“Often, treatment of Pigeon Fever is to simply allow the illness to run its course. Cold, such as snow or ice, or heat, such as hot springs or warm sand, may be used to negate the effects of external swelling, but internal infections may need more specific treatment to be administered. Obviously, for us wild horses, this may not always be possible and the infection may become deadly.”</b> The very thought saddens her, but she imagines that is why her parents moved her away from the deserts when she’d been so young - so that she could remain well-fed, watered, and healthy with them once they had stepped down from their thrones rather than roaming alone in her youth as each of them had done.
With a short, deep breath, she continues her work. <b>“The disease’s name, ‘Pigeon Fever,’ comes from a tendency of an infected horse’s chest to swell up, giving it the appearance of a fluffed-up pigeon’s chest. However this can often be mistaken for a deep bruise or a muscle strain, which could be a severe mistake to make.”</b> This somehow reminds her of her brother Harking and how he’d always been so strong, with his powerful chest and wings that were so strong and avian, but she had never seen him fall ill. Then again, he hadn’t lived for very long after her birth and had fallen in battle. Who knows? <b>“However the disease comes in several different forms including limb swelling, other external abscesses (such as the swollen chest), or internal organ infections that can be life threatening, but that form is fairly rare.”</b>
She pauses again to collect her breath and steady her nervous heart before she goes on once more. <b>“It typically takes anywhere from three to four weeks to incubate the disease and there are not always immediately identifiable symptoms. It depends on the age and health of the infected horse to determine which form of the disease has been contracted,along with physical symptoms, and specific examinations are often required to pinpoint the exact form the disease has taken. Most likely, though, the disease manifests in abscesses and will abate with tender treatment or, if need be, a lancing of the abscess to allow the fluid to drain away.”</b>
The thought of such a thing afflicting any horse, let alone herself, makes Pond shudder slightly. <b>“However if an abscess is lanced, it should be cleaned regularly and the infected horse kept away from all other nearby horses to prevent further infection, like I mentioned before.”</b>
With her report finished, she recedes to her place in the group, waiting attentively for the next assignment.
<b>Bold</b> text indicates actual essay portions. Word count 431.
Bonus: The Paint horse is an actual breed of horse that can be registered with official horse registries whereas a pinto horse indicates a horse with a multicolored coat (aside from the Appaloosa and other such spotted breeds).
<div style="text-align:right; font-size:30px; font-family:cinzel;line-height:20px;">POND.</div></div><div style="width:490px; background: rgba(238, 238, 238, 0.75); padding:5px; margin:20px 0px 20px 0px;font-family:yanone kaffeesatz; font-size:18px; color:#000; text-align:center;">everybody just wants to be free</div></div></center>