The fate of the Unrideable

Rowreach

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Slightly following on from the MR thread, but also because of my personal situation recently, I've been thinking a lot about what happens to those horses who are unrideable for various reasons from an early age.

Until recently I was very lucky to have my own land and stables and be able to retire any horse, whether ancient or younger and injured, for however long I needed to. I have always worked on a quality of life basis, and the belief that pts is not the worst thing that can happen to a horse, and a day early is far far better than a day late.

I have a 13 year old pony - a very smart looking pony, who is healthy and happy and a pleasure to have around. He has been unrideable through injury since he was 6, but he is not lame, and I have been frequently asked if I would sell him. I will never sell him or otherwise pass him on, because I am terrified that someone will put a child on him and that child will be injured, or worse. He is MY responsibility, and if the time comes when I cannot have complete control of his management, then he will be pts.

So the crux of this post, and I've no doubt it will be controversial, is this. Why do rescue charities persist in trying to keep alive so many sick and injured horses that have no prospect of a happy, pain free, stress free future? Would they not be better concentrating their resources (which after all are very limited) on rehabilitating horses and ponies which can go on to lead happy and useful lives?

And why oh why do owners keep passing on their problems instead of being responsible and doing the right thing by their horses - and anyone who may sit on them in the future?
 

scats

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I’ve always kept my unrideables and I’m at a livery yard. I had one go lame at 6 and had to be retired. He stayed with me until he was 18 and put to sleep because of cancer complications. He cost me a fortune to keep but he was healthy, happy and I adored him. If I couldn’t afford to, I would put to sleep rather than pass them on. We owe them more than an uncertain future.
 

Clodagh

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Big 'like' to your post.
Horses with no future should be PTS rather than passed on.
Same with dogs, and (odd to most but I like chickens) it happens with chickens. I didn't want a cockerel - FTGH or send to market. No one can cope with making the decision these days, we are an instant fulfilment and disposable society lacking moral strength - on the whole.
 

seaofdreams

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I have two! First one retired at 6, she is 22 next month and I swore she would never leave me unless it was to the paddock in the sky and then the same for my other one, he unfortunately had an accident as a baby which meant he too can't ever be ridden and again he will be with me till the end of his days (he is 12 next month).

I've not ridden now for years and miss it dreadfully, but whilst these two are still with me that isn't going to change, they are happy living out in a large field with company and are fairly low maintenance.
 

Polos Mum

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I think charities are afraid of the publicity - can you imagine the front page of the local newspaper after they'd had a cull of all the old sick ones. Their funding would dry up immediately so they can't their hands are tied.

Most people think PTS is a really bad thing, until you've seen alternatives go wrong maybe they don't realise.

Stopping putting horses into pet food has had a big impact, when your oldie / sicky was still worth £200/400 people could take them to an auction / sell them in blissful ignorance and they wouldn't last a few days before they knew nothing more about it. Now that isn't an option there are a lot more being dumped and left suffering.

I have extreme views though and I hope someone will put me to sleep before I'm stuck rotting in my bed for years (apologies no offence meant but personally I don't think we treat old / really sick people that well either!)
 

Antw23uk

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Although this post has been done a few times before its always interesting to hear peoples opinions. It's interesting about your comment on rescues because I think the same about ALL animal rescues. The majority of 'horsey' people fully understand that PTS is a normal thing, necessary and although horrible its just something we do but to have the view that half the dog rescues up and down the country are holding onto dogs that are dog/ people aggressive or other serious issues but they still look for that very elusive, one in a million home for it, to me seems like a total waste of money and resources when there are so many other suitable dogs waiting to go into rescue. I say cull everything that doesnt meet the grade in terms of homability/ usability and concentrate on those that are suitable for the wider majority of homes.

Difficult to put that into words so i am aware I may have rambled a bit but hopefully I get my view across, apologies :)
 

splashgirl45

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Although this post has been done a few times before its always interesting to hear peoples opinions. It's interesting about your comment on rescues because I think the same about ALL animal rescues. The majority of 'horsey' people fully understand that PTS is a normal thing, necessary and although horrible its just something we do but to have the view that half the dog rescues up and down the country are holding onto dogs that are dog/ people aggressive or other serious issues but they still look for that very elusive, one in a million home for it, to me seems like a total waste of money and resources when there are so many other suitable dogs waiting to go into rescue. I say cull everything that doesnt meet the grade in terms of homability/ usability and concentrate on those that are suitable for the wider majority of homes.

Difficult to put that into words so i am aware I may have rambled a bit but hopefully I get my view across, apologies :)

absolutely agree with this, especially the dogs that are coming from abroad and are disabled or blind, surely it would be less stressful for them to be PTS in their own country rather than a plane journey to a strange climate and people they dont know....its a difficult thing to PTS any animal but i think too many people and charities dont think of the animals long term quality of life and are too busy making themselves feel good by keeping them alive which IMO ia not good for the animal. maybe us horsey people have a different outlook to others....
 

Cortez

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I'm a working horse owner, not a pet horse owner, and so when my horses are no longer able to work they are either retired to the field for a set time or put down, usually the latter as most of mine are not that happy in the field after a lifetime of fitness and varied work. The reasons for this are both practical and financial; I have finite resources, both in physical energy and expenditure.

A good friend of mine has got herself in quite serious trouble with six unrideable (for a variety of reasons) horses that have drained her monies and are affecting her mental health.
 

On the Hoof

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I agree with the OP but it has taken me a long time to get there. I have only owned horses for five years and my first had to be PTS with cancer of colon. I love my pony too much to leave her future to chance and only on the past few days have been thinking that if anything happens to me then I want her PTS. She is 14 now , I've only had her 1.5 years and she was passed around a bit before I got her ..I couldn't bear for that again as she ages . Now this is slightly different to,OPs post as my pony is rideable (at the moment) but I still fear for her future and would rather she was PTS peacefully . At our yard we have had a bit of a run of people who buy cheap horses, ride them roughshod and then swop them for something else and it breaks my heart over and over again. Before horses I did not think like this and expected very one to,do their best to save all animals...odd finding myself so in the opposite camp nowadays.
 

tristar

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i have a pony who has no suitable rider, i have had her 18 years, a wonderful character, a beautiful mover, she inspires me everyday, i love her to bits and she makes me realize just how much joy a horse can bring into your life, even when its not ridden, it not all about riding.

i think any animal who struggles with quality of life, through age or unsoundness should be pts, but only because they can`t tell us how it feels, we have to do it for them.

i don`t think is is a new thing about horses being passed on with problems, its just today diagnosis is used more, so we `know whats wrong` years ago they just went to the sales, and were disposed of that way

i have every sympathy with people struggling to keep unusable horses, and hope they can find the courage to to make a decision based on their circumstances, its called taking responsibility,and move forward with their lives
 

Orangehorse

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Totally agree OP. Although it depends on the Charity. Some actively seek to train and rehome as working animals, but they will keep those that can't be worked or try to find a companion home. My friend has a lovely horse from Blue Cross that anyone would buy and take a chance on, a lovely TBx welsh about 16.00 but completely unrideable not through injury but "something" happened when it was being broken to ride.

But there are certainly too many poor quality animals around that are never going to amount to much.
 

Pinkvboots

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I have kept a few unrideables in the past and if the 2 I have now were to become unrideable I would retire them and they can live out there days as long as they were happy and comfortable, although I really don't have a problem with anyone having a young horse pts because it no longer can be ridden I can appreciate not everyone is in a position to keep horses as pets they are expensive and it makes me angry to think of anyone being made to feel guilty because of it.

In regards to charities I feel a lot of them spend a huge amount of money getting very sick or injured horses better that will only ever be fit for being a field ornament, I am sorry but I think much of it is for publicity they make good stories and much of the public love a good saved from death story, it actually makes my blood boil that all those lovely arabs that were seized were all pts apart from 2 and they were only suffering from very minor neglect which would have been easily put right and many were ridden useful horses that could have given someone a good few years of riding pleasure.
 

Leo Walker

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Big 'like' to your post.
Horses with no future should be PTS rather than passed on.
Same with dogs, and (odd to most but I like chickens) it happens with chickens. I didn't want a cockerel - FTGH or send to market. No one can cope with making the decision these days, we are an instant fulfilment and disposable society lacking moral strength - on the whole.

I was having this conversation yesterday. I've been raising chicks and have just hatched some eggs. I already have one cockrel and I think 3 or 4 more coming. They will get a nice life until they start to crow then unfortunately it will be curtains for them. You cant keep groups of cockrels in an urban environment and there isn't the homes for them. I do have a couple of homes lined up for the purebreds, but common garden mix breeds have nowhere to go.I don't think I could physically do it myself but I made damn sure I knew someone who could before any chicks were bought or eggs hatched.

The added complication with horses is the cost. Theres no real financial cost to dispatching cockrels, there is to having a horse PTS.
 

Denbob

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I think if I'd have been asked this question two years ago I'd have been horrified, surely there's a good home for every horse! But the more time i've spent in the horsey world the more i'm realising that it's not all sunshine and rainbows, and even an honest sale with the best of intentions can end up in horrendous circumstances.

I've seen it quoted here many times, "death is not a welfare issue".
 

MotherOfChickens

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well, while my unwanted cockerels and drakes go in the freezer-my unrideable is currently on loan to a better home than I could give him (ie better suited to a foreign pansy of a horse that doesnt like to be rugged and who likes to be out in a larger herd). He's a young horse, seems completely healthy and I struggled with the thought of PTS and was lucky enough to find someone who he adores (he never adored me lol) and who adores him but doesnt want to ride.
 

be positive

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I have kept a few unrideables in the past and if the 2 I have now were to become unrideable I would retire them and they can live out there days as long as they were happy and comfortable, although I really don't have a problem with anyone having a young horse pts because it no longer can be ridden I can appreciate not everyone is in a position to keep horses as pets they are expensive and it makes me angry to think of anyone being made to feel guilty because of it.

In regards to charities I feel a lot of them spend a huge amount of money getting very sick or injured horses better that will only ever be fit for being a field ornament, I am sorry but I think much of it is for publicity they make good stories and much of the public love a good saved from death story, it actually makes my blood boil that all those lovely arabs that were seized were all pts apart from 2 and they were only suffering from very minor neglect which would have been easily put right and many were ridden useful horses that could have given someone a good few years of riding pleasure.

I lost any faith I had in charities following the Peel case, they seem to spend all their effort, money and time trying to fix up seriously damaged but ultimately useless animals yet destroyed a group of relatively fit healthy and potentially useful ones just because they were considered a bit flighty and not the normal coloured cob or shetland type they are more used to dealing with.
 

Pinkvboots

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I lost any faith I had in charities following the Peel case, they seem to spend all their effort, money and time trying to fix up seriously damaged but ultimately useless animals yet destroyed a group of relatively fit healthy and potentially useful ones just because they were considered a bit flighty and not the normal coloured cob or shetland type they are more used to dealing with.

so have I it still haunts me that case and I will never understand why they did it I would have took one of those horses and I know plenty of others that would have given them homes, thing is most of those horses had been competed most of there lives and were well handled so would have been easy to rehome or deal with.
 

hopscotch bandit

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I know of a few that have gone to the equine blood bank in Buckinghamshire and I think its a brilliant idea. If its that or choosing to have a young horse that doesn't need to be on prescription drugs pts then it would be a good choice as they have a good life.

I know not everyone agrees but I think this is the exception rather than the norm.
 

Bernster

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It's such a tricky area. Personally, I am a bit more in the camp of having working horses. But if they are capable of having a happy retirement, then I think it's fair to give them some time in the field. I wouldn't judge others who do it differently, and finances is a big part of it, so provided the horse is cared for whatever that means (inc PTS if the owner can't secure it's future), I'm ok with that.
 
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I have plenty of unridables -for various reasons from age to quite simply never have been broken in. They will stay with me for life because they can. When it's time to say goodbye it will be done but until then they and I am quite happy with them mooching about eating, sleeping and farting!
 

Batgirl

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Very recently had this dilemma myself. My gorgeous boy is now no longer mine.

I was considering put to sleep as he is not rideable and I would not pass him on, he is alos not a great candidate for easy retirement as he is very antisocial to other horses so no herd solution.

I was incredibly lucky that his first owner contacted me and asked to have him back to retire him - big paddock to himself and next to other horses and she knows all his quirks and history.

Had this opportunity not presented itself I would have PTS
 

SEL

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One of mine was an unrideable pretty much from the off. I knew his problems and it was fine that he was going to be a pampered pet. If i can't get the other sorted that's going to be tough. I need a lottery win for land around here and even then I'm not sure 'pasture pet' would make her happy or well.

But one way or another they'll see out their lives with me.

I used to be in livery at a RS that was forever getting people's cast offs. I can think of 3 that should have been PTS at home. All the stress of moving to a new yard, being ridden again, showing problems and then finally PTS by the RS was not what those horses deserved.
 

Annagain

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A isn't unrideable but from fairly early on in our time together (year 2 of 13) hasn't been able to do what he was bought to do - and I only bought him to be a riding club allrounder! I could have sold him on as a happy hacker as he really is the best hack I've had the pleasure to ride, bombproof but forward with just enough of a spark to be exciting but I couldn't do it knowing someone might try to get him jumping again and really do him some damage.

I was lucky that a solution that works for many people fell into my lap. My best friend started having babies so I share her horse to do riding club and have a sharer to hack A. Had that not happened though I'd still have kept him and sacrificed my ambitions because he's my responsibility. He's now 22 and riddled with melanoma so becoming unrideable and what would happen to him then is the least of his problems - the melanomas are far more likely to do for him than his feet. He'll definitely see out his days with me - as would my share horse if anything happened to his owner. I strongly suspect every horse I ever buy will, I'm far too much of a softy to sell them on even when there's nothing wrong with them.
 
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DabDab

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Completely agree with the sentiment. I think the difficulty comes with where to draw the line.

The problem with rescues is that they are rarely called to an animal that is in good health, so they could just go round and shoot the lot, knowing that they were saving them any more suffering, but that would kind of defeat the 'rescue' angle.

Personally for my own horses, the oldest one will never be passed on - if I go he has a savings pot to give him a but of a retirement, but ultimately he is to be PTS. The next oldest I would not pass on unless I had no other option, and the youngest may well be sold at some point. That is just based on my assessment of the likelihood of their needs being met easily by someone else and is entirely personal.

I also won't put my horses through endless diagnostics or major surgery in an attempt to keep them rideable - if they are injured and can't be fixed fairly easily then I would retire them
 

LaurenBay

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I know of a few that have gone to the equine blood bank in Buckinghamshire and I think its a brilliant idea. If its that or choosing to have a young horse that doesn't need to be on prescription drugs pts then it would be a good choice as they have a good life.

I know not everyone agrees but I think this is the exception rather than the norm.

Not all Horses can go there as they have strict criteria.
 

milliepops

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The problem with rescues is that they are rarely called to an animal that is in good health, so they could just go round and shoot the lot, knowing that they were saving them any more suffering, but that would kind of defeat the 'rescue' angle.


Yes and no ;)
I have first hand experience of the frustration of looking after creaky old charity horses with no hope of being rehomed. They were taking up spaces that could have been filled by younger animals with decent hope of rehabilitation to useful careers. A charity local to me was sort of viewed with envy because they were so efficient at getting new horses in and getting others out to homes. for me, THAT is what the rescues should put a huge amount of attention into, not just filling up stables with horses that have no future beyond becoming institutionalised.

Yes, some high profile rescues of desperate cases can be good fund raisers and get the attention of the public but I strongly feel that few if any should be kept going if they can't go and lead a decent life away from the rescue centre.

I have 2 unrideables - both charity horses that have retired in their adopted homes. One who will probably stand up to a bit of gentle pottering and one that definitely won't. I'm lucky to have access to land to keep them on. When one of them reaches the point where they need more intervention then they will both go over the bridge together, no way are they going back to the rescue, that would be ridiculous.

The other 2.. one is such an unknown at the moment that I couldn't say what I'll do, the welshie will never be passed on because she's so strange I feel a deep responsibility to her :eek:
 

hopscotch bandit

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Not all Horses can go there as they have strict criteria.
I am aware of that LB. They have to be a 'type' i.e certain build and fit an age criteria and as I said they also cannot be on any drugs. But I have known about five that have gone there and I don't see it an issue if they can live a happy retirement in a herd environment and lead a useful life - what's not to like. If they had a choice of that or no longer being around I am sure they would willing go there.
 

JillA

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They have a tricky future at best if you can't keep them. When I was rescuing I always advised PTS, I only took those who could be rehabbed or got back into work because otherwise I would have been knee deep in them and their lives would not have been great (nor mine!).
At a bit of a tangent, I don't see those heavy boned and hairy gypsy cobs having long useful lives, why on earth are they so popular? I keep seeing the most common type advertised on FB as "show quality"!!!!!
 

Damnation

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Although this post has been done a few times before its always interesting to hear peoples opinions. It's interesting about your comment on rescues because I think the same about ALL animal rescues. The majority of 'horsey' people fully understand that PTS is a normal thing, necessary and although horrible its just something we do but to have the view that half the dog rescues up and down the country are holding onto dogs that are dog/ people aggressive or other serious issues but they still look for that very elusive, one in a million home for it, to me seems like a total waste of money and resources when there are so many other suitable dogs waiting to go into rescue. I say cull everything that doesnt meet the grade in terms of homability/ usability and concentrate on those that are suitable for the wider majority of homes.

Difficult to put that into words so i am aware I may have rambled a bit but hopefully I get my view across, apologies :)

Absolutely.

I have a 17 year old retiree, has had an injury since she was about 11 which means when it gets sore she bolts. Shame as she is a beautiful, well bred, talented and sound horse but with limited movement in that leg you simply don't know when enough is enough until she bolts. (You wouldn't know it unless I pointed it out)

She will stay with me to the end. If my circumstances changed and I could no longer keep her, she would be PTS.

When it comes to rescues, I do think that charities need to make it easier to rehome. Some won't let you adopt anything from them if you even work part time, or the dog may be alone mor than 2hrs a day which for most good animal owners is unavoidable.

I don't agree with the whole adopting from Cyprus/Romania, but when good animal owners find it easier to adopt from abroad as opposed to a dog in this country, it screams to me that there is a flaw in the system.

Animals that cannot be rehomed need to be PTS to make way for genuine animals who have a shot at a normal life.
 
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