npage123
Well-Known Member
I've been wondering about this for many years now.
About 20 years ago, I went on a hack with a friend and her horse had (presumably) a heart attack and literally dropped dead on the spot. He was fit and it was only a short, non-strenuous hack, so that day's exercise couldn't have caused it, surely. Would he have had a pre-existing heart problem (like a murmur or something) and could we have done anything to try and safe him? (When it happened, I did try and do some heart compressions but I'm not even sure if I did it in the heart area(!) and with the horse being such a large animal, is it possible to do it successfully in some cases?)
About 20 years ago, I went on a hack with a friend and her horse had (presumably) a heart attack and literally dropped dead on the spot. He was fit and it was only a short, non-strenuous hack, so that day's exercise couldn't have caused it, surely. Would he have had a pre-existing heart problem (like a murmur or something) and could we have done anything to try and safe him? (When it happened, I did try and do some heart compressions but I'm not even sure if I did it in the heart area(!) and with the horse being such a large animal, is it possible to do it successfully in some cases?)