HollyWoozle
Well-Known Member
Hey, I know I have not posted much recently but I just wanted to share my experience with some people who can understand. 
My horse, Inca, has been retired for about 5 years due to a badly arthritic knee. She had slight stiffness when we bought her (for light hacking) as they had jumped her competitively. I had a few years of occasionally light hacking with her on Cortaflex until her knee swelled up and that was that. Since then she has been on bute and Cortaflex, having what I hope has been a nice life.
In Spring the vet came and said she felt Inca should be PTS before the winter. Her knee was getting worse and she had large melanomas growing under her tail. She was also showing stiffness in all her joints. She then had a nice summer, beating up shetlands, sharing hay with Belle, eating apples and so on.
A few weeks ago we decided it was time to get the vet again (same vet place but different lady) and she said there was not a day too soon to put her to sleep, that "you don't see knees worse than this." We decided to choose a day and that day was today. I kept putting it out of mind and the day came round so fast, I feel like I wasn't prepared somehow, though I'm not sure I ever could be. Lots of sobbing this morning when I realised it really was the day.
When I looked at her this morning, I knew it was the right decision - her knee was ENORMOUS, she looked stiff all over and was stood in the paddock with her head down whilst the others were all at the top of the field grazing happily. She had hay, a bucket of speedibeet and chaff, a maple syrup granola bar, gingernut biscuits, peppermint crumbles, sugar cubes, 2 marmite sandwiches and a mini horselyx during the course of the morning. I gave her a good brush and then it was time.
She was somewhere around 16 - 19 yrs old and her body looked quite alright. I have never had to choose when a horse should be PTS before and it was heartbreaking holding her whilst she was dying, knowing that it was my decision. I have cried a lot today but I know that what I feel now is nothing compared to how I would be if something terrible had happened to her. The vets said it was most likely she would collapse in the field and be unable to get up or that she would get a broken leg from a kick (she got kicked the other day where she couldn't move fast enough). I couldn't leave her to suffer. We have kept her going as best we could for 5 years and I would have kept on with it forever if I thought she could have a good quality of life. The vet today (and the one who came in the Spring) was absolutely fantastic.
Anyway, I'm sorry for rambling but I keep seeing her face and I just had to tell someone. If you are in the same situation then I urge you to make the right decision - although it was one of the most difficult things in my life, I feel a sense of relief knowing that nothing terrible can happen to her now. I hope that she feels/felt the same.
My horse, Inca, has been retired for about 5 years due to a badly arthritic knee. She had slight stiffness when we bought her (for light hacking) as they had jumped her competitively. I had a few years of occasionally light hacking with her on Cortaflex until her knee swelled up and that was that. Since then she has been on bute and Cortaflex, having what I hope has been a nice life.
In Spring the vet came and said she felt Inca should be PTS before the winter. Her knee was getting worse and she had large melanomas growing under her tail. She was also showing stiffness in all her joints. She then had a nice summer, beating up shetlands, sharing hay with Belle, eating apples and so on.
A few weeks ago we decided it was time to get the vet again (same vet place but different lady) and she said there was not a day too soon to put her to sleep, that "you don't see knees worse than this." We decided to choose a day and that day was today.
I kept putting it out of mind and the day came round so fast, I feel like I wasn't prepared somehow, though I'm not sure I ever could be. Lots of sobbing this morning when I realised it really was the day.When I looked at her this morning, I knew it was the right decision - her knee was ENORMOUS, she looked stiff all over and was stood in the paddock with her head down whilst the others were all at the top of the field grazing happily. She had hay, a bucket of speedibeet and chaff, a maple syrup granola bar, gingernut biscuits, peppermint crumbles, sugar cubes, 2 marmite sandwiches and a mini horselyx during the course of the morning. I gave her a good brush and then it was time.
She was somewhere around 16 - 19 yrs old and her body looked quite alright. I have never had to choose when a horse should be PTS before and it was heartbreaking holding her whilst she was dying, knowing that it was my decision. I have cried a lot today but I know that what I feel now is nothing compared to how I would be if something terrible had happened to her. The vets said it was most likely she would collapse in the field and be unable to get up or that she would get a broken leg from a kick (she got kicked the other day where she couldn't move fast enough). I couldn't leave her to suffer. We have kept her going as best we could for 5 years and I would have kept on with it forever if I thought she could have a good quality of life. The vet today (and the one who came in the Spring) was absolutely fantastic.
Anyway, I'm sorry for rambling but I keep seeing her face and I just had to tell someone. If you are in the same situation then I urge you to make the right decision - although it was one of the most difficult things in my life, I feel a sense of relief knowing that nothing terrible can happen to her now. I hope that she feels/felt the same.
