if this was you?

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TarantuLove

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my boy is 19 now, before he came to me he had a hard and unloving life and was beaten and mistreated, but he is happy now although is quite high maintenance and his soundness goes on and off due to his old injuries. there is a chance i may be about to run into financial difficulties and may no longer be able to afford him
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if this was you, would you risk selling bearing in mind his difficulties or would you pts?
 
if he is unsound and requires expensive medication then unless you can rehome him on permanent loan as a companion to someone you know and trust who is fully aware of his issues I would pts.Far better than risking him being passed around to someone who lacks knowledge or is told he is younger and treats him as a sound younger horse causing him pain and distress.
 
Unless you can 100% guarantee that he will go to another safe & loving home, PTS
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It would be so unfair on him to have come to you to finally find his dream home, then have it potentially taken away from him again. This doesn't mean you shouldn't try to find him another home, just that if you cannot guarantee safeguarding his future, you need to do right by him.
 
I think if he is happy and pretty low maintenence in a field, then see if you can loan him out as a companion, but check and re-check the home and continue to maintain contact and visits. If not then you'll have to take the hard decision and pts. IMHO it's really not fair to rish selling him and having him fall into the wrong hands. It's a terribly hard decision, but we have do right by our oldies.
 
Having seen horses in similar situations go to another home as a companion and end up as a welfare case being removed by the rspca i'd always say PTS is the best option for the horse. Its the last act of kindness that you can do for your animal even if it is heartbreaking for us humans.
 
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I'd PTS too if I couldn't absolutely guarantee his future.

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Ditto. My horse is 17 and has a heart problem, and if I could not look after him myself I would have him PTS.
 
No, I wouldn't pts, unless quality of life had gone.

I'd try the rescue santuaries if I got into financial difficulties or knowing me, I'd just get into debt.
 
What a very brave and responsible thing to consider. All power to you for being brave enough to face up to the realities. Your horse truely has a gift mum. You clearly love him enough to consider that PTS is a better option for him under the circumstances if you can no longer afford him.

Hearbreaking though that is I do really feel that is the right decision. He has found you. If you can't be sure of his future, don't betray him.

Love and Hugs. What a horrible choice.
 
I do feel so terribly for you, what a horrible decision to make, but I applaud your bravery in facing this decision. If I was in your shoes, unless I could find him the best home, I would bite the bullet and have him PTS. I think we have a duty to our oldies, and if you can, they stay with you till the end. I know horses are a different matter, but you dont sell on your beloved dog or cat just because you want another one, like we do with our horses. I've got a 17 year old who has had a hard life. He is sound thank god and enjoying his life, but he is high maintenance as well. As long as I can afford him, he will be with me. If not, I will have to make the hardest decision of all.

Good luck and I hope your financial difficulties sort themselves out swiftly.
 
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I'd PTS too if I couldn't absolutely guarantee his future.

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Ditto.

In your case i would look for the cheapest grass livery i could get and turn him out, checking him as often as possible - if that wasn't an option I would not chose to put him in a rescue at this time, I would PTS without guilt.
 
I think most of us have run into difficulties sometimes, can you not look at ways to cut your costs a bit. I cut out a lot of supplements as i was just making expensive poo. There are a lot of things that i cut back on and it helped. Could you maybe get cheaper livery?

If there is no other way, then i would contact WHW. My friend got a nice 18 year old horse from them, he had a lovely life hacking around the countryside with her for the rest of his life. They also came on a regular basis to check on him. Unless he has a poor quality of life, healthwise, at the moment, i would certainly look at whw.
Personally i dont think 19 is that old but given his past, the last thing you would want is him being passed pillar to post.

I hope your situation gets better soon.
 
I am in a similar situation with my 19 year old mare. We rent stables and grazing and it is very cheap so we are lucky but our future here is not secure. I have tried to loan her as a riding horse but she made it quite clear that she didn't want to be ridden anymore and was dangerous - rearing and bronching, I don't want to be responsible for a loaner ending up in hospital. She is also now mildly lame permanently due to an injury whilst on loan.

I tried to loan her as a companion but twice she was badly neglected so now she is with us forever. If we did lose our yard I would have to have her PTS which would break my heart as she is healthy and happy and can gallop round with the others like she is only 4 years old. She is very settled with our herd and they have been together for 5 years minus the times she was away on loan.

I hope you can find the answer for your horse.
 
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