Humane destruction by shooting

If everything goes to plan, then both methods are equally humane, but if something goes wrong I know which method would be the least distressing to witness.
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I can't disagree with you on that.
 
I think what it all boils down to, with both methods, is expertise of the practitioner.[/QUOTE]

Wagtail, I agree entirely, have had two pts in my horseriding career one with injection, other with bolt, as I was a kid and young teenager at the time my dad held them as I was too distressed, but would far prefer the instancy of shooting (either hunt or Vet with bolt). Not hard or unkind and it is everyone's right to decide what is best but I know that if they are gone instantly it must be less stressful although not pleasant to witness (and have seen both scenarious since my boys went).
 
My mare was PTS via lethal injection. It took 3 doses before she died. It wasn't traumatic for her in any way, and it was over within a few minutes, she won't have felt anything. But if I had a choice I would get the hunt out. There just wasn't time last time, it all happened very quickly.
 
Wagtail said:
I don't know where all these stories about the injection come from. I think it is an old fashioned view and that perhaps in the past there were problems. But the procedure is so refined now that there are no problems. Certainly the three that I have witnessed have been very straight forward. The horse is sedated first and this can make a horse sway. Maybe this is what people are mistakenly referring to when they say the horse fights to stay on its feet. The lethal injection is then given and the horse drops immediately to the ground and is unconscious before it reaches the floor. There is no jerking of the limbs like with the gun, though there can be some heavy expirations of air but the horse is fully unconscious as its body painlessly shuts down.
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Well one of those stories I related myself on here some time back. I had a terrible, terrible time putting my old boy down. I personally, going forward, would always opt for the gun. Out of the three I have had to deal with two went wrong, both via injection (mine ultimately had to be shot in any case) and one was quick and painless, he was shot and knew nothing about it.
 
I've seen both, and would choose the hunt if possible

The injection was too prolonged for me, and plus most of my horses are not a huge fans of injections.

I can understand both point of view, so its a great thing that we have a choice

As for the poor horse running around, well ours are always eating something nice (unlikely to move) and in an enclosed yard. I sincerely hope the last thing they remember is lots of pats, hugs and a tasty treat.
 
Gruesome story but I have a friend who had her Shire dispatched by gun many moons ago. After he’d pts the vet went inside, reassured her it was for the best etc then left. She went back to the stable to say her goodbyes and found the poor horse up on his knees dragging his paralyzed hind legs behind him. Thankfully mobile phones were the new craze so the vet was back within a short time to do a proper job. He was absolutely mortified and said it happened because of the thickness of bone. She’s a tough cookie and a farmer’s daughter and wife but since this she’s taken her horses to Turners. Personally I’m too fluffy for the gun but if circumstances dictated I’d do whatever was needed to release my horse from pain.
 
I have held five to be put down by injection, all were done in the field and none were sedated beforehand. The vet just injected them and they went down calmly and peacefully with no after movements or struggle at all. The same vet did all five and is very good at it, he says the secret is to use the right amount of stuff to do the particular animal and to do it quickly (each required more than one syringe and the second one was in immediately no hesitation getting organised.) He says any vet can make an error trying to cure an animal, from time to time, but no vet should make a mistake putting down an animal. I wouldnt use any other vet for the job. I know things can go wrong, an equine vet arrived in a neighbours yard to do some routine work only to leave nearly immediately after getting a call to say that the foal he PUT DOWN at the previous yard he was at had got up!:eek::(.
 
Hunt or Licencesed Horse slaughterer with a pistol every time over injection, their are few large animal vets capable of carrying out humane shooting of horses and ponies as they just do not get enough experience. With regard to the earlier poster who Stated Chinese whispers I couldnt agree more the poster who stated one shot blew off half the ponies face Absolute C*** but at this very distressing time it is understanable how things get blown (no pun intended) out of proportion, and I have heard of one person who the vet took 5 attempts to shoot the horse,He was a small animal vet, a good man knows his limitations.

The best Horse/Large Animal Vet I have ever known told me it is a very skilled job to shoot a horse and he described a Local Horse Slaughterer as an artist with how he carried out his trade.
 
I would choose the hunt for mine, and hopefully they would be avaiable for us fairly quickly, I've had a few friends who've needed horses PTS ask me for the hunts details to do it, and they have all been very impressed and would choose them again, I know that everything can go wrong at times though. I'm very surprised it was able to run around the field tho as 'most' will do them in an enclosed space or keep hold, but you never know the indvuail circumstances, and has it is a very distressing time then everything does seem worse. In an emergency if the vet was there first then yes I would let them PTS with the injection, but mine mare will fight sedation anyway so wouldn't choose this option unless nessecary, would much rather she was shot and went to the hunt, but then mine are hunters and to be fair before I hunted alot I wasn't sure if I would send them there, but now I would!
 
team barney said:
A friend had her horse shot, I wasn't there when it happened but apparently the first attempt went wrong a blew half her poor horse's face off. I would always opt for the injection since knowing what happened to that horse. I want to be there at the end for my horses but couldn't face it if it went wrong like that.
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What did they use? A cannon? A single shot with a free bullet CANNOT blow half a horse face off? Someone along the line is exaggerating wildly...
 
no matter how it is done it is always distressing for the owner, whichever way you choose should feel right for you.
stories about horses being PTS are rather like the stories you get told of childbirth when you're pregnant! everyone has a horror story to tell you, :rolleyes:
when my TB broke her leg she was down in the field and no miracle was going to enable her to stand or fight so she had the injection, it was right in those circumstances. when the day comes that one of the others has to go i'll make my decision on which method to use based on the circumstances rather than being swayed by horror stories:)
 
Ibblebibble said:
no matter how it is done it is always distressing for the owner, whichever way you choose should feel right for you.
stories about horses being PTS are rather like the stories you get told of childbirth when you're pregnant! everyone has a horror story to tell you, :rolleyes:
when my TB broke her leg she was down in the field and no miracle was going to enable her to stand or fight so she had the injection, it was right in those circumstances. when the day comes that one of the others has to go i'll make my decision on which method to use based on the circumstances rather than being swayed by horror stories:)
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Wise words!
 
fburton said:
An exit wound couldn't give that impression?
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Thing is, the sort of gun used, and the distance from where the shot is fired would make it very unlikely that the bullet would ever exit. If a hollow point bullet is used - it would mushroom on impact, and hypothetically, would leave a larger hole on exit than it made on entry. However, it's very unlikely that they would exit, and certainly not through bone. A lead slug could exit, but would not make much of a hole.
 
Sorry if someone else has already picked up on this point, but I'm replying before reading to the end...

Wagtail said:
If everything goes to plan, then both methods are equally humane, but if something goes wrong I know which method would be the least distressing to witness.
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It may well be the case that the injection 'going wrong' would be the least distressing to witness - for the owner. But for the horse? At least rectification via a bullet is instant; administering a further dose of lethal injection is NOT instant - far from it. Give me the gun any day - I've no doubt that it's worse for the owner, but IMO it has to be better for the horse - and that is what really matters.
 
Gruesome stories. I hope mine drifts away in sleep either naturally or induced.

However traditional, I can't stand to see anything shot in the head. I have seen it done accidentally while looking through a window towards the stud next door at an Aunt's house in Badminton - I watched this gorgeous horse being led thinking it was being turned out and then a man came out with a shotgun and just stood in front of it and fired - I almost fell over backwards at the shock of it.
 
A yard along the road from us had a horse shot, while tied to a tree and the first time didnt work so it got up, thrashing about and was shot again. I just dont think this is right:(
 
I've not had to have a horse PTS yet, thankfully, and I hope nothing happens to my mare anytime soon.

However, I would opt for the injection and that is just my personal choice, I am too fluffy for the gun but that's just me. At the end of the day each method has it's risks and 'what ifs' involved. Something could go wrong with shooting, something could go wrong with injection, you just don't know and by the sounds of it, it often depends on circumstance which method you go with!
 
Auslander said:
What did they use? A cannon? A single shot with a free bullet CANNOT blow half a horse face off? Someone along the line is exaggerating wildly...
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As I said I wasn't there thankfully. She may have been exaggerating a little, the wounds may have seemed worse to her than they actually were but I doubt it, she wasn't that sort of person to exaggerate.

I don't know what gun was used but from what I know of guns they can quite easily blow someones head off, a shotgun at close range would decimate anything (I realise the gun in question was not likely to be a shotgun) not only cannons cause such destruction.

From what I understood the horse threw it's head and ended up with very horrific wounds, I didn't wish to pry as it was clearly a terribly distressing time for my friend so I don't know massive amounts of detail, to be honest I didn't/don't want to hear the ins and outs of what happened.
 
I'd choose the shot over the injection, especially with a sick horse or one with compromised circulation where it can take much longer for the drugs to work.

I have heard of a horse being shot and not going down. The gelding was a large draught who was shot by an experienced man, but there was a problem with the round. A second shot killed the horse.

I would not have a captive bolt unless there was no other choice. I read a study that found they weren't suitable for horses.
 
I would go with shooting by choice. However, the 'knackerman' here is very old and (Chinese whispers time!!), I have heard that the only other person who is able to shoot does it because he enjoys it! The old man has done all of my horses in the past, when it's been their time, I have always held them, they didn't know anything about it and the chap is so skilled I doubt they even noticed he was carrying a pistol. Last year, my old Welsh still had his extra strong mint in his mouth when he went down. Yes, there was the odd breath and the movement from 'the final gallop', but he was gone.
A few months ago, I held a friend's old mare while she was PTS by injection. The vet was using a different drug, she said, and it did seem much more peaceful than other injections I've witnessed. Sedation first, then she really did seem to just fall asleep. Might just have been that particular mare, or, it really is a better drug (I've not been with an injected horse for some years).
 
Chemical euthanasia usually uses barbiturates first which induces pre-aneasthesia sleep before administering the actual drug. It's the same as is used in humans.

How can that be worse than blowing a horses brains out?
 
I've used a hunt and bullet twice and vet and bullet once. Vet expressed relief when I said I preferred bullet to injection as quicker for horse, though yes more traumatic for me perhaps. No drama. Would always choose bullet.
 
Auslander said:
What did they use? A cannon? A single shot with a free bullet CANNOT blow half a horse face off? Someone along the line is exaggerating wildly...
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I hope you never have to see a suicide then where someone has shot themself as it will be far worse than you willl be expecting. Enough said on that.
 
Well my old mare, who is a complete nightmare when she sees anything that looks like a syringe, will be shot when her time comes. You have to go by what the horse needs, not by what you want. Would you ask for your horse to be injected when his/hers front leg had been shattered and great pain. I would ask for the fasted thing to end their pain. A Bullet.
 
I live in Cumbria, the worst county affected by Foot and Mouth in 2001. Having had the farm I was living on taken out, I took a job with MAFF soon to be DEFRA. I had to supervise the death of thousands of cattle, sheep and their lambs. Injection was not an option, captive bullet was, they then had to have their spinal cords severed by a pith rod. It was a dramatic death to say the least, especially in the quantity of those slaughtered. Having said all this, shooting is the way I have had my horses put down. A hunstman or slaughterman is used to dealing with the euthenasia of stock, a vet is under pressure, he is more used to mending animals, it is not something vets deal with on a daily basis, other than small animals.
 
Re the OP being from a friend of a friend, I did leave out the gruesome details, but the friend who told me was present and witnessed it, since her horse is turned out with the one which was put down. I wanted to provoke a debate and hear people's experiences to better inform me when the inevitable day arrives. I'd never heard the injection being a problem - my family have had 3 elderly ponies despatched this way and one was down in the field when the vet arrived. As we've said before, it depends on circs
 
Damned phone! Depends on circs but this had made me think hard about whether I'm squeamish about the bullet is actually in the horse's best interests.
 
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