Thinking of having her pts

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santander

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We loaned out our 21 year old pony, and she has been returned to us because she has been biting. She has always been a bit bolshy about personal space, she fidgets and nips when you girth up, but... she is now nipping and occasionally lunging open mouthed quite badly. She knows she is being naughty because she lunges and then startles back, rolling her eyes at you. No amount of slaps back/yanks on ropes etc stops her doing it.

On the move she is different again. She's the perfect lead rein pony she just will not stand still and begins to nip and fuss very badly. I've tried making myself very 'big' to intimidate her, and she does indeed seem intimidated, but she still comes back and has a go!

I haven't the heart for this. I can't sell her or lend her out like this and I'm seriously considering having her pts. This might seem radical but I don't want her passing through several more owners/ending up at the sales/exported inhumanely for meat etc.

Does anyone have any advice? Also can anyone tell me what it costs for euthanasia and associated costs? I can't find her papers, will that be a problem if I make the decision to have her destroyed?

Please, I don't need judgmental posts, just sound knowledge and advice!
 
Have you thought about having the vet to see if there's an underlying problem which might be causing her to bite? I know a lady whose horse suddenly started biting and after a lot of investigation it transpired that she was suffering from a urinary tract infection (I think, if I remember correctly!). She was fine when working but snapped quite violently when stood around. They cured the problem and slowly she has calmed down.
 
If she is biting she is clearly unhappy. Maybe she is in pain - horses tell you in a manner of ways and aggression is a very common one. I know this well as my WB was very aggressive until his pain was diagnosed and addressed. Could you try a week's bute trial? I would have a chat to my vet and see what they suggest. Most vets advocate the fact that extreme behaviour is due to main 99% of the time. At 21 yrs old the pony could have changes and arthritis is very painful.
The ridden behaviour was the last thing to deteriorate in my WB so the fact the pony can be ridden says little to me - horses just want to please us.
 
I would imagine she is telling you something is wrong! Most likely pain or ongoing discomfort. Horses do not act this way without good reason and I think it seems harsh to be considering having her PTS because of this if, in every other way she is very good.

Has she ever been like this before?
 
Definitely sounds like she is uncomfortable. I`d have a chat with your vet and just see what they say after they have checked her over :)
 
You are very brave to post this and I am sure you will get a lot of differing opinions but for what it is worth then if you personally can;t keep her then it would likely be in her best interests but there are a few other avenues to explore if you can afford them and are prepared to put in the work. She is older and may not learn quickly but sometimes believe it or not clicker training can help these horses. I have a dangerous pony that I chose to keep but if I couldnt for any reason he would be PTS as I would not be prepared to pass him on and he is a young pony
 
This sounds very much more like her being in pain, rather than naughty, fidgeting nipping when being girthed are classic signs of discomfort, has she been tested for cushings as that can make them grumpy and uncomfortable.

She should have a passport, not papers now, whether you keep, loan or sell it is illegal to do so without one, if you pts at home they are not usually checked.
 
Thank you all for your replies. I do not want to spend a fortune on exploratory tests. I will get her teeth and back checked and yes I think a bute trial is a good idea, although I am wondering if she has ulcers in which case bute would exacerbate things. I'm not willing to pay for ongoing ulcer medication if this is the case!
 
Why not try aloe Vera juice which aids digestion and can calm the gut and ulcers. Nothing like as expensive as other ulcer treatments.
 
Our old loan pony's behaviour changed, she'd always been a bit difficult with me, preferred my son handling her. I had her teeth done, nothing wrong. Then she didn't put any weight on so had her blood tested inc. cushings which came back extremely positive. Normal is 29 and below, hers was 678. She had become really fussy about food too so together with her owner we made the decision to PTS. Cost of blood tests was £180. It cost £80 for our local hunt to come and deal with her final moment. I did buy some Hormonise to try and alleviate symptoms but she wouldn't eat it so vet treatment was not an option.
 
santander said:
Thank you all for your replies. I do not want to spend a fortune on exploratory tests. I will get her teeth and back checked and yes I think a bute trial is a good idea, although I am wondering if she has ulcers in which case bute would exacerbate things. I'm not willing to pay for ongoing ulcer medication if this is the case!
Click to expand...

www.abler.com do a free trial and ongoing costs aren't that much. A lot less than PTS.
 
Have you thought about just retiring her and letting her live out the rest of her days in peace :) If that's not an option financially or any other reasons then I would put her to sleep.
 
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