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Irishcobs

Irishcobs

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Would you watch A horse being shot?

I am really wierd in that I want to watch a horse being shot. Not my own, I don't think I could do that and probably not a horse I had an attachment to, but a random horse.
I also want to see it being cut up for the hounds, I have a fasination with how the horses body works and would love to see it from the inside, again I know it is really wierd.
Luckily for me I can do both at some point as the kennelsman has said I can go with him one day.
 
Yes , I have watched horses being shot before .
I do sadly have a morbid fascination about these things .

eta - I've also been to crime scene clean ups as I have a fascination with things like that too
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I've had many horses over the years be put to sleep; shot, injection and unassisted death; and I've been with every one of them right up to the point where I have checked that their hearts have stopped beating. There is no way I would NOT be with any of my animals in the last moment of their lives; they deserve that mark of respect from me.
 
I would be with my mare if (God Forbid) she had to be shot. However, I would certainly not want to witness it and sorry, I think it is quite creepy that you do!
 
i know wot you mean, i would want to do somethin like that before having to do it with my own, just so i know exactly what happens so i know wot 2 expect. i think its another one of the parts to owning a horse, you have to go through 2 the bitter end.
 
Yes...i did so last week at the Abattoir....

and by the time i had come out of the toilet, he was half way down the processing line ... minus his head, lower legs, intestines and fur......

i was told it was a "superior" carcass and fed correctly, with little surplus fat!!

Shame about the KS and the Lammi.
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Wow, that is a super efficient processing line JM, nice to hear
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Yes I have seen horses shot, hence why I don't flinch and get all wibbly when people mention it - I was designated *lead rope holder* for many, it really does not bother me and I admit to finding it fascinating.
 
I am actually not sure if I want to be with my horse at the actual shooting tbh...He will be dead and wont remember that I wasnt there whereas I will remember the 'thud' forever......
 
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Wow, that is a super efficient processing line JM, nice to hear
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Yes I have seen horses shot, hence why I don't flinch and get all wibbly when people mention it - I was designated *lead rope holder* for many, it really does not bother me and I admit to finding it fascinating.

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it really is quick, Weezy.

from coming off the lorry to when i saw him later, was around 15 minutes.....


i'm usually nominated for leadrope holding too..
doesn't bother or affect me at all....

Circle of Life.
 
Had many shot over the years, been there for everyone and will no doubt be there for all the ones to come. Don't worry twanky, the thud does not remain with you, just the fact that the horse was eating when it died, 'cos all ours were.
 
Yes - there is a curiosity factor of wanting to know exactly what happens but doing it in a controlled way so if/when the situation arises I know what to expect and am to that extent prepared.

As for once dead, and some people will find this really sick, but I love "chopping up" dead animals. I really enjoy dissections, especially legs, and find using my fingers to separate and clean tissue away far better than using a scapal. There is something really satifying about it (whether it be dog/horse/cow). I remember my first dissection distinctly as I had no idea what to expect or how I would feel emotionally especially when greeted with 3 dogs on the tables and 2 horses strung up but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Not sure I'd feel the same if it was my own horse though. Greyhounds are amazing to dissect as their muscles are phenomenally (sp) well defined.
 
You won't remember the thud, cos there isn't one. They slop down, no matter what way they are killed as you, as lead holder, prepare yourself and sort of release them down.
 
No, just the bang! There really isn't a thud, they just sort of crumple down and you can direct their fall if you've done it a few times.
 
Lovely, thanks Yorkie and Tia
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Erm...should I expect this shaking thing I saw on a video once?..something to do with the nerve endings or something??
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A bit of a tremor is all I've ever seen, no prolonged shaking. Unlike with the injection the one and only time we have been persuaded to go down that route:( Never again.
 
eurgh, JM07 :s that was probably more than i was expecting to read and made me feel a bit queasy, but going along with tonights posts, fascinating in itself.

i glad my girl injected and cremated. i was there throughout the injection and the 2 hours battle to save her prior to it, and would not have had it any other way in any circumstance. as Tia said (and thoroughly agree) i owed her that much respect at least.

having said this, i can't 'deal' with dead things no matter what being they are. road kill freaks me out. i couldn't dissect at school, and although i probably had a good half an hour with Shadow after she went i couldn't be there when she was picked up. at that point 'Shadow' was gone even if her beautiful body was still behind. i've walked onto yards to accidently see a pony that i adored being pulled up a ramp several years ago and had to sit down for 15 mins to get over the shock. it wasn't horrific, i didn't even know she was ill and couldn't shake the 'dead' aspect from my head.

i do have a fascination as to how animals work, tendons ligaments etc, but i couldn't put myself infront of anything that wasn't alive! put a nasty cut infront of me and i'll deal with it no matter how gruesome (actually broken bones poking out of skins i might not be able to deal with!) as long as i can fix it, i can deal with it
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control freak? me?? nah!
 
No, same as Yorks, I've never seen them shake, a coupe of twitches for a second but really nothing at all. It's always been very peaceful with the ones I've been with. Nothing untoward has ever happened and no its really nowhere near as grim as some people would have you believe. If you have ever had a horse anaesthetised for any reason, then it's exactly like that, only they never get up again.
 
They gently go irronic as it sounds.

Though when I worked on F&M mainly with cows they use to kick out quite a bit for 30sec ish with their legs but not shake.

Though I had the job of "badgeing them"
The rod is 7 mm in diameter and x-shaped on cross section. One end of the rod has a sponge to absorb body fluids and 5 pairs of barbs to prevent the rod from slipping out, or being removed, once it has been inserted fully into the cranial cavity.

The pithing rod is inserted into the perforation in the forehead made by the captive bolt gun or free bullet. With some manipulation, the rod can be pushed through the neural tissue of the fore- and hindbrain into the spinal canal.

The rod.
http://www.heynkes.de/isa/schlachtung/schlachtgeraete/RMZ-ganz.jpg

We did this as a captive bolt for stunning was used & this was done to make sure that they were dead. Plus they were left in (badging blue disk on forehead showing) to prove they had been done like this.
 
Horses are rarely killed in this way now, although I believe it was common in the past. For the last 20 years, bullets have been used on horses in our area.
 
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I don't believe it's legal anymore YG...

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Sorry I went off on one! I have never seen this done on horses it was cows we used these on & reusable one for sheep.

It is still legal for mass disease culling, to make sure they are dead asap.

As with normal stunning in an abatoir they are then bled straight away so dead. They stopped pithing in slaughter houses due to BSE as some brain/spinal matter could get released into the blood stream & then into the meat.

Aye up I'm going off again!

Anyway to answer the original question then yes I could watch a horse shot & through the whole process to feed hounds if that was the way it was going.
 
I don't think I could watch to be honest I would probably be bawling my eyes out at the thought that my beloved horse had to be PTS.

I am a bit soppy when it comes to animals but I always know when PTS is the right thing for them and hate them to suffer but I don't think I could watch.
 
I wonder how many of the people here who are saying they couldn't watch etc. are terrified of the whole process and imagine it to be far worse than the reality? The reason I stay with my animals when they are pts is largely for the selfish one that I don't want afterwards to be imagining horrible scenes and reading grusome descriptions and wondering if it was like that (or far worse).

Normal euthanasia (shooting or injection) is very quick, and my overwhelming impression afterwards is that the animal has just gone. I think that is why some of us are so unconcerned about what happens to the body - for us it no longer represents the animal that we loved.

Personally I'd always much rather be there and would recomend anyone who is worried about it to stay - so long as they are not going to weep all over the horse and upset them before it happens. My experience is it is much easier to deal with afterwards if you know exactly what happened.
 
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I wonder how many of the people here who are saying they couldn't watch etc. are terrified of the whole process and imagine it to be far worse than the reality?

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It isn't because I am terrified of the process it is because I would be too upset and that would probably upset the horse in turn. If I could guarantee I wouldn't cry then I would prefer to stay and be there with them at the end.
 
I have and i hated it, but it needed to be done and horse was at home, in he's normal yard with head in bucket of food.......
depatched brilliant.............. by kennel man
I have to say i have now nomatinated my hubby or friends hubby (farmer) to be with mine, as i know i will not be able to cope, that's if i get choice
 
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