Horses are heartbreakers: I don't know what to do anymore.

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Lolo

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My horse is old now. He's been 'old' in years for quite a long time, but now he is beginning to feel it. And I just don't know what to do with him. He's 26 and quite a bit, and his shoulders have basically given up on him. He can potter about the field (not really sound as such, but equally not in pain), but he is pottery and he struggles to get up in the mornings if he's been lying down. He can no longer be ridden, and previously we're always said that when he can't be ridden he has to be PTS as he rapidly loses condition.

Unfortunately, he's decided to look rather well. His coat is shiney, his eyes are bright, he looks perky and happy and generally quite contented. So suddenly, the decision to have him PTS is bloody difficult. He genuinely won't cope with the autumn/ winter (when he's in work and is all muscle, he needs to be fed virtually his own bodyweight twice a day just to keep him from looking anorexic. Without work his weight plummets.) but do we say goodbye now, or wait out the summer? Last month we thought he'd be gone of his own accord by now. But he's not.

I don't know whether to say goodbye now, knowing that he'll be going as a healthy, happy, contented old boy, or to wait till the end of summer when I don't know. I want him to be happy when he does go.

Sorry. This makes virtually no sense, just needed to get it off my chest. I've owned him for 4.5 years now, and I love him so much. I just want to do the right thing, only I don't know what that is anymore. And now I just find myself wishing he'd go of his own accord, now, while he's still good.
 
best to make the decision a day to early than a day too late.

if he'd be suffering by the end of the summer, i'd make the decision now xxxx
 
But I just don't know. Originally, the plan was to let him wait out my A-levels, because there's no way I could sit in exams and write without crying. But he just looks so well. And its confusing me so much. I just want him to be fine, but thats never going to happen.
 
Then maybe wait a month, or a week, and try and make the decision as soon as you notice him even slightly begin to drop?

I mean, if he really is going to settle well in to retirement then I'd keep waiting and re-evaluate the decision every week or month.

But dont make decisions during your a levels, they are so important xxxx
 
Although its good to air your thoughts about hard decsions like this and get feed back, i think sometimes you get conflicting advise which makes it harder. For example...What was he like last year, how did he cope with the harsh winter we had, if it was bad then he may fair worse this year however life has a way of surprising us and if he is well you may regret making a decision to say goodbye now. Personally I would wait but thats easy for me to say as I have not seen him and feel for him on a daily basis. The time will come when you dont need advise as you will just know and all you will need is support.

Trust your instinctx and it will be the right decision. Dx
 
I can only speak from my own experience. A few years back I 'found' a pony we had sold years ago. The owner had trouble keeping weight on him and was shocked when I said he was 32 - his passport said 19! Long story short, we took him home thinking to give him the summer to rest & relax then pts before he had to cope with winter. Well, he looked so well in autumn that he actually had 4 years of retirement with us.

One tip I found really useful was to take a photo of him standing in the same position once a month. It really helps you to be objective about their condition and spot a decline before it goes too far. Big hug for the tough decision ahead
 
seems harsh to me, i definately couldnt put down a healthy horse just because I couldnt ride him any more, i would let him live out a happy retirement and enjoy him as a pet.
 
I feel for you, I really do as I am in a very similar situation with a horse but who is only 13 years old. He was diagnosed with navicular a year ago but his various problems means that really he cant be anything other than a very light hack as his feet and hocks just will not stand up to any work and to be honest he is too quirky / sensitive/ daft / expensive to be that or a decent companion as he needs a shed load of food to keep him looking half decent. During the winter he looked awful, and was grumpy and looked like he felt the pain in his legs and looked twice his age, but with spring grass he looks well with a spark in his eye and has been gallivanting around the field with the look of a 3 yr old. Come winter I know that he will feel the pain and I always said that I wouldnt put him through the winter again. He probably will go on for years and years, always in a slight discomfort and not much of a life ( he lives out 24/7 as a companion - albeit in a seperate field because he needs so much more food - to my mare), who stresses every time my mare and I go out. My head says that really he is a very expensive lawnmower, my heart says that he is a beautiful horse who deserves to live his life. I wouldnt sell him as he is very genuine horse and would probably be buted and sold on to an uncertain future nor would I pass the buck on to a charity.

I cant offer advice because I fluctuate so much too but you have my sympathy and I agree that perhaps with a 26yr old better a day too early than a day too late. They never know what we have planned for them or what is happening - they dont have the same emotions as us and I often get very cold hearted and say right thats it, come november I'll call the hunt, he has no future other than me stuffing his belly with expensive food / care and time and energy and then I spend half an hour with him having a good ole cuddle and he will have a buck and kick in the field and looks great and I think I just cant do it. In your case I think that at 26 years old his time may have come, dont feel bad, you have cared for him lovingly and he will know no different.
 
This is a hard decision, and one i think only you will know the real answer to, as you're the only one that knows your horse.
However, i am also currently doing my A levels, and i definately would not be able to handle sitting my A levels and making that decision. So i would say, if your horse is happy and not suffering at them moment, then leave it a bit then decide.
 
Thank you. He's in no way a 'pet' type of horse, and he does need to be centre of it all, with people adoring him and feeling like he's the most important horse on the yard. Its why we have him- his old owners couldn't give him the time and love he thrives on and he looked very poor as a result. He's a stunning TB, who has done it all in his life- he was bred to race, then has since evented, teamchased, hunted, pony clubbed... You name it, he's been there hundreds of times!

I owe him so much. Without him I wouldn't be riding at all, he gave me my confidence when it had all gone. And I owe it to him to get this right.
 
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