Horses in your will ideas

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Booboos

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With the birth approaching I wanted to do a little instruction document for my OH to be openned in case I die (extreme I know, but you never know with these things and good planning does not make bad things happen, it just makes them easier to deal with when they do happen) which dealt with the animals.

OH can manage very well with the dogs/cat, but is not horsey and could struggle with them, so here's the plan:

Step one: offer the horses to good horsey friends on the understanding that they would take on responsibility for them for their rest of their lives. I don't think OH would be able to supervise loans to people he doesn't know or take the horses back if the loan went wrong, so it would have to be a list of people we know very well and trust to do the right thing by the horses.

Step two: if he can't re-home them this way can he leave them to a charity like WHW? Three are 'useful' ridden horses, which could be rehomed as long as someone vetted and monitored the new homes. One is a mini companion but very very handy as a companion (easy to handle, loads/travels well, never had laminitis). Would the WHW take them? We could afford to give a bit of a donation with each horse but not enough to keep them for rest of their lives.

Step three: he could possibly keep the cob (he's 15 so he could retire although there is no need for him to) and the mini companion, if he wanted to, but if he retired the competition horses I think they would just get too full of themselves and bored.

What plans do you guys have for your horses if the worst were to happen? Is there anything else I could do? I would be a bit loath for the OH to sell them on as you never know what happens 2-3 homes down the line. If the worst came to the worst he would PTS but it seems a bit of a shame as they are all healthy and capable of doing a useful job.
 
I think I would instruct my dad and my best friend(s) to find my horse the most suitable home possible... listing what I would wish for each horse... detailing all quirks etc etc so that any future owner was fully aware and that the sellers were as informed as possible...
 
I have left mine to a horse charity, along with a donation to the charity, which has been written into my will.
 
The bhs have an assisted rehoming scheme which would be what you are looking for.

Personally, I'm lucky dh is horsey so he would take our mare on full time or regimes her himself, my sister is also horsey and would help.
 
I sorted mine ages ago even though OH thinks I am being a drama queen!

I is for sale and will still be sold, 2 of my friends will take over her care untill she goes. They will then be paid for their help out of the sale.

The Shoe will go to The Sharer along with The Sharer's payment from sale of I to help pay for her keep until The Sharer is officially an adult. (assuming I have finalised transition form loan to ownership by time I go!! lol)

B goes next door to my lovely neighbour to be a BSJA pony. She is to remain a competition horse and neighbour will find a nice competative home for her if and when they outgrow. They will hopefully keep in touch with her as I am hoping she will be PTS when she retires rather than being stuffed in a field and neglected. That's the only bit I couldn't control.

L is to be PTS and go with me as she is too old, infirm and expensive to pass onto anyone else (she is 31 with an incurable condition requiring treatment, plus I couldn't go by myself in case there is something afterwards, I am not brave and she will look after me). The Sharer will handle the arrangements for this and it is on file with the vet for her to do so (must check this but I am fairly sure it is).

Good luck with your plans.
 
I have three boys to think of. A 14hh New Forest which will go to VERY good friends, whom I trust implicitly, they have long covetted him. They will also take the Mini Shetland. The 15.2hh 4 year old, who is a beauty but had a very hard start in life, will be PTS if my friends cannot find a home that they can be 100% sure off. I couldn't face the smallest chance he will be ill treated again. Money has been left to cover everything.
 
I would want my TB to be gifted to one of the ex-racehorse charities, as retired, not to be ridden. If they are unable to take him on then my TB will be PTS. (He is not easy or cheap to keep, can no longer be ridden, has a variety of problems, etc)

My other horse is the complete opposite to my TB ie, my other horse is most peoples dream horse. A very talented, kind and sensible allrounder. I think it would be very easy to sell him, and find a super home. My OH quite likes him and rides a bit, so he might decide to keep him on a full livery.

Oh dear, I feel all depressed now.
 
Thanks guys. Will look into the BHS and WHW schemes. As we haven't sold our house in the UK or decided whether we will stay in France long term after the baby is born I suppose I still consider us as being half in the UK, but you are right I should look into French charities. There is one, Equine Rescue France, that seems very reputable.
 
If anything were to happen to me my mare would go to her previous owners (if they could take her). If they cannot rehome her to a good enough home and can't keep her themselves I would have my mare PTS.
Harsh I know but she is quirky to ride and I would rather she was PTS then sold and passed from pillar to post!
 
Good topic.
ERF are indeed very reputable,
as a fellow Frenchie, and if I was in your position of being able to rehome in either country, personally I would steer towards the uk.
My own decisions are simple , old one PTS, young one returned to owner,
Good luck , not easy at all but needs to be discussed,
and huge best wishes for the immediate future!
JC
 
My last horse was to be PTS... because he had a long term (permanent) injury and couldnt safely be ridden...

My current donk is perfectly sound and i genuinly wouldnt know what to do.... I think my mum would loan her out as shes non horsey but coludnt bear to sell her (ive been told even now if i sell her dont bother coming home lol!)..... so i dont know tbh!...
 
I'm surprised at the number that would be pts. i understand in certain circumstances but I think as owners we sometimes believe nobody else could care for them like we do (i'm the worst for this) but i'm not sure i'd end my big guys life despitw him being tricky sometimes.

Such a hard thing to think about really. I guess my veteran would continue to be retired and cared for by my mum or a retirement centre (there is one deovn/cornwall way) and the big guy would get sold (hopefully to previous owner) but if not i'm sure my parents/instructor would find the right people. Their not horsey but i trust their instincts, esp my dad.
 
My fluffies go to OH/parents with enough money to keep them for life. This is another reason I don't have my own horse yet, insufficient funds to keep one long term if I couldn't work...

I'm not sure if you are/will be working with the baby and what pension schemes/life assurance associate with any mortgage etc you have but it is possible that you either have, or would be able to get, sufficient life insurance to secure long term care via a legacy to a charity. You might have to trust someone (your OH sounds like a good candidate) to be a beneficiary on behalf of the horses if you see what I mean. See what the charities say...
 
Archie is to go to sharer with some money to make sure she can afford to keep him - she's a student so not much money at the moment and even a few years down the line when she's earning, she never signed up to full costs and care so it's only right she gets help. It's enough to cover his livery and feed for a few years. She can't sell him but if she needs to, she can rehome him to a home approved by my best friend - this isn't because I don't trust her, but because I don't want her to question whether she made the right decision, I want to make sure the burden is shared (and hopefully therefore halved). If a suitable home can't be found (he isn't without his problems) she can have him PTS, again with best friend's approval. BF's approval isn't needed in a medical situation.

BF's boy comes to me with similar conditions - except her husband's approval is needed (he's more involved with the horses than mine). But if that happened I can definitely say her boy wouldn't be going anywhere, no matter what. I've known him as long as she has (went with her to try him) and practically think of him as my own anyway.
 
If both me & OH die then both horses & all related 'stuff' including trailer will go to a good friend who runs a riding school & livery yard. I trust her to make the right decisions for each of the horses, which may be to personally keep, work in the school, rehome, sell or PTS depending on circumstances & timing etc. I'm hoping that the resell value of the brand new trailer & all the surplus tack will cover out of pocket expenses until the decisions have been made.

If only I die then OH will look after them, but if it becomes too much then he will fall back on the plan above.

We have similar arrangements for all our livestock (rare breed cattle & sheep, chicken & ducks & dog), but with different friends who have the right experience, knowledge & attitude.
 
I think we could afford to donate one or two thousand pounds per horse to a charity if they were to take them over, but that is nowhere near the cost of keeping a horse for the next 10-20 years. Ideally what the charity could do for us is find them good loan homes as OH is just not horsey enough to do it himself and since 3 of the four are sellable, ridden horses, they should in principle be loanable to good homes as well.

I have sympathy with the people who say PTS. When you sell you lose all control of the horse's fate and if friends or a charity could not help I would PTS as well. This is not because I don't think there are other good owners out there, but rather because there is no assurance of finding guaranteed, life-long good owners.
 
My cob would be givin to my mum who is very horsey, welsh D well he is a yearling still but i have had offers from people as hes kinds sort after round here so no problem finding him a home!
As for my lovely TB well, not quite sure really, she can be quirky and would hate her to be in the wrong hands..........would it be really selfish of me to have her PTS ??
 
I have have only had my current horse a short while, so she would be sold (with my friends helping find her the best home poss), if one of my friends wanted her she would be gifted to them.

I have agreed to have my friends horse if anything happened to her. I have helped look after him and competed him since she bought him. If I couldn't afford the livery for 2 then he would be part loaned/ full loaned but she knows that I am very particular and would never let any harm come to him. I love that horse as if he was my own anyway! :)
 
I had this discussion with my OH a couple of years ago.

My lovely old horse was my main worry, he was to be cared for by my OH, failing that was to be PTS at home. Under no circumstances was he to go anywhere else and I was very firm about that. The others I left to my OH to sell or keep as he saw fit.

I get my OHs horses to sell or keep, if he dies.

eta: I think its very important to discuss with the intended recipients of the horses as to what your plans are.
I have a friend that told me that she planned to leave me her pony in her will should anything happen to her (with the specification it was to be a lifelong home etc etc). I had to tell her thanks for thinking about me but to please not to!
 
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Jiggle said:
eta: I think its very important to discuss with the intended recipients of the horses as to what your plans are.
I have a friend that told me that she planned to leave me her pony in her will should anything happen to her (with the specification it was to be a lifelong home etc etc). I had to tell her thanks for thinking about me but to please not to!
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Thanks that is a very sensible point. I wasn't going to put it in my will as such, but rather give OH a list of people who he should approach and ask if they would be interested in any of the 4 as I would trust them; they are all our friends, former sharers, etc. so I think they would honestly say yes or no. If no one is interested then the charity would be the next option.
 
When my mare was alive I told my husband she should be PTS if anything happened to me. She was very tricky and was lame more often than sound but she was beautiful.

My current horse is to go back to the person I bought him from who also bred him.
 
Spotsrock said:
L is to be PTS and go with me as she is too old, infirm and expensive to pass onto anyone else (... I couldn't go by myself in case there is something afterwards, I am not brave and she will look after me).
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That last bit made me well up, not sure why. :o

My boy (my 'forever horse') would go to my dad or be PTS with me too... My dad would like him I know but it's a lot to ask an elderly chap to take on an elderly, stubborn cob with health problems that mean he can't be retired.

My personal view is that I think it would be unfair to specify a 'home for life' unless leaving enough money to fund that (which I can't, the first 2 or 3 years yes but not for ten years or so) - horses can live a long time and people's circumstances can drastically change. They may be left feeling horribly guilty about having to sell the horse on when really they had no other choice. So as much as I hate the thought, I have added in a point that should Dad find himself unable to cope - for health or financial reasons - he is to have pony PTS.

My girl would be given to my horsey friends who would give/find her a good home. She's too young and fit to be retired/PTS.


Charities might be a good place to look, as many others have suggested.
I hope your plans go well - especially all the positive things which sound like they're coming your way :)
 
Good thread. I have it expressly written in my will what I want to happen to my horse, which is, PTS. She is young, gorgeous and anyones ride but I never want her to have an uncertain future and I simply cannot gaurantee her long term 'home for life' if anything happens to me, so my wish is harsh and unpalatable and I hope it will never come to it but......who knows.
 
I have to say that some people seem to think that only THEY are capable of looking after their horse (fair enough if it is old or very quirky or has health issues) but with a young, healthy horse how could you RATHER it DIES and has NO further life than offer it to a friend or an experienced rescue centre who WOULD guarantee it a safe future. There are plenty of good people and other avenues available to you. Please re-think.
 
My will has been written for 10 years now. the horses go to WHW, if my hubby thinks he cann't cope, plus cash with them. If I die after my hubby, again if I have any horses left to the WHW and they get 1/2 my estate and Spana get the other half. Simples
 
JoBird said:
I have to say that some people seem to think that only THEY are capable of looking after their horse (fair enough if it is old or very quirky or has health issues) but with a young, healthy horse how could you RATHER it DIES and has NO further life than offer it to a friend or an experienced rescue centre who WOULD guarantee it a safe future. There are plenty of good people and other avenues available to you. Please re-think.
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I am sure other people have their views on this, but my worry is that when you sell a horse you lose all control over its future. You may do all your can to find a new good home through vetting potential buyers, but firstly, people can deceive you and secondly, perfectly lovely people may have to sell the horse in turn. Gifting the horse to a trustworthy friend is safer, but I would expect the friend to PTS in turn if they could not keep it. Rescue centres are often overcrowded, I would consider them for my lot because my current horses are all easily loanable so I wouldn't expect the rescue to shoulder their burden for too long, just to vet and supervise loan homes.

Death is not the worst fate an animal (or a human being for that matter) can suffer. A future of pain and suffering is much worse than non-existence.
 
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