Retiring an older horse

C

Cor

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Hi guys,

Just wanted to ask, what are the signs that it is time for a senior horse to retire??

When i mean retire, I mean not daily riding but 2-3 per week light work possibly hack and light trot work... We all know it is important to be ridden even at this age...

Retire in the sense no more jumping and expectations that a horse should learn new things etc..

Many thanks
 
A strange and impossible question to answer.

Every horse is an individual, has different levels of physical fitness and ability. There will be horses barely in their teens that need to slow down, there are also horses in their mid twenties that are still rocket ships to ride.

With the greatest of respect I would suggest you speak to your vet and be guided by the advice given. If you own and care for the horse yourself I think you should know the health status and needs of the horse.
 
I would say when their enthusiasm starts to wane or their recovery time starts to get significantly longer. Those are the signs I have used to start backing off the workload.
 
My girl is regularly checked by the vet, and at the mom she has regular physio sessions as she is a bit sore in some muscles, but other than no no back problems or anything. Physio says we can still ride her lightly but in two years she should retire....

It is just that at times I do think my girl is not really in the mood to be ridden as before... Perhaps she does not enjoy it as much...
 
I retired mine from competitions of anysort last year. He's got plenty of energy left but was gettin grumpy with the constant schooling, clipping, pulling, basically all the prep. He went on loan to be a happy hacking fun pony, came back and I have kept his as such.

In spring he will be clipped (blanket or such) and brought back into work to keep him supple and active but we won't be competing. He owes me nowt but we still have a ball, will be doing hacks with friendsn the odd common riding and pleasure rides (non jumping).

Retired doesn't mean left in a field to me it means active but not necessarily competing :)
 
There are some good answers on here. I have had a few veterans of advancing years. My 38 year old was working lightly and did veteran showing occasionally right till about 4 months before she was pts with colic. She loved working and didnt know what the word slow meant, we retired her in the end because she started to get less 'enthusiastic', she loved inhand walks though right till the end.

My 31 year old retired at 30, she would have done more but I was worried about her mind as she went blind, later we found her brain was deteriorating and she was pts.

My 25 year old is still showing and does little clear rounds, she turns into a speed demon when she sees a jump so as long as she's happy I don't mind her doing small CR classes at the local show when we have finished our showing. She is a fab hack and thinks she's a four year old.

Every horse is different but my vet has always said they will tell you when they are ready xx
 
I 'retired' one of my hunters at only 17yrs - he had struggled with his wind for a couple of seasons (copd), and despite every possible change in stable management, was suffering with the faster pace required for hunting.

My vet was proposing that we did further investigations, such as work on a treadmill or steroid therapy, but at 17yrs could not justify the expense. Equally I felt he had given me his best years, and deserved to have an easier life.

He has gone to one of my liveries as a 'happy hack' and hope she will have a good few years to enjoy him. He lives out 24/7 and is enjoying being fat and fluffy!!
 
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