I must be a heartless cow....

I agree with you OP, so I must be heartless too. I know Hillside do some good work and have good intentions, but in other ways I don't agree with them at all. For example you cannot rehome a dog if you are going to use it for gun sport or any form of hunting! The lady who runs it is well know in these parts but not well respected!
 
Definately not a fluffy bunny: when I bought The Last Pony (as in last before I drop off the perch) I bought her as a young, well put together 14.00hh Exmoor x ?lightweight cob. The plan was/is to bring on to be a well schooled allrounder for a family home and enjoy her for the years left. I got her from a well known Gipsy dealer. They have an excellent eye for a horse, but questionable management habits. Vetted, bloods done. All OK. Thin, but OK with TLC and sensible keeping.
Six weeks later, is she in foal? Vendors deny she was out with stallions/colts. Vet says bloods (done again) inconclusive. I said to vet that if she was, and produced a live foal, sadly, I would be requesting euthanasia post weaning. I cannot afford two horses, I have neither the time or money. I could not guarantee another horse a chance of having a good and useful life. As a part bred weanling, it would stand little chance, anyway. The only way I could guarantee its' safety was by euthanasia. The vet agreed. The rest of the local horse world said I was a cruel, heartless, mean wretch.
The story has a happy ending. TLP produced a fabulous coloured colt foal in late April. Looks like an Exmoor x TB! Tall, elegant and movement to die for! The lovely YM said he was her dream horse and she would keep him forever. The grief she is experiencing now, with her adored old TB eventer (owned by her for the last eighteen years) needing to be pts in the next couple of weeks, is slightly improved by having the colt in the background. So, all's well that ends well.
 
I think breeding needs to be far more controlled than what it is now. Start at the root of the problem instead of just getting rid of the waste products (although I do agree a cull is in order) because, like other people said, it just creates space for more to come through. There are far too many badly bred youngsters, mainly coloured cobs and "natives" that are nowhere close to the breed standard or at all useful to anybody. Obviously these types of horses could still be bred, but enforcement would reduce the number of people doing it. Potentially like a stallion fee/license or registering all mares intended for breeding. But really for any of it to work the government needs to get more involved and start policing things more, which I highly doubt is going to happen any time soon.

I'm certainly not against rescuing horses but continually "saving" horses who are not and never will be fit for purpose is beyond pointless and definitely not helping the current situation. I don't think any rescue horse deserves to be PTS because it's useless, it's certainly not it's fault after all, it's the indiscriminate breeders fault. But something definitely needs to be done and when you're able to buy a horse for £50 there's a problem. And really, if you're looking for a calm, sensible sane happy hacker who can carry a bit of weight then you should be looking to spend more than the shoddily bred £400 gypsy cobs.
 
I feel like a total hypocrite for buying Dolly off the travellers, even more so as she may be in foal, although if possible I would opt for elective abortion. Seller swears blind she wasn't out with anything capable of covering her, but who knows?
 
Pennyless - I have always thought they will be heading off on the continent for meat, but I don't know why I think that, as in if I was told or I just jumped to a conclusion.
 
Burmilla said:
Definately not a fluffy bunny: when I bought The Last Pony (as in last before I drop off the perch) I bought her as a young, well put together 14.00hh Exmoor x ?lightweight cob. The plan was/is to bring on to be a well schooled allrounder for a family home and enjoy her for the years left. I got her from a well known Gipsy dealer. They have an excellent eye for a horse, but questionable management habits. Vetted, bloods done. All OK. Thin, but OK with TLC and sensible keeping.
Six weeks later, is she in foal? Vendors deny she was out with stallions/colts. Vet says bloods (done again) inconclusive. I said to vet that if she was, and produced a live foal, sadly, I would be requesting euthanasia post weaning. I cannot afford two horses, I have neither the time or money. I could not guarantee another horse a chance of having a good and useful life. As a part bred weanling, it would stand little chance, anyway. The only way I could guarantee its' safety was by euthanasia. The vet agreed. The rest of the local horse world said I was a cruel, heartless, mean wretch.
The story has a happy ending. TLP produced a fabulous coloured colt foal in late April. Looks like an Exmoor x TB! Tall, elegant and movement to die for! The lovely YM said he was her dream horse and she would keep him forever. The grief she is experiencing now, with her adored old TB eventer (owned by her for the last eighteen years) needing to be pts in the next couple of weeks, is slightly improved by having the colt in the background. So, all's well that ends well.
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Glad your story had a happy ending, thanks to your responsible YO.

How does having a newborn foal PTS 'guarantee its safety '. Safety from whom ?
 
Clodagh said:
Pennyless - I have always thought they will be heading off on the continent for meat, but I don't know why I think that, as in if I was told or I just jumped to a conclusion.
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More often than not, as they aren't passported or chipped (usually but not always) they aren't suitable for human consumption and go for zoo or pet food.
 
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