Am I putting to sleep too soon?

[Krystalw]

I have a 24year old fell x cob mare who I have owned for 15 years.
A couple of years ago she was diagnosed with cushings and has been on half a tablet of prascend a day since. She has had bouts of laminitis ever summer since and her pedal bones did rotate in all 4 feet slightly but she has come sound and can still be ridden. She needs ridden constantly through the summer to prevent anymore lami
However unfortunately the yard we were at cannot keep her stabled there anymore and so I have had to move her to the only other place I could find in the area which costs £200 a month for diy livery. This is before the cost of her meds the farrier feeding etc etc.
I have also recently found out that my husband and I are expecting a baby and was originally hoping to find someone that would exercise the pony through the next year to prevent anymore laminitis. However with the cost of this new yard the potential sharers/loaners have been completely put off by the cost.
I’m very worried with myself going into maternity leave how we will manage financially as it is already a struggle and we both work full time. Couple that with me not being able to have the time to exercise the pony next year once the baby comes and being worried about potential new bouts of laminitis through the spring and summer. I have spoken to a few people about it and some suggest that the kindest thing for everyone would to be to pts, the pony has had 24 years of a brilliant life with only the laminitis that has plagued her in recent years. My husband and I have been going round in circles for the past months trying to think of an option but I’m coming up with nothing. The pony herself is happy and pretty content and I feel guilty when I do consider putting her to sleep as I would hope she would have a few good years left in her But at the same time it is leaving me totally stressed out thinking we can’t afford this in the long term! I hate seeing those ads on Facebook “old pony free to good home” and would never give her away like that but trying to find a loan home is impossible especially with everyone struggling after COVID. Any advice or points of view would be appreciated as I am losing sleep over this!

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

The only being that will suffer at the prospect and following PTS is you, your mare won't know any different. You have given her a fantastic life, and to PTS now absoulutely would not be too soon, I would fully support that your decision is valid and fair on all parties.

All the best OP and congratulations on the pregnancy!

 

[windand rain]

Simple answer is no you are not. If for any reason you cannot keep her either finacially ot physically it is much better to PTS than either laminitis or being passed on

 

[Goldenstar]

No you not , cut yourself some slack and be kind to yourself .

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

Agree with all of the above comments please don't feel bad she has had a good happy life.

 

[webble]

No it sounds like the right thing to do for all involved

 

[ycbm]

No. Right for all of you.
.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

I agree with everybody else. Pts sounds like the best decision for all concerned, as by the summer you are unlikely to be able to provide for her either financially or the care that she needs. My mare was only on Prascend for 12 months before she had to be pts because her health deteriorated. Better that she lives a good life with you and then has a dignified end than that you are unable to care for her adequately and her health issues recur.

 

[View]

Be kind to yourself - PTS is not a welfare issue, but passing her on may well lead to a welfare issue for her. Far better to ensure that she cannot suffer.

 

[nikicb]

She's had a lovely life and you are preventing her being in pain next summer. Definitely not the wrong decision, even though it's a very hard one. Wishing you all the best with your pregnancy. xx

 

[SO1]

Shame you can't find a couple of sharers for her, if she is fit and well and easy to handle except for the requirement to have a lot of exercise maybe contact local pony club and riding club to see if anyone looking for something to ride who has grown out of their own horse or lost a horse but cannot afford to buy another.

I do agree at her age you do not want to pass her on to another home and you don't want to get it to the stage where she gets laminitis due to lack of exercise especially when you are pregnant. You might also want to speak to vet and farrier as they might know of people who have lost horses or might have horse that is out of action who may want to ride.

 

[Gloi]

Nothing wrong with PTS.
However are you 100% sure her Cushing's is properly under control and her dosage is correct.

 

[shortstuff99]

I don't think there would be anything wrong with PTS in those circumstances. My old mare was kept for a number of years with cushings and then one day it ended with ataxia/stroke due to the cushings which was very distressing, and now I am wary of allowing cushings to go too far.

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

Be kind to yourself - PTS is not a welfare issue, but passing her on may well lead to a welfare issue for her. Far better to ensure that she cannot suffer.

^^^ This.

I couldn't have put it better.

You've done the very best you can for your mare and have done extremely well in keeping her going as long as possible.

You do not need to feel any guilt whatsoever. She's had a great time with you and will thank you for making the right choice concerning her future.

That said, it won't be easy for you to say goodbye .......... sending hugs at a difficult time.

 

[daydreamer]

My old loan horse was PTS a couple of weeks ago in fairly similar circumstances. He was still in work until fairly recently but had some problems with his neck at the start of this year that got resolved but he didn't really seem to want to do much work anymore so I decided to retire him. He went out on grass livery 24/7, paid for and organised by his owner (as agreed before I took him on loan and she was very happy to do so.). He also had Cushings and was on half a tablet today. He didn't ever have laminitis but did struggle with his breathing in summer (not sure if that was related or not).

His owner got furloughed and was struggling financially. She rang me to discuss it and between us we decided that since a) his health was only going to deteriorate but we had no idea how fast b) he never liked winter and always needed a lot of hay to keep weight on so he might find it hard to live out even with field shelters c) we didn't want to be forced into a PTS decision due to a health emergency d) he'd had a lovely summer of retirement and e) realistically money was tight that it was time to say goodbye.

I had him for nearly 6 years and loved him to bits. I think I've really made my peace with it and even though we *could* have kept him going longer I don't feel guilty or like we did the wrong thing. I think oddly it helped that the weekend before it was done was lovely weather and I went to see him for the last time and then the weekend after was really horrible weather - I thought to myself that he never has to put up with bad weather again, or any aches or pains or any other health problems.

It sounds like it is the right decision for you all.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

My old loan horse was PTS a couple of weeks ago in fairly similar circumstances. He was still in work until fairly recently but had some problems with his neck at the start of this year that got resolved but he didn't really seem to want to do much work anymore so I decided to retire him. He went out on grass livery 24/7, paid for and organised by his owner (as agreed before I took him on loan and she was very happy to do so.). He also had Cushings and was on half a tablet today. He didn't ever have laminitis but did struggle with his breathing in summer (not sure if that was related or not).

His owner got furloughed and was struggling financially. She rang me to discuss it and between us we decided that since a) his health was only going to deteriorate but we had no idea how fast b) he never liked winter and always needed a lot of hay to keep weight on so he might find it hard to live out even with field shelters c) we didn't want to be forced into a PTS decision due to a health emergency d) he'd had a lovely summer of retirement and e) realistically money was tight that it was time to say goodbye.

I had him for nearly 6 years and loved him to bits. I think I've really made my peace with it and even though we *could* have kept him going longer I don't feel guilty or like we did the wrong thing. I think oddly it helped that the weekend before it was done was lovely weather and I went to see him for the last time and then the weekend after was really horrible weather - I thought to myself that he never has to put up with bad weather again, or any aches or pains or any other health problems.

It sounds like it is the right decision for you all.

We had one of ours pts because of Cushings related breathing problems.

OP, don't let anyone, no matter how well-meaning, guilt trip you into keeping her going any longer than you are comfortable with. As above, pts is never a welfare issue and remember the saying 'better a week too soon than a day too late'. I have seen far toomany horses who have had to wait until the day too late. I wouldn't wish that on any of them.

 

[Frumpoon]

What a horrible situation to be in *hugs*

I wonder if there are any other yards in your area that are cheaper or more suitable for poorer grazing that maybe don’t advertise?

I’m in a funny bit of the Midlands that has huge swathes of heavy clay soil, rich ex dairy grazing cheek by jowl with sandier soiled poorer grazing almost made for lami ponies. You could go from one side of the A45 to the other and swear you weren’t in the same county for the state of the ground

You could try a few weeks of advertising for sharers to see what interest there is out there, that sort of 13.2 to 15hh height range would be snapped up by teenagers keen to ride every day

Just some thoughts to mull over

 

[brightmount]

Leaving the pregnancy and finances out of it, putting your horse peacefully to sleep after 24 happy years, before her health deteriorates, can only be an act of kindness.

My horse had all the symptoms of Cushings, although the tests twice came back negative. However her last winter was a struggle and she suffered, and then she had to be put to sleep as an emergency when she got acute laminitis.

You could avoid all that, so please don’t feel guilty for your decision.