Controversial but am interested...

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Jericho

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After looking at a post below linking to project horse website I was amazed at how companion horses there are available that have conditions that means that they are in long term mild pain or have behavioural issues - all of them cannot be ridden. Do companion homes exist for all these horses? Would anyone willingly take on a horse with problems even it is a loan?

So what would you do if your horse went incurably lame / ill and meant that it no longer had a 'useful' life as a riding / driving / breeding horse AND if you could only afford to keep one horse (maybe because you dont have your own land) and you wanted to ride?

I may have to face this within the next year as my boy has navicular. He will probably never do the job that I bought him for (after spending all my savings on him!). My OH has saud categorically that I can not have another horse as we do not have the time, money or room to accomodate another one.

He will make a fantastic pet as he is like a big dog and I love him to bits but I have so many people say to me "if he was in the wild, it would be survival of the fittest", "you are pouring money into a hobby where you dont get to do the hobby", "if you bought the horse to do a job and he cant do it then you need to cut losses and not be sentimental" "life is too short to waste" "whats the point of an unrideable horse?" and so on and so on.

Just interested in people's thoughts - there isnt a correct answer .....
 
I would keep him, and find a horse to ride as a sharer. I know rationally people would say PTS, but I could not do that. When I bought a horse I took on the responsibility of owning an animal. The discomfort of not being able to ride would be a lot less than the guilt for being shallow and soul-less.

If I had a child I wouldn't have it adopted or killed just because it was disabled.

ETA - if it was in discomfort/pain, then I would comsider PTS if needed. But NEVER for my own benefit.
 
For me, I would keep my boy, he is here for life if he became unrideable and he was happy enough to live out his days doing nowt, then thats what he'd do.

If he was in pain, if I couldn't afford to keep him for some exceptional reason or if he wasn't happy being not being ridden, I would not hesittate to put my friend to sleep.
 
I think...
If you've plenty of money, keep it as a pet and get a replacement riding horse.

If you haven't, pts and get a replacement riding horse.

Not nice, but realistic.
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If he's not in pain then I would keep hold of him but try to organise things so that I could afford another i.e loan the other and keep them out at grass.. but thats because im soft and find it too hard to part with my horses
 
My boy had laminitis. In the last 2 years of his life I probably only rode him half a dozen times the last time being for about 20 minutes in our little paddock about 6 months before I had to decide to have him pts which was in February this year.

I firmly believe that when you take on an animal it should be for life and part of the responsibility is deciding when quality of life is compromised. My desire to have a working horse, although a source of frustration, was outweighed by the welfare of the broken boy I already had.

I emphasise that this is my opinion and I wouldn't think any less of someone who made the decision to pts on loss of use.

I do get upset when someone just wants to offload their problem however (and not suggesting for a moment that this is your intent of course) just in light of so many poor adverts & not unconnected to my post about a horse with sidebone.
 
Before we moved to our own place and when H was on livery it was common knowledge that if she didn't come sound she would have to be pts - She was at last chance saloon too(!) Now we've got plenty of space for her she will live her days out with us - she's currently happy in work and proving sound enough to do the job
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Kate x
 
I would keep him as long as he was comfortable, because if I had him PTS simply to 'replace' him it just wouldn't sit right with me. However, my horse owes me nothing as we have had many years of enjoyment together. I certainly wouldn't judge someone for making the decision to have a horse PTS so they could afford another, if they were unable to otherwise guarantee the horse a stable future. Much rather that, than have the horse passed round from pillar to post.
 
When I can no longer ride my horse, there is no way I would advertise to loan or sell him as a "companion" and risk him being buted up and used or sold on.
I will keep him at grass while paddock sound, happy and relatively healthy. As soon as he is in bad pain or discomfort I would have him pts. Sad as it would be, I would rather that than any form of uncertain future.

I acknowledge that some people have made a success of horses with behavioural or even physical problems sold or loaned on through such sites or other ways, but I think some on the site from the previous thread are cases of people being very irresponsible. If I had a horse that a good, professional trainer could not work with I could not pass it on and think of the damage that it could do to someone as well as the life it could have being passed around.
 
I'm going to stick my neck out here and say that if D couldn't be ridden at all I would probably have her PTS. Unless I ride her 6 days a week she gets really fat, even in a starvation paddock, putting her at risk of laminitis and becomes difficult to handle on the ground. She needs the physical and mental stimulation of being ridden, I wouldn't keep her as a pet and watch her slowly become fat and grumpy putting her at risk of laminitis and at risk of causing serious physical injuries to people who had to handle her in a bad mood.
 
As far as the navicular is concerned - have you explored barefoot trimming/using hoof boots. It obviously can't help if the damage is too much, but there have been some amazing stories of horses that had been written off returned to work - hunting, eventing, etc. I can't think of any websites at the moment, but if you google "barefoot trimming" in the UK and look up the sites it will be interesting reading.

As far as your post is concerned a previous discussion was interesting. Someone had a dicky horse in retirement and as an experiment they gave it a very large dose of bute. (Too much as a daily dose). They said the difference in the horse was amazing, and they realised that in fact it was out in the field not doing much as it was actually in pain all the time.

I get slighty fed up with all these horses available for loan with problems. I wish owners would face up to their responsibities and have the poor things PTS instead of thinking that someone else will take over the problem/unsound animal. If an owner cannot afford to keep an unsound/older horse and really wants a horse they can ride then the best thing is to give it a dignified ending at home, in familiar surroundings with its owner who has its best interests at heart. I know that there are some homes for these animals (I have a companion pony that cannot be ridden here) but they are few and far between.

It is heartbreaking if it is an old favourite but you don't have to have your life governed by an animal. It is NOT the same as a disabled child as someone wrote. But then I am a farmer and I send 6 healthy animals a week to market (cattle!) so I expect I have a different viewpoint to some people.
 
I've kept my old girl - she's not quite sound enough to ride (old age wear and tear), but comfortable hooning round the field like an idiot. She has a home for life, and she'll be PTS if she becomes uncomfortable (or if I really run out of money and it's a choice between her and losing the house - she's had 4 years of retirement, so I don't think that's too heartless!).

I didn't ride for 4 years (ok, so this was partly due to a nasty fall from another horse I owned at the time), and have only recently taken on a share horse to hack out on twice a week.

She is the type to be happy in her field though (gets stressed in new situations, likes her routine) and she isn't showing any symptoms of being bored. It suits her.

That said, I'm not naive enough to think that it would suit every horse, so my decision would be based purely on what's best for the horse - if it wouldn't be happy in retirement, PTS as soon as it's no longer rideable.
 
Riz is retired because of Navicular.....I can only afford one horse and to be honest he costs more to keep now than he did when he was in work. When I brought him I made a commitment to him that he was with me for life. As long as he is comfortable and paddock sound he is staying put with me. I lost count of the amount of people that asked me where he would be going once he was retired - err, nowhere!! Its not his fault that he can no longer be ridden, and he is such a happy chap, and he is comfortable on 1 danilon a day, so why on earth would I consider PTS for such selfish reasons - i.e. I want something I can ride.....

Obviously this is just my opinion, but from experience I find it very sad that horses are put to one side or PTS because they can't be ridden anymore.

Also, this horse has been in my life for 21 years.....I guess that makes the decision to keep him with me a bit of a no brainer!!
 
When my old lad ( the grey) becomes unrideable he will be retired, with me- until he is miserable or in pain,then he will be PTS.

I will ride daughters pony and OH's mare - unless he does sell her.

I won't get another one for me until he goes 'hoof-up' bless him.

Theres NO WAY he would be sent anywhere as a companion- he is my responsibility.
That said I am lucky that I would have the option of other horses to ride, if people make the decision to have a retired/unrideable horse PTS in order to get a fit horse to ride....then thats fine by me. I would rather see that that have a horse sent away as a companion then buted up and worked....
 
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I wish owners would face up to their responsibities and have the poor things PTS instead of thinking that someone else will take over the problem/unsound animal. If an owner cannot afford to keep an unsound/older horse and really wants a horse they can ride then the best thing is to give it a dignified ending at home, in familiar surroundings with its owner who has its best interests at heart.

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I couldn't agree more!!
 
I retired my TB Jan 08 due to KS (he was 13 with sacrioliac injury so couldnt be operated on) and N (which was progressing rapidly once he was out of work). He colicked in the Jan, but was OK after vet and injections, i vowed that i would keep him as long as he was able to cut the grass!

Bless his heart, he got kicked in the field in the May, which got vet out and all seemed fine. He then went 10/10 lame suddenly and infection popped out the side of his knee. The infection had been growing the whole time. He had a £5k op to remove infected tissue, and after 3 months didnt come sound.

He was in (and would have) pain. He also had stomach ulcers so bute wasnt the way forward. I let him go in the Sept.

If my horse has a chronic condition with associated pain, i wouldnt hesitate to do this again. You could see in his little eye he had given up. He had a good last 2 years with me after leaving racing and p to p, and he was used to being an active little soul.

An animal should not have to suffer, especially horses when they cant convey to us how much it hurts. Horses as on said wesite should be PTS if there condition is so bad, makes you wonder if they just havent got the courage to PTS or want to make a quick buck. Because 99% of the time they will be sold to begineers or unsuspecting buyers.
 
Monty is semi-retired. I have a sharer for him who takes him for a plod a few times a week and pays for his shoes. I am lucky since I have Zoom, and I don't have to pay all of her costs but if I didn't have her, I would happily just have my old grumbly bumble!

If he couldn't be ridden AT ALL, I would probably pts. He gets very depressed if he doesn't have a job to do, even just plodding down the lane and his quality of life is paramount. One thing I would never do, is pawn him off onto someone else. He has given me so much and I owe him a happy ending.

I would never part with a horse unless under extreme circumstances however, I wouldn't judge someone who would pts and get another. At the end of the day horses are a hobby, and an expensive one at that so if you are not getting enjoyment from it you have to consider your options.
 
I found wonderful home for my boy ,he was only 8 so possibly will come sound with lots of time off.Hes in a paddock with 6 others all rescues and is happy munching away with company and has 10 acre field .I realise I have been one of the lucky ones,I couldnt keep him in our paddcks with restricted grass it wasnt fair.I wanted him for life but it was more important that he had plenty of grazing and company so I have given him away .Im going to visit at end of summer and new owner is working with him inhand and trying homeopathic treatments.
He is one of the lucky ones from project horse he is actually still on there
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So what would you do if your horse went incurably lame / ill and meant that it no longer had a 'useful' life as a riding / driving / breeding horse AND if you could only afford to keep one horse (maybe because you dont have your own land) and you wanted to ride?

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PTS. Kindest all round.

The horse, as I am always saying, has no idea what is going to happen other than he's got a mouthful of polos or having a fuss made of him.

I've had one pts for similar reasons recently and have another heading that way shortly.

I am not heartless, just practical, I don't make the decision lightly but I never feel guilty about it either.

I could, of course, have shipped him off to market and taken a couple of hundred bucks for him from a Kill Buyer, who would sell him onto some do-gooder/dealer for a $50 profit, who would sell him onto some misguided innocent who discovers that the horse is useless and takes him to market and the whole nasty little circle starts again. Better a bullet anyday than that.
 
Personally, if this happened to me, I would keep my boy whilst he wasn't in pain and was field sound. If he became lame in the field, the vet told me he was in pain, or wasn't happy being just a field ornament I would PTS.
I don't see my horse as something I have bought to 'use' by riding them, I seem them as a member of my family and as a friend. For me, it would be like saying, oh well my *insert relative here* doesn't have any use anymore because they can't work as they have *insert disease here*, so what is the point in them being here? I realise not everyone sees their animals this way, but for me, riding is more of a bonus than the reason I have my boy, I just love having a bond with him.
 
no pain = defo keep i'm very happy for my girlies to live the rest of there days here with me as long as they were in a state where they were happy in the field chilling out and relaxing

pain = kindest for the animal pts
 
I have my dogs for company both at home and out on walks. If they temporarily can't do the longest walk of the day but are stubborn ladies that doesn't like to stay home while the other dogs are out doing fun
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, I have more than once had a dog lying looking, sniffing out over the sides of a pram with me but if they really couldn't do the longer walks and it wasn't temporarily any more, that would be the end.
Both because they wouldn't be happy without their walks and because, to be honest, although I can temporarily do separate walks/other solutions, although they're my babies, I still treat them as dogs and not as I would a disabled child.

If I had a horse, and since I believe that whether a horse is ridden or a paddock ornament, it deserves to get the same amount of care, if I'm honest and if I was only only able to have one horse, I wouldn't want to spend years looking after a paddock ornament. I would give it some time with lots of pampering and then I would end it.


Honestly I don't think it benefits either horses, dogs, cats etc. if we begin to treat them as we would a disabled human, because as human I can entertain myself with f.ex. reading a book or solving a crossword, my dogs can't do that. They would be bored if they weren't able to go out and sniff around to f.ex. see who has peed on a bush near our mailbox.
 
I think it has to be a personal decision based on lots of factors. These obviously include whether the horse is in pain, whether you can afford to keep them, whether they can be reasonably rehomed (ie whether they would actually make a good companion or just become somebody elses liability) and also I suppose, what you personally feel is right.
I don't know your situation well enough to give an opinion really but if you want to ride I think rehoming or having your horse PTS are both options you should investigate further to determine the best option for you.
 
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I think...
If you've plenty of money, keep it as a pet and get a replacement riding horse.

If you haven't, pts and get a replacement riding horse.

Not nice, but realistic.
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I hate to have to say this but I agree with the above.
Certainly with an old horse who has had a good life with you and may suffer just from the boredom of being a field ornament. We had a horse like that and he was really upset by his unexciting life watchig the others come and go from hacks and other activities wishing no doubt that we were taking him as before. It broke our hearts to end his life but was the kindest thing to do.

Might be difficult with a youngster thats kaput.
Perhaps personality of the horse should be taken into account.

I think all these people trying to find a loan home for a broken down horse that they do not want any more is irresponsible, and show lack of care and respect for the animal.
Far worse than making the final decision.
 
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I wish owners would face up to their responsibities and have the poor things PTS instead of thinking that someone else will take over the problem/unsound animal. If an owner cannot afford to keep an unsound/older horse and really wants a horse they can ride then the best thing is to give it a dignified ending at home, in familiar surroundings with its owner who has its best interests at heart.

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I couldn't agree more!!

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Ditto that completely.
 
If I could no longer ride my horse and I could not afford to keep him, I would have him PTS. I would never sell a horse as a companion as people, no matter how nice and genuine they seem, connot be trusted not to sell on as riding horses or to the meat man. I would only loan a companion if it was someone I knew well and was right on my doorstep.
Only I am sentimental about my horse, I would not expect anyone else to be.
 
If my horse was in pain or had behavioural issues i'd pts.

If he/she was happy, sound, not in pain and was able to be a pet I'd go down that route even if it meant I'd no longer be able to ride.

If someone I knew well wanted them as a companion I'd consider that option too but I'd still keep ownership and do weekly checks on them.

I intend to keep both mine for life and feel I have a duty of care towards them so would only pts if they were miserable or in discomfort otherwise I'ds keep them as pets.
 
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I would keep him, and find a horse to ride as a sharer. I know rationally people would say PTS, but I could not do that. When I bought a horse I took on the responsibility of owning an animal. The discomfort of not being able to ride would be a lot less than the guilt for being shallow and soul-less.

If I had a child I wouldn't have it adopted or killed just because it was disabled.

ETA - if it was in discomfort/pain, then I would comsider PTS if needed. But NEVER for my own benefit.

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I have to quote scribbles here as this sums it up for me.
Had my girl 17yrs now, she has pedal bone rotation and we can only walk, and the current soundness is unlikely to last long, i cannot afford another.
But i owe my mare a nice life, if she is field sound and healthy i could not PTS or pass her on as there are no guarantees she will be cared for properly.
I would have to look into riding a share horse or simply paying to go to a riding school/trekking centre to get my fix.
There is a very high chance i will face this soon as my mare is getting on a bit and has underlying problems that could become a problem at any time. Well thats my take on it
 
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