OK folks: Redwings is officially full

[touchstone]

I guess so, it's just so sad that so many horses are abused and unwanted. It really makes me feel down and I really want to help them all out.

WHEN I buy myself a cob (that's what I want) i'll care for it so much and I'll never let anyone hurt it or abuse it.

It makes me so angry when people dump horses. I know there are reasons, eg, out of money, no space, no time. But just to dump them? It's horrible.

I agree Samantha, and when you have your horse and if the day were to ever come (god forbid!) that you were unable to care for it or rehome it and it was elderly or infirm, that you'd be able to do the right thing and pts rather than leaving them open to that sort of suffering and abuse. ETA - Re reading that I think I sound a bit too harsh, sorry, but I'm trying to point out the realities behind the situations that many are finding themselves in at the moment.

 

[guesstimation]

It is amazing how you do harden to it, I remember being pretty much in tears at the first Dartmoor hill pony sale I went to I just couldn't believe it, now if I go although upset at what I see because it really is so unfair ont hem I am far more "cold".

 

[Spudlet]

Then you see something outside of your normal remit and it gets you all over again...

 

[cbmcts]

Or maybe get a group of people together to educate people if that's everyones solution. In my opinion PTS shouldn't even be considered. I certainly wouldn't want to give money to a charity who I knew might go and put horses to sleep just because there are too many.

You see, I would and do. I would prefer that the little bits of money available help as many as possible rather than one or two.

EX owners have a say it in because it is usually people who have lost a relative due to illness & don't have a clue about horses. Its not their fault they are there, but they done the right thing. That's why they don't PTS horses with an owner without giving a valid and genuine reason. Imagine their disgust with sending the animal to the charity if it ended up being killed because they wanted to put a younger more deserving horse in its place..

Realistically, while I can understand their reasoning in sending a horse to somewhere like Redwings in sad circumstances, they do it so they don't have to spend the time and money to keep that horse. I'm not condemning them in any way but they really have two options - either take the horse back and put it on full/retirement livery elsewhere or leave the charity to do as they see fit. I'm also aware that some of these horses come with a 'legacy' to fund them and that obviously makes a difference - to PTS in those circumstances would be unethical IMO.

I think most people here work pretty hard in order to keep their own horses and donate what and when they can. It is not and never will be enough.

I feel there is an awful lot of naivety about the extent of the problem to be honest Go to some auctions, see what is passing through the ring.. Look at the situation with 'breeds' such as the dartmoor hill pony.... Or 'Franch' rescues..... Work as or with rescue centre personnel. It is heartbreaking but to suggest that somehow these horses can all be saved shows a real lack of understanding.

I'm not having a go at anyone here and in some ways it is lovely that some posters think that all horses could/should be saved ( that was probably me many years ago when I was young and thought I could change the world ) Sadly, experience has taught me otherwise and with experience has come the realisation that PTS isn't a bad or sad thing to happen to a horse.

Helping the charities is one thing, but how many donations does it take to pay for just one extra horse? In the current economic climate with lowered wages and rising costs I think most people are struggling to pay mortgages, put food on the table never mind looking after their own animals. Sadly charitable donations are the first thing to stop out of most budgets when the going gets tough. I know I certainly wouldn't contemplate taking on another horse at the moment.

I donate to charities where I can, but the current crisis is beyond raising a few hundred pounds here and there, although I'm sure every penny is welcomed and much needed.

^^^
This. I'd love to be more generous to charities right now, God knows they need it but TBH I'm struggling to pay my own bills and keep my own animals - there is very little extra to spare.

 

[guesstimation]

It wouldnt be expensive to set up a network of volunteer "home check" inspectors. And I`m sure there would be many takers. - even better if the charities could agree to share resources to this end.

It would be great if charities could work together in that regard. Problem with people volunteering to do it is you need to vet them too and meet them etc. Everyone involved in the organisation I worked with work full time and it's hard enough to keep on top of what we already do, it is catch 22! We have used another charity before to do a home check for us so it does happen from time to time.

 

[stencilface]

I couldn't go to the sales, I would be in tears

 

[PoppyAnderson]

I guess so. I've been to two horse auctions and my heart almost stopped. They looked so depressed and ill. I really wanted to 'rescue' them all.
that!

So ok, you go to an auction and buy up all the down on their luck horses. You then line the pockets of the unscrupulous breeders. They go and use this money to fund more breeding, they then bring an even bigger batch of horses to market. You see these poor sods, feel sorry for them and buy them up too. Guess what these guys then do with your money. So, how does this story end Samantha UK?

 

[Dizzle]

Humane destruction has to be part of the answer. If horses can't be regimes then the charties only have so much space.

This. Three months of happiness getting fat in a field and then humane destruction. You don't know you're dead and at least they get the chance to die happy.

 

[ridefast]

I have 6 acres and have this winter managed to look after my 3 horses very well, they are happy and healthy. I could have gone to the sales, got 10 yearlings for pennies and also kept them on my field, but I doubt by the end of the winter any of them would be happy or healthy, I would be broke and having to consider selling or pts for them all. I imagine this situation is the same as the charities except on a larger scale.
PTS is not a BAD home, it is not a BAD option, the horse has no concept of this, the horse is not suffering, is not hungry, cold, thirsty, in any sort of pain. It is not an unhappy life, the horse wants for nothing

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

What doesn't help the situation .
Is when people breed horses thinking they can make a quick buck.
Allot of these horses come from poor bloodlines with poor confirmation.

So sad when our country has got into this situation where animals are bred for a quick turn around without any thought of what will happen to it afterward.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I haven't read all the replies but have to say that part of the answer IMO has to be the re-introduction of stallion licensing. It should be illegal to keep an entire male horse over the age of 2 without a license, which should only be issued if various criteria are met, including being able to demonstrate suitable facilities to allow the stallion to have safe access to grazing.
I would also prefer stallions to be licensed by breed societies only. This would ensure that only good quality animals would be kept entire.

 

[FairyLights]

http://www.independent.co.uk/enviro...es-abandoned-by-owners-last-year-6289936.html

 

[fatpiggy]

I'm defo with Pearlsasinger here. Don't forget that the licence was for a dangerous animal. Now you can have any numpty owning a rubbish entire just because they want to say they own a stallion. They couldn't manage to care for a plastic horse properly, far less a stallion. Unfortunately alot of the really poor end of the breeding world are the ones who breed humans with the same disregard and ignorance!

 

[FairyLights]

Well said Fatpiggy

 

[Magicmillbrook]

I guess the only answer is to PTS the ones with the most health problems and behaviour problems and try to rehome the rest. It's an incredibly sad situation

Agree - me and daughter were having this conversation only yesterday.

 

[trina1982]

Last year I was at a horse rescue place (won't name them), and was listening to one of the staff chatting to another visitor. She was saying that they were turning away a lot of horses that were 18+ that owners wanted to retire or rehome as light hacks. The charities advice to the owners was to do the right thing and put to sleep if they couldn't rehome privately. I totally agreed with their advice because ultimately why should any charity look after your horse in its twilight years because you can't/don't want to/need a replacement.

However.

I have to question (in terms of a 'business model') how rescueing horses from the brink of death, pummeling thousands of pounds worth of vet treament into a horse that at best will be rehomed as a companion, at worst will live out its days in a large herd and potentially suffer the consequences of its previous misfortune in additonal health problems as it ages, is the preferred option, rather than taking in an 18 year old horse quite willing to lightly hack that could be taken in, assessed and rehomed quickly with minimal cost.

Call me cynical but it's the dramatic stories of horses pulled from the brink of death that are the charities cash cow. If all the charities did was to put to sleep the real worst cases and took in more of the 'healthy but need a new home' types they would quickly go out of 'business'. Even though effectively they would probably be helping more horses.

On the other hand, the unscrupulous horse owners would, no doubt, use the charity as a convenient dumping ground, and it would be perhaps difficult to differentiate the genuine people/horses in need versus those who are scamming the charity for all its worth.

I don't know. Think i've confused myself now!

We as a nation need to get over the fact that pts can (in certain cirumstances) be the better option for the horse. I love the enthusiasm and emotion on this thread of those wanting to save them all, but realistically stopping them being born in the first place is going to be the best bet to sort out the current situation. Totally agree with stallion licensing (and on a seperate note i say bring back dog licences, and ensure all dogs are registered as neutered or entire - and you have to pay extra for the privilage of keeping an entire dog, with the dog licensing scheme allowing for the cost of neutering to be subsidised, therefore cheaper for everyone).

Just my thoughts on a chilly tuesday afternoon
Trina x

 

[Magicmillbrook]

Most of the horses at WHW live out actually - if that Exmoor needed stabling it would have been because that was what that individual pony needed - same goes for shoeing it. They base what they look for in homes on what that individual horse needs only.

It would be 'unbelieveable' if they did anything else, frankly.

Exactly - With our WHW companion we were actively encouraged not to stable, shoe and rug. I think many bad experiences when trying to rehome may be historic. Its also a shame about people not being able to rehome a horse futher afielld, but you have to think about the officers who check out the loan homes. If they didnt regulalry check then the whole process would be a farce. We all know of the horror stories of 'loans gone bad'.

I totaly agree horses with recurrent medical or phycological issues that have no hope of improvement should be PTS, I also wish humans could have the choice of voluntary euthanasia too.

 

[ponypilotmum]

I think it was in h&h last week that a police horse had gone to one of the charities for it's retirement? how many service horses go to charities? why do the police not pay for them to go on livery? why do they not have their own retirement facility? I expect a large donationis made with each ex service horse sent, but these horses are often quiet enough to make nice light hacks or rda horses.