What must it feel like to suddenly lose a finger? Such a case has just happened in Australia: An Australian racecourse employee had this dramatic experience when he lost part of his finger during a barrier trial at the Tatura racecourse in Victoria.
Tim Cossor, who has looked after the racecourse for 42 years, was riding his horse Clarence when he chased a free-roaming horse that had escaped from the stalls during the steeplechase. He managed to hold on to the horse but it ducked under Clarence and threw him to the ground.
Cossor was able to get up after his fall, but part of his right ring finger was severed. After an operation at nearby Bendigo Hospital, doctors were unable to reattach the severed ring finger, although it was restored.
"A horse had broken loose and jumped in front of the barrier without a rider and I chased it. I caught the horse but then it ducked under me and my horse and we rolled over," Cossor told Racing.com.
"We hit the grass and it took the wind out of my sails. I was lying on the track thinking `Oh no, I`ve hurt myself` but I didn`t know about the finger at that point. I picked myself up and only then saw that my finger was missing."
The two horses were unharmed after the incident and Cossor refused to go to hospital until he checked on them. He hoped to return to work as a clerk next month and was able to continue playing in a band as a bass guitarist in his spare time.
Cosser said, "I looked down at my hand and thought `Oh s***,` and then I thought `Wait a minute, I don`t use that finger to play,` and that realisation was a big relief."
"Then the nice paramedic came and tried to patch up the wound and I said `I`ve got the finger`. They put it in a plastic bag and by that time my hand was bleeding at the seams. We were playing at a 40th birthday party on Saturday night, and I was playing too, I just bandaged my hand. It didn`t hurt because I don`t need the finger or the place where the finger was."
He continued, "I`ve loved music all my life and we`re a working band that plays almost every weekend, so it`s a big part of my life and it would have been horrible if it was one of my other fingers and I couldn`t play anymore. Luckily Clarence and I both came through it fine and that`s the most important thing. A lot of people have lost a finger or two, it`s not a big deal. At the end of the day you can`t feel sorry for yourself, you have to stay positive and keep fighting another day."
