poor, poor horse...

S

showaddy1

Well-Known Member
Joined
3 August 2011
Messages
499
Visit site
Tonight I have gone to see a horse for my daughter. He was advertised as a tb x 'dope on a rope'... he was advertised cheap, with the reason being she had lost her job and so was selling him to raise funds to pay for the upkeep on her others....
Anyway, when I seen him I was mortified. He was in a stable about 5ft 8" high so his head was stooped, he had straw in a haynet to eat and I would say his body condition would barely scrape a 3.
I immediately made it very clear that the horse was living in unacceptable conditions and offered her alot less than advertised. She accepted.
My predicament is... I have had experience in poor tb's in the past, and have had great success in building them back up... but I am not sure whether to go and pick him up on Tuesday or to ring the RSPCA??
My daughter cried all the way home, wanting to take him back with us there and then.
My thoughts are to pick him up on Tuesday and arrange the vet to meet me back at our yard to give him a thorough going over, and then see what happens then...
What would you do???
 
collect him asap tomorrow morning if possible get him home then ring the vet. ask vet advice about worming too.if it has to be tuesday it has to be.
 
Arrange for a suitably qualified person to go with you to fetch him. WHW, BHS rep, council animal welfare officer, your vet or RSPCA as a last resort.
That way they can see him where he is and you are absolved from any responsibility for his current condition. Take photos in that yard before loading.

What condition were her other horses?
 
Defo pick him up as soon as you can & take him home! If you have the space and the experience then I think he is a very lucky horse - the RSPCA might decide he's not in a bad enough way. Let us know how you get on. :)
 
If I could afford to do so and wanted him, I'd take him asap.

I hope it turns out there's a lovely horse under there and your kindness will be rewarded by seeing him blossom.
 
showaddy1 said:
Tonight I have gone to see a horse for my daughter. He was advertised as a tb x 'dope on a rope'... he was advertised cheap, with the reason being she had lost her job and so was selling him to raise funds to pay for the upkeep on her others....
Anyway, when I seen him I was mortified. He was in a stable about 5ft 8" high so his head was stooped, he had straw in a haynet to eat and I would say his body condition would barely scrape a 3.
I immediately made it very clear that the horse was living in unacceptable conditions and offered her alot less than advertised. She accepted.
My predicament is... I have had experience in poor tb's in the past, and have had great success in building them back up... but I am not sure whether to go and pick him up on Tuesday or to ring the RSPCA??
My daughter cried all the way home, wanting to take him back with us there and then.
My thoughts are to pick him up on Tuesday and arrange the vet to meet me back at our yard to give him a thorough going over, and then see what happens then...
What would you do???
Click to expand...
Collect him ASAP. Good luck with him and keep us posted.
 
RSPCA won't be interested, if they attend and it's a big if, they will not have a clue what they are looking at.

If you have the facilities and time to rehab the poor horse he might just reward you, he is a lucky boy you found him. Pick him up when you can and good luck.
 
Try the BHS welfare officer, they normally like to go through Stoneleigh, but their number should be in the BHS yearbook, and I think they would accept this as an appropriate case to be contacted directly.

As others have said, you will then have a witness as to the condition of the horse when you collect it, and they are also able to get the "appropriate" authorities involved if necessary.
 
Thanks for your replies, I am honestly devastated. I'm not ignorant, just never witnessed it with my own eyes. I have the space, and the money (just) and lots of love. I will take pics when I pick him up and post on here....
lets hope a beautiful personality is inside that scabby, skinny thoroughbred!.... The dope on the rope comment was an understatement!! I will keep you all posted, I'll upload pics at regular intervals then you can all be my witness should I need one!!
 
I guess he is a dope on a rope because he is hungry and doesn't have the energy to be anything but. Well done you for your compassion and kindness. I think he is a very lucky boy to have been found by you. Some things happen for a reason x
 
Pick him up ASAP, get him home and let the vet know as soon as you can so they can advise you on appropriate feeding,worming, care for him etc. Good luck with him and keep us posted with how you get on.
 
What about her other horses? What state are they in?? If they're not visible, I'd personally go and pick up this horses ASAP and once home - contact the RSPCA to tell them about the state of this horse and that they should go and check out her other ones.
 
Just get him away as soon as possible.
Youcould then try the RSPCA if you wanted to but it's a high risk strategy she will work out it was you.
Take a third party with you to pick him up and make her sign a bill of sale.
Good luck with him ,lucky boy.
 
I would get him asap but would try and see the others . You wont rest unless you have seen them and know they are ok. Perhaps they are hardier types and faring better ?
Good luck
 
Would definitely wait until after you had picked him up and have nothing more to do with vendor before calling a welfare organisation.

I would worry about the other horses in her 'care' but at the same time if the RSPCA etc go there and don't take any action it will be more than likely the vendor will work out it was you and not let you buy the poor TB, then you and your daughter would feel bad. :(

Hope he does well with you.
 
This sounds like an exact replica of the situation I was in...

A young TB was not going to be ideal for me (returning to riding and needing a confidence giver) but when I saw him I couldn't leave him... Only difference was mine had been outside for ages with no rugs and shelter housing rat parties...

Take him home ASAP... I've now got a totally gorgeous TB who still might not be my 'return to riding, confidence giver' but I couldn't be without him... He also looks rather sensational now...

Worming, good grass, oodles of haylage and Allan & Page's Calm and Condition with Fast Fibre... His feet are an ongoing story... :)
 
Pick him up and get the passport a.s.a.p. Make sure someone is with you to confirm his condition and don't do anything about reporting the owner until you have him home. RSPCA will do nothing, but WHW are better and BHS will probably advise you.

Hopefully, once she has sold this horse, she will have more money to look after the other/s.
 
showaddy1 said:
Tonight I have gone to see a horse for my daughter. He was advertised as a tb x 'dope on a rope'... he was advertised cheap, with the reason being she had lost her job and so was selling him to raise funds to pay for the upkeep on her others....
Anyway, when I seen him I was mortified. He was in a stable about 5ft 8" high so his head was stooped, he had straw in a haynet to eat and I would say his body condition would barely scrape a 3.
I immediately made it very clear that the horse was living in unacceptable conditions and offered her alot less than advertised. She accepted.
My predicament is... I have had experience in poor tb's in the past, and have had great success in building them back up... but I am not sure whether to go and pick him up on Tuesday or to ring the RSPCA??
My daughter cried all the way home, wanting to take him back with us there and then.
My thoughts are to pick him up on Tuesday and arrange the vet to meet me back at our yard to give him a thorough going over, and then see what happens then...
What would you do???
Click to expand...

i'd be very careful if i were you
a score of 3 is good, a tb at this time of year is unlikely to look fat
was he in his own stable ,could he have been in the "small pony on a diet of straws" stable for the viewing
i'm sorry but if you had walked onto my yard and told me my horse was kept in unacceptable conditions i would have chased you off the place with a shovel and told you to get stuffed

did you see the condition of any of the other horses when you were there ?
i'd tread carefully if you want the horse because if you go blazing in with threats of rspca or your being cruel accusations she may just tell you to stuff your money

do however have a careful look around when you go and pick him up and if there are any signs of real cruelty by all means ring a charity but don't waste there time by ringing them about a TB in january that is slightly below an ideal weight

good luck with the horse if you do take him home :)
 
If I were your daughter i'd have cried all the way home too, poor horse.
Go asap and get that horse and bring it back to a decent condition! :o
 
ester said:
that does depend which scoring system is used if it is the 1-9 system a 3 is thin.
Click to expand...

yes that is very well spotted ;)
i'd still tread carefully as if she gets a sniff of being accused of cruelty she will hang onto the horse and then what is she going to do
i'm sorry but i think some people go in all guns blazing without looking at the whole picture and from that little info ,it could be anything

what if it is a condition score of 3 out of 6 ?
what if its an old horse and a poorer doer ?
what if she was using someone elses stable that homes a small over weight pony ?
what if the the woman has just been divorced or has personal problems and is simply trying to do the right thing but has let them get a little thin ?
what is going in there accusing her of cruelty going to achieve ,she may just keep them and let them all starve because last time she let someone come and view a horse she got a load of grief ?

im sorry but there is just not enough info there for me to just say get the rspca ,whw ,bhs and hell why not get the army in, the woman is obviously a monster because she may or may not have a TB slightly underweight in january
 
If someone came to view my horse and I only had midget stables then I'd wait til they arrived before getting him. Or I would state that he lives out and this is temporary so you can see him. And I would also explain straw in a net.

But at the end of the day I just wouldn't keep horses like that no matter what. I would have made arrangements before things get dire. And instead of straw I'd be soaking hay for a fat pony.

Terri
 
FWIW I would not even contemplate giving a TB a haynet stuffed with straw to munch on, even if they did happen to be a good doer.
IMO straw is a bedding!
Chaff is a filler feed that can be given on its own or with some cool mix, a few apples or one or two carrots to give to obese horses and ponies, laminitics and good doers.
Straw can be mixed with hay/haylage to be given to good doers or obese horses, usually the native types.
I would certainly not be feeding any horse in winter straw in a net on its own, no matter how good its weight was!
 
angelish said:
what if its an old horse and a poorer doer ?

If so why feed it straw which has little if any nutritional content and also the eating of it in large quantities can lead to colic?

what if she was using someone elses stable that homes a small over weight pony ?

Again why give pure straw, oh silly me I forgot it is cheaper per bale than hay and that is what the horsey people who want to make a bit of dosh do isn't it?
FWIW I saw 2 youngsters being fed virtually all straw. It was their bed. In fact they were so hungry in the end they even resorted to eating their own ****. Yes that is right the substance that comes out of the anus! Perhaps their owner thought they were fat little mites and didn't have worm bellies and very poor coats which were also urine sodden and covered in ****. I'm surprised they didn't try licking it off their coats to try and gain some nutrition.
So please, please don't talk to me about giving horses and ponies pure straw!
If you are going to give it then mix it with other fodder or better still feed soaked hay.
Click to expand...
 
Fantasy_World said:
angelish said:
what if its an old horse and a poorer doer ?

If so why feed it straw which has little if any nutritional content and also the eating of it in large quantities can lead to colic?

what if she was using someone elses stable that homes a small over weight pony ?

Again why give pure straw, oh silly me I forgot it is cheaper per bale than hay and that is what the horsey people who want to make a bit of dosh do isn't it?
FWIW I saw 2 youngsters being fed virtually all straw. It was their bed. In fact they were so hungry in the end they even resorted to eating their own ****. Yes that is right the substance that comes out of the anus! Perhaps their owner thought they were fat little mites and didn't have worm bellies and very poor coats which were also urine sodden and covered in ****. I'm surprised they didn't try licking it off their coats to try and gain some nutrition.
So please, please don't talk to me about giving horses and ponies pure straw!
If you are going to give it then mix it with other fodder or better still feed soaked hay.
Click to expand...

where did i say that is what i would do ?

it could turn out to be a very tricky situation , i am trying to say that i would approach with caution ,yes the horse may be a cruelty case but then it may be something else all together just be careful op

weather it is or isn't a cruelty case walking onto someone elses property shouting cruelty and rspca etc is going to upset people and how is that going to help the horse
she may turn around and tell op to get stuffed or worse
a little tact is better than upsetting/annoying people and not every in the world is as perfect or as experienced as you obviously are :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
 
angelish said:
Fantasy_World said:
where did i say that is what i would do ?

it could turn out to be a very tricky situation , i am trying to say that i would approach with caution ,yes the horse may be a cruelty case but then it may be something else all together just be careful op

weather it is or isn't a cruelty case walking onto someone elses property shouting cruelty and rspca etc is going to upset people and how is that going to help the horse
she may turn around and tell op to get stuffed or worse
a little tact is better than upsetting/annoying people and not every in the world is as perfect or as experienced as you obviously are :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

OOh another person on this forum who has to resort to sarcasm as their final note. Didn't you know it is the lowest form of wit :)
No you did not say it is what you would do but your comments suggested that it was acceptable for a tall TB to be in a stable that was not suitable height wise, it may not have been thin and feeding straw to a TB was acceptable.
FWIW I have 4 good doers, one of which is a TB and there is no way on hell I would feed them straw in nets. I weigh my nets especially for the ones other than the TB, and if any of them start putting on a bit of weight I change the way they are exercised, decrease any hard feed they get, which is a drabble of hifi molasses free and about a quarter of a scoop of cool mix and monitor weight using my hands and body scoring, my eyes and a weight tape.
If they do eat straw it is because they may have had it as bedding.
I have no problem with anyone wanting to put some in a net with some hay for a fattie, none at all, just so long as the horse/pony is getting regular teeth check ups and has access to grazing and/or hay, and is also fed a suitable amount according to its breed, and weight.As losing weight too quickly can be just as detrimental to their health as it is when horses pile on too many pounds.
FWIW I am no expert and don't profess to know everything.
But I refuse to stand back when equines are being neglected or abused!
If I was the OP I would buy the horse and take as many photos as you are able to without being seen of the horse in its original surroundings. Get your vet out, have blood tests done and if anything shows up such as being caused by neglect/underfeeding then contact the authorities and ask if your vet will provide evidence and statements to support this.
I agree that going in all guns blazing will probably not result in a good ending for the horse.
On the whole people that do neglect horses know exactly what they are doing. They are often clever people and have 'friends' who will support them when needed to hide the evidence. It is wrong, very wrong but unfortunately these barstewards get away with it!
Get the horse home and then start action if you can OP. To do so while the horse is with this person is risky imo.
Click to expand...
 
Fantasy_World said:
angelish said:
OOh another person on this forum who has to resort to sarcasm as their final note. Didn't you know it is the lowest form of wit :)
No you did not say it is what you would do but your comments suggested that it was acceptable for a tall TB to be in a stable that was not suitable height wise, it may not have been thin and feeding straw to a TB was acceptable.
FWIW I have 4 good doers, one of which is a TB and there is no way on hell I would feed them straw in nets. I weigh my nets especially for the ones other than the TB, and if any of them start putting on a bit of weight I change the way they are exercised, decrease any hard feed they get, which is a drabble of hifi molasses free and about a quarter of a scoop of cool mix and monitor weight using my hands and body scoring, my eyes and a weight tape.
If they do eat straw it is because they may have had it as bedding.
I have no problem with anyone wanting to put some in a net with some hay for a fattie, none at all, just so long as the horse/pony is getting regular teeth check ups and has access to grazing and/or hay, and is also fed a suitable amount according to its breed, and weight.As losing weight too quickly can be just as detrimental to their health as it is when horses pile on too many pounds.
FWIW I am no expert and don't profess to know everything.
But I refuse to stand back when equines are being neglected or abused!
If I was the OP I would buy the horse and take as many photos as you are able to without being seen of the horse in its original surroundings. Get your vet out, have blood tests done and if anything shows up such as being caused by neglect/underfeeding then contact the authorities and ask if your vet will provide evidence and statements to support this.
I agree that going in all guns blazing will probably not result in a good ending for the horse.
On the whole people that do neglect horses know exactly what they are doing. They are often clever people and have 'friends' who will support them when needed to hide the evidence. It is wrong, very wrong but unfortunately these barstewards get away with it!
Get the horse home and then start action if you can OP. To do so while the horse is with this person is risky imo.
Click to expand...

if you would be so kind to look back i did not say that it was suitable for a horse to be in a stable that was too small ,i said perhaps it wasn't it's usual stable
i also did not say feeding straw to a TB was acceptable ,i said it may not have been its stable meaning the straw may not have been intended for the TB to eat like it may have been a condition score out of 6 or out of 9

i don't want to see any horse neglected or in inexperienced hands if they don't know how to feed it properly , but just jumping to conclusions and assuming the owner of this horse is a complete idiot (& assuming i am a complete idiot)and getting every charity involved is maybe not the best course of action with the information that has been supplied :)
Click to expand...
 
Actually, in Andalucia they often give straw to eat ... And the horses seem fine on it. And in Germany they often feed oat straw if hay is scarce.
Anyway, I an always a bit cynical about rescues but I do wish you best of luck and that you've picked the right one :-)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top