Horse written off - what do you do?

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Having been in this position i kept the horse & resigned myself to never riding again, It was horrible for me as i love to ride & compete & then there was the livery bills on top.
Luckily for me things changed & i now have my own land. But I now have 2 retired horses & a 3rd one that i can compete. But it often feels like a retirement home here.
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I don't mind though as each horse has been very special to me so they deserve a good home imo. But if something happened to the 3rd horse i would be back to not riding again. Its just something i think a lot of us face. Personally i couldnt put a horse down that could live well & happy in retirement.

I think if the horse was paddock sound i would probably keep it at livery or find a retirement home. I would consider a companion loan home if i was in this position & the right people & offer came my way. But tbh that would be a very last option.
It depends on the horse ultimatly one of mine was retired at 12yo with heart problems. He is thriving still at 18yo we think he may just go on & outlive us all. Retirement really suits him he was a bit of a nightmare for the first 2 months & then has just settled right down. Both of my retired horses are stabled in winter.
Im not a fan of PTS but there are time's when it's the right thing to do. But it has to be more than a reason of never being ridable again for me.
 
Sell or loan strictly as a companion. I dont know her reasons for not loaning but boy they must be strong views if she will consider putting the horse to sleep!!!!!!!!! Her two options have no inbetween. Its either keep reluctantly or kill. Hmmmm a third option must be found methinks
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I know you say loaning isn't an option, but surely it is an option, just one that the owner is refusing to consider? Sorry but I don't undserstand how someone could consider pts before looking into or at least considering loaning as a companion
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I've got a horse that can't really be ridden - I'm lucky enough to have one that can be ridden as well, but I have to scrimp and save to keep both of them - I work 7 days a week to pay for them. I would never consider pts just because they couldn't be ridden
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There's a few places around the UK that take in horses like this. They live out in herds (sometimes are barned through winter). You sign the horse over to them. The horses donate blood every few weeks.
At 8yo this horse would be a prime candidate.
 
As the horse is so young and likely to become field sound i would seriously ask a charity like Redwings to take it on. They may have a long waiting list but probably would be willing to consider taking this horse on, maybe with a view for it to be rehomed as a companion when the time is right.
A friend of mine was in a very similar situation and this was the route that she went down.
 
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I think when you are the wrong side of 40 and the prospect of not being able to ride again is an option you are facing then it actually becomes far more important than you ever realised.
There is no point getting second opinions from vets etc etc - its all been done. The horse will never be sound enough to be ridden .

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Well if the rider is competent she could help exercise horses for other people. Lots of people need help, particularly during the week, and some people will allow competing and stuff too.

I do see where she is coming from, because it is a horrible situation to be in. However as has been outlined on this thread, there are more options to be explored than just PTS or keep and never ride again, and I think they'd be worth looking into before deciding one way or another.
 
I must say grass livery is cheap enough (where I am at least around £7pw) and thinking about it, before I bought a horse I rode more on other peoples horses than I do now..took riding lessons, had a pony on part loan etc. Not having your own riding horse isn't the end of the world is it.
 
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Um, it sounds like the person at the centre of this story is simply looking to have their decision to have the horse PTS vindicated. If it can't be loaned out (why not?) and the owner is keen to ride and apparently old people can't have horses (eh??), then they should just pull their finger out, send the horse off to the hunt kennels and get a new one.
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Old people can have horses - but this particular old person and their OH have plans for their own retirement that don't include horses!
 
Ah fair enough. What exactly does this person have against loaning out as a companion? Surely it would be better than having a basically healthy horse PTS, if it went through a reputable charity it would hopefully end up somewhere nice, and it would free up the owner's pennies to get a nice "last blast" horse to have fun on.
 
It would depend entirely if the horse in question could live out happily 24/7/365. If it could then I would take it to a livery yard that offers grass livery, which isn't expensive and then get another horse to ride. For example my pony is retired out because she loves it and it costs me £15 a week.
However if the horse isn't going to be happy being turned away then perhaps the pts option would have to be considered. It's hard, I have made the decision that if my horse does anything that would need 6 months box rest or he would need to be turned away for 'x' amount of time, then that will be his time up. Not because I'm a callous b!tch, as he means the world to me, but he's 15 now and he isn't a horse that would cope with being turned away, he thrives on work and is unhappy to be left in the field for long periods.

Each horse is individual and so in my eyes only the owner will know which option would be the best one to take.
 
I cannot go into details why the owner will not consider loaning. All I can say is that the owner has had a major bad experience in the past and is not prepared to risk putting any horse (or themselves for that matter) through that again.
 
In the instance of a horse just being a hobby and not a source of income, objectively, it sounds terrible that a horse who could live a happy, comfortable non-ridden life, would be put down for insurance reasons so the owner could buy another hobby horse to have more fun with - but if those really were the only options, that is probably what I would do. Basically, a horse would have to lose his life so that i could have more fun. Which sounds incredibly cruel and cold-hearted indeed. But after all, we keep horses for selfish reasons. :-(((
 
I chatted to YO we changed Mac to sort of paddock/grass/retirment livery then after a year I had saved enough to get a new horse. Total livery is more than it was but not double the amount.
I know I've been lucky. Part of new horses selection was that it would be an easy keeper to.
 
PTS at 8 years old seems a very upsetting option. If horse will become paddock sound could a retirement home be an option? Or maybe not a loan but advertising for someone to purchase said horse for a small fee as a field companion? I have seen a few users on here looking for a companion
 
Obviously there are lots of considerations, but as someone the wrong side of 40 myself, I want to be out doing things now with my horse. If she keeps this horse she will miss out on this and I guess its a case of how important it is for her.
I always talk tough and would say I would pts - whether I could actually go through with it I don't know.
 
Sorry but I would PTS, what use is a horse that cannot be riden at such a young age and will it be happy and content to live its life out in a field not doing anything.
 
I would wait and see how sound he became. Having had two horses written off, with time and careful management both came back. One was written off at six, was sound and off bute by 8 and went on to event till he was 19. He was retired at 21. My chestnut was as good as written off by the vet last year. Was told she would only ever be good for hacking. Well she just recently came 3rd and 6th in dressage and went crosscountry schooling successfully this weekend. Yes she wont ever reach the standard she was capable of before her injury but she is still able to do more than was suggested by the vet.

So I would tell your friend to wait and see what happens.
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She might get lucky but she will have to be patient.
 
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There's a few places around the UK that take in horses like this. They live out in herds (sometimes are barned through winter). You sign the horse over to them. The horses donate blood every few weeks.
At 8yo this horse would be a prime candidate.

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Sounds ideal!
 
I would find a retirement home for much less livery costs and share someone else's horse, again for less than funding your own. I absolutely in all conscience could not kill an 8yrs horse because he / she could no longer could be ridden.
 
I've not read all the replies but If it was me in that position I would PTS if I really couldn't afford two. Loaning wouldn't be an option for me due to the horror stories of horses disappearing. I think as an owner we have a duty of care to our horses so they don't end up neglected.
I would try and see if there is someone I know with a 5 star home first.
 
Thank you everyone. I shall pass everything that has been said on.
I willl say now, when asked for my opinion I told them I would PTS if I were in their position.
 
I would try the blood bank, but if this was not an option I would have no qualms to PTS. I don't own my own land and like to ride. For me the age is the key here. If he was much older I may consider retirement, but you don't go out and buy an 8 year old (or whatever age it was when she got it) to have to retire it for possible up to 20 odd years.
 
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Obviously there are lots of considerations, but as someone the wrong side of 40 myself, I want to be out doing things now with my horse. If she keeps this horse she will miss out on this and I guess its a case of how important it is for her.
I always talk tough and would say I would pts - whether I could actually go through with it I don't know.

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I really think this may be the ultimate deciding factor. Unless you are the wrong side of 40 yourself I dont think you can truly appreciate this particular scenario. If I myself was faced with the propect of never riding my own horse again I know what I would do - as difficult as it may be.
 
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I'm going through this at the minute with my six year old and for now I am going down the veterinary treatment route to see if anything can still be done, and getting a second opinion. My gelding is paddock sound but loves being in work and the initial prognosis is that the most we can hope for is for him to be a companion.

It breaks my heart, and I guess know what your friend is going through.
 
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I would try the blood bank, but if this was not an option I would have no qualms to PTS. I don't own my own land and like to ride. For me the age is the key here. If he was much older I may consider retirement, but you don't go out and buy an 8 year old (or whatever age it was when she got it) to have to retire it for possible up to 20 odd years.

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Exactly. As I said earlier had the horse been much older the owner would have no second thoughts about keeping it in retirement for a couple of years - however, the propect of 15+ years is really throwing the cat amongst the pigeons.
 
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I'm going through this at the minute with my six year old and for now I am going down the veterinary treatment route to see if anything can still be done, and getting a second opinion. My gelding is paddock sound but loves being in work and the initial prognosis is that the most we can hope for is for him to be a companion.

It breaks my heart, and I guess know what your friend is going through.

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I am so sorry Blackhawk. I know hoe difficult it is beleive me. My friend has been struggling wiwh this for several weeks now and its awful. I can only sit and listen and give my thoughts when asked for. Ultimately the decision lies with my friend. I cant do or say anything that will make the situation any easier for either of you - I wish I could.
 
I am sorry if I sound angry but I am in this situation all be it slightly different as my horse was sound when I retired her from being ridden due to a back problem caused by previous owner.
I promised my horse a home for life no matter what and eight years later she is still with me enjoying life. I have owned her since she was five she is now sixteen. Yes I miss riding but I get to ride many different horses as people allow me to ride theirs.
My horse came third at a county level show and her name appeared in the Horse and Hound. There isn't a day goes by when I don't feel lucky to be my mares owner as she is beautiful.
If I got to a piont where I couldn't keep her due to money I would send her to a Sanctuary.
 
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I am so sorry Blackhawk. I know hoe difficult it is beleive me. My friend has been struggling wiwh this for several weeks now and its awful. I can only sit and listen and give my thoughts when asked for. Ultimately the decision lies with my friend. I cant do or say anything that will make the situation any easier for either of you - I wish I could.

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It is a difficult decision, and I wouldn't wish it on anyone especially with such young horses involved. My horses injury was partly caused by a loan gone bad so for me too, that option is just not there. Since my gelding has been back with me I've had a lot of offers from people who think they can somehow 'fix' him and want to buy/loan him because they think that somehow they can get him sound and competing again and 'surely he can hack out a few times a week'. It does get me really upset and gives me little faith that I could actually find him a home as a companion if I had to.
 
PTS for me if I could not afford another horse plus retirement livery or a blood herd would not take him. I was in this position three years ago with an 8yo horse. Luckily I rehomed her, but she was within a month of Potters because I don't want a horse I cannot ride and do not have my own land. I would not have loaned/sold her as a companion because to all intents and purposes there was nothing wrong with her, she was just dangerous to ride and I didn't want someone trying!
 
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