Devastated, what would you do?

Everyones different and i suspect this thread will stir up alot of contraversy. My horse is 15 and in good health (touches lots of wood!!) however if i was told tommorow i could no longer ride her, having her put to sleep would be COMPLETELY out of the question. I dont believe horses are ours to keep when we want to ride and dispose of when we cant. I know this is not your sentiment and I have been in a similar situation in the past.I kept my old horse for 9 months after diagnosis. I could not ride her but in the end she was put t sleep as she was far from field sound and her quality of life was deteriorating at a rate of naughts. You have to make the decision -no one else. I would speak to the vet and ask their advice.....best wishes x
 
When my 20 yr old mare was diagnosed with Arthritis 5 years ago in her hocks she had joint injections. We were told it was a 50/50 chance that they would work but we had a go. after a year of one danalion aday we droped it down to half, then every other day now five years on she is slightly stiff when you first start riding her but after ten mins she is fine. She only had the Danalion when we get very cold or rainy damp weather or if she is going out to a show just like my sister does for her back :)
She managed to hack round RAF Halton this year and jump the log next to the plain, the first time she has jumped since before her injections.

Keeping her moving and out as much as possible will help big time but when the time comes for her to be too sore to be ridden i wont PTS she will spend as long a she wants with us. I have three others as well and would do the same with all of them. But that is only my view I wouldn't enforce it on anyone else.

Hugs
xxx
 
surely keeping a horse alive (and in pain) is just or your benefit and not theirs? What have they got to really gain being sat in a field in pain? Hardly quality time? I dont understand people who wont have their horse PTS if its in real pain because its not old etc etc?? Im not neccassarily talking about the OP here, just in response to the above replies now ive had chance to read them. Personally I couldnt bare to see my pony in pain day and and day out just because I wasnt man enough to do the right thing. Ive seen it so often and it breaks my heart to watch.
 
If you do decide to have your horse PTS for whatever reason, be it financial or humane ...... do not feel guilty nor made to feel guilty, you will be doing the right thing if that is the decision you come to. My thoughts are with you and only you can decide......
 
If I were in your position depending on finances, I would keep her ticking over, as arthritic horses need to keep their joints moving but not over worked. Get another horse to hunt for your OH, if this is what he wants to do, 3 horses make a better herd than 2, with 2 you run the risk of separation issues when you take one away for competitions/events/rides etc.. with 3 there's always a companion at home, get a field shelter or an extra stable for this mare to live out with therefore keeping her moving but giving you somewhere to put her if the weather turns completely unmanageable and gives her shelter. You rent the land anyway, so unlikely there's a stipulation on the amount of horses therefore not going to be a huge expense. I too have had my mare diagnosed with mild arthritic changes to her hocks, she's had to retire from competition due to soundness issues, I keep at livery so having to pay per horse, I'm very thankfull that I have her son who she produced for me before lameness was an issue and he'll be taking on the competition work in another couple of years which is keeping me going, I'm loving being able to ride out once again on my mare who owes me nothing after 10 years of competing joy. The vet has cleared her for breeding if I wish to do this again, but at this stage am undecided. If you were thinking of breeding a) consider breeding, is your horse's bloodlines good enough to breed from OR has she got good enough results to back her up, b) would you be looking to sell the foal or keep, baring in mind well bred youngsters are not selling currently due to the poor market. c) have a vet advise if your mare's case is suitable for breeding for i) the mare's welfare aspect, and ii) any possibility of the issue being congenital.

If looking to loan her out, fully vet the home and consider that under the animal welfare act and your own concious you will always be responsible for her, companion loans can sometimes result in the said companion not getting the care they need. And maintain regular checks to see that she is fine.

Do not give her away, no matter what your motives, you cannot guarantee the motives of the person on the receiving end, you'd never forgive yourself if she was buted up and passed on as a riding horse. If non of the above options are possible and the only option is to give away then sorry but I'd pts, my mare will never leave me now, except to go to the gallops in the sky.
 
hi you know your own horse better than any one else and only you can decide what to do. I would not have my horses pts if there was any other option but sometimes there isnt and it is kinder not to let them suffer.
I have a maxi cob with arthritis in his feet and he copes with light work really well, i have found he is sounder barefoot than he was with shoes he is on various supplements and 1 bute a day, he only ever walks on the road and only trots/canter in the school and i never jump him. If the ground is hard he cant do much but his coat is shinning, he roars around the field with the others and is totally full of life.....no where near suffering or in constant pain, he was diagnosed 4 years ago!!
on the other hand several years ago i had an x race horse who after 2 years of me owning him developed a nerve problem in his back and kept falling over when you rode him. I gave him the summer in the field and then had him pts because he hated not been in work and every day was more and more stressed and after 20 mins in the field would pace the gate to come in, he started loosing weight and looked awful.....for him it was the kindest thing to do but as i say you know your horse better than any one....
good luck on a hard decision
 
ps completly agree with competitiondiva .....re not giving her away i have seen that sort of thing happen to my friends horse and she was heart broken but didnt legally own her any more and there was nothing she could do
 
Everyone has their own opinions on this as posts show, my mare is 26 and arthritic, she was ridden up u til 2 yrs ago when i retired her after 16 years of good times. Shes. Also recovered from a stroke where it was touch n go for a bit. She is maintained on daily danilon and asprin every other day, i wouldnt dream of having her pts at the moment as she can still kick up her heels and is enjoying life. It is every bit as expensive in retirement as it is working if not more expensive, a box of danilon lasts a month as ive another with djd who is a light hack as well, he feels it more in the winter and on hard summer ground, diagnosed at 4 i was devastated, but hes my responsibility now, and i chose to keep him.
Thankfully my 6yo is ok and able to compete as i couldnt keep 3 and get nothing but the hard work, its early days, wait and see how it goes, my mare was still a great lively ride after her diagnosis for a good while, your horse may respond really well to treatment, either way its your decision and you need to live with it, personally i see no right or wrong decision, im in the fortunate position i can support retired horses but if my circumstances were different i would have pts after a short period of retirement
 
axi rules! said:
hi you know your own horse better than any one else and only you can decide what to do. I would not have my horses pts if there was any other option but sometimes there isnt and it is kinder not to let them suffer.
I have a maxi cob with arthritis in his feet and he copes with light work really well, i have found he is sounder barefoot than he was with shoes he is on various supplements and 1 bute a day, he only ever walks on the road and only trots/canter in the school and i never jump him. If the ground is hard he cant do much but his coat is shinning, he roars around the field with the others and is totally full of life.....no where near suffering or in constant pain, he was diagnosed 4 years ago!!
on the other hand several years ago i had an x race horse who after 2 years of me owning him developed a nerve problem in his back and kept falling over when you rode him. I gave him the summer in the field and then had him pts because he hated not been in work and every day was more and more stressed and after 20 mins in the field would pace the gate to come in, he started loosing weight and looked awful.....for him it was the kindest thing to do but as i say you know your horse better than any one....
good luck on a hard decision
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well said
 
Wagtail said:
It all depends on how much you think of her TBH. If she means a lot to you, then I think you would feel pretty callous having her PTS so that you could buy another unless she was suffering and could not be comfortably retired. As you rent your field, the only extra cost would be to build another stable and her day to day keep which could be relatively cheap if she is only fed hay as not being ridden. If she doesn't mean that much to you, is not a 'nice' character (bites or kicks etc) then you would resent retiring her and need to look at the other options.

Personally, I hate the fact that horses are given less of a chance than dogs are and cast aside when we can no longer ride them. I would keep any of mine. I already have one field ornament and could not have a riding horse if the other one could not be ridden due to injury or illness, but I would still retire him. He deserves it. :)
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ditto except maybe you can cope without another stable? your horse with arthritis maybe beter living out and moving around as and when she wants to . rugs these days are amazing and you might be able to build her a shelter of some sort or a windbreak? i have a mare who has basically not a lot of cartilage in her fetlock she is sound and comfortable and she has just been covered today but she will be living out as a) i have no9 stable for her and b) she is better moving around and c) she can cope living out most horses can its just us humans who think they cant!! good luck
 
What I would do is in the best interest of your horse?

I dont think any one is suggesting you keep the horse in pain etc. But any lame horse is going to be uncomfortable. Its if the discomfort is never going to improve post lameness then a different course of action is needed. Which your experienced vet should be able to advise if the prognosis is a good one.

Mine painted a bleak picture. I assumed a few weeks rest and got told I may never ride.

Seems early days yet and anyone with a much loved lame horse is going to think the worse but perhaps wait and see how it pans out.

I think when your horse gets ill or lame it can be a bit of a shock.
 
Well I have arthritis in my hands and my spine some mornings when it's wet and cold I have a job to get going and pretty bad when my finger joints swell. But once I'm on the move they supple up and the only time which is bad, is when it takes both hands to pick up something, when I use to manage with one. give her painkillers for her joints and work her, keep her supple for as long as you can and don't write her off just yet.:):)
 
An update and good news. Picked Kelsi up from the vet, if the steroid injections work she should be pain free and sound and able to continue normal work. Think I was jumping the gun a bit and thinking the worst.
She has to have a week off and then restart work to see how she goes. If the injections work they can be repeated, if not she can go on to bute and see if that works.
She does live out most of the time, only came in at night for 3 weeks this year when the weather was really bad. May have another option if she needs retiring, a lady up the road has lots of land and horses and may be happy for her to live there in the winter. She is a lovely horse and I don't think she had a very nice life before we got her two years ago. PTS would be my absolute last resort option and not one I could do easily - it makes me cry thinking about it.
 
katherine1975 said:
An update and good news. Picked Kelsi up from the vet, if the steroid injections work she should be pain free and sound and able to continue normal work. Think I was jumping the gun a bit and thinking the worst.
She has to have a week off and then restart work to see how she goes. If the injections work they can be repeated, if not she can go on to bute and see if that works.
She does live out most of the time, only came in at night for 3 weeks this year when the weather was really bad. May have another option if she needs retiring, a lady up the road has lots of land and horses and may be happy for her to live there in the winter. She is a lovely horse and I don't think she had a very nice life before we got her two years ago. PTS would be my absolute last resort option and not one I could do easily - it makes me cry thinking about it.
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thats good news Katherine. I hope your mare picks up, just take it slowly and dont expect too much. A horse at my yard (who is about 15) was pretty much written off with hock prblems and could barely turn around in his stable :( owner bought new horse and put the injured one out to grass after being told to put him on box rest by vet....what do you know, couple of months later and horse is sound enough for hacking! total surprise!:D i really hope things work out for you. Your mare sounds very much loved :)
 
showjumper16 said:
Seoirse - I was just wondering what treatment your horse with DJD has because i was told my horse can no longer jump but he hasnt had x-rays, and how long does the lameness last when the 'changes' take place? because 6 weeks ago my horse has been said to have DJD by two different vets but no xrays and have said he could only light hack but this is the only time he has gone lame without a reason :/
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So far we have not medicated the joint, though we've got that in reserve if we need to do it. When the changes first started he was lame for about 2 months during which time he was in the field with bute and a quiet companion to stop him looning about too much. I didn't know how sound he'd get but I thought I'd give it a go and see if he came back good enough to hack. I adore this horse and he is my horse of a lifetime so if all he was up to was hacking then I'd have settled for it, albeit reluctantly. Then he came sound enough to hack after about 8 week out so I hacked him, just 15 mins at first, building up to decent hacks with cantering, I did this for a few months over the winter and did some gentle work in the school and by the spring (last year) I started popping him over the odd jump on the lunge to see how he tolerated it and he loved it and was landing on both leads happily (reluctance to land on right lead was what made me aware of it in the first place). Last summer he went brilliantly all summer and wasn't lame once. The X-rays are terrible and he ought to be crippled but he's not. He only has one pastern that is affected the other one is clean. He's now sadly recovering from laminitis and the pastern really flared up on box rest, but he's out all day now and it appears to be settling and he had a trot in the school last night and (touches wood) looked sound. DJD is not an exact science. Its different in each case and sometimes (and sadly it is only sometimes) it does settle and they become sound with time. The other horse I mention with the coffin problems took a lot longer to come sound, about 12 months I think, but he looks great now too and his was so bad he was LOU.
Good luck everyone.
 
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