"Value" of your horse

[Tia]

Following on from my previous thread.....do you place a value on your horse/s head?

All of my horses have a "value" which is totally irrespective of how much I paid for them, and unrelated to their market-value.

If any of mine injure themselves or fall ill, then once the vet has been and given me a costing of the required treatment, I will make a decision whether to have treatment or have the horse put to sleep or make alternative arrangements for it.

A handful of mine are special horses and providing it was likely that treatment would prove positive, then I would go for the treatment regardless of cost (to an extent anyway). If it was one of my lesser valued horses then I wouldn't.

Over here we have no insurance for vet fees therefore any treatment has to be paid and any major surgery is performed at the hospital 4 hours drive away - so decisions have to take this into consideration, not only for cost but also for practicalities of getting said horse there.

When I lived in the UK, all my horses were covered for vet fees by insurance however this made no difference to how I felt back then and how I feel now without insurance....I still wouldn't have pumped loads of money into a lost cause, regardless of whether it was my money or the insurance company's.

What about you guys? Please be realisitic though - saying you would spend your last penny on keeping your horse alive is not really practical or do-able, I wouldn't have thought.

 

[Weezy]

£3500. Would never go over that unless it was something VERY special.

 

[Nailed]

As much as i adore Ted.. If he needed serious operations.. he would be put to sleep. I have nursed horses with broke stifle and severe laminitis and i will not put him throught the extreme stres..
Also.. he gets severe lymphangitis so can not be box rested..
Bullet it is i'm afraid.
Lou x

 

[dieseldog]

Can't answer that question as all my horse have either had very minor things go wrong with them, if it was serious the treatment was turn it out for a year, so that would be a £1k in livery, or they have been PTS as there wasn't any treatment for what was wrong with them.

Hopefully I'll never have to answer that question

 

[Coffee_Bean]

I don't place a value on her, because i think it would be less than i paid for her (she was overpriced and if i knew what i know about her now, i probably wouldn't have bought her

) But i wouldn't swap her for the world, until i come to the point where i have to make a descision about vets fees, i don't want to think about it tbh

 

[lizzie_liz]

She is priceless! Honey is not insured for vet fees due to us claiming LOU with her 5 years ago. How much I well my parents spend on her will all depend on what is wrong with her and would the outcome would be and the quality of life after treatment
Our little dog cost £8500 in vet fees, thankfully the insurance paid £6000 worth of that!

 

[Tierra]

Im afraid im the ultimate sentimental owner and my horse is priceless in my eyes. In realistic terms? Dont give a damn tbh due to the above :| He's my best friend in the world and i will never ever ever be able to replace him.

He's insured for a high value because we paid a lot for him. But before he was insured (we didnt insure him immediatly) there would have been no question that we'd do anything or pay anything that he needed in the event of an emergency.

He's my one in a million boy and no value can be put on that for me

That being said, Im lucky in that I dont have to worry too much about vet bills anymore. When finances were tight though, we gave up a lot to buy me the horse of my dreams, keep him and pay for my training (beans on toast for a month anyone ? )

 

[Tia]

Interesting; so you would pay £50,000 for special treatment if he came down with something which was treatable but costly?

 

[Shilasdair]

I don't think it is as simple as 'I'd pay £2000 for that one...and £1000 for that one....'
Deciding whether to treat a horse is dependent on the likely success rates, the suffering involved, the age and temperament of the horse, the vet's opinion; cost is just one additional factor.
I do believe in keeping my horses for life though. There are a lot of people out there who 'sell the horse if it won't do the job' but the truth is they are abysmal riders LOL!
S

 

[I_A_P]

well i thik there is a limit but tbh until the time came i dont think i could possibly say, i mean millies tooth abcess op as well as all the previous tests came to just under the 4k mark but it had to be done..and she wasnt vet insured (she is now!!) if it was treatable tho and it was not going to be causing them a lot of pain or a recurring problem, then i guess it is worth it. As atm my parents pay for all of that then the decision would b ultimatly theres but i think they would feel the same as me.

 

[Tierra]

Treatable? Absolutly - although im hoping to god the vet would take installments

But tbh, thats quite unrealistic anyway

Highest vet bill ive EVER been faced with was £8.5k for a mare who degloved a hind leg and had basically a year of veterinary treatment (although we were fortunate in that she didnt have to stay on nursing livery for a huge amount of time). She wasn't insured. Second to that was about £5.5k for colic surgery. Neither of those were questioned for a second.

Jack is my only horse and he's not a business animal. If something happened tomorrow that meant he could no longer work to the level i want, he'd still stay with me whilever he was happy and could have a quality of life - even if that left me with nothing else to ride. My OH moved heaven and earth to buy him for me and I know neither of us would hesitate to do the same if he needed it to save his life. I dont have children making demands on me... no responsibilities in that way, so why shouldnt we throw everything at saving something that is so incredibly special?

 

[Tia]

Oh it is as simple as that for me. I have 15 horses and although vet success rates do certainly come into it, so does what I would spend on each one. Money is not the issue, it's the value of the horse that is the issue for me; whether that be emotional value or however much I deem acceptable to be spent on the horse.

Yes I am most certainly one of those who would definitely sell a horse if it was not doing it's job. All of mine have a job and if they were jobless then they would find someone who had more time or inclination to spend with them giving them a different job and no I am certainly not what you would class as an abysmal rider LOL!!

I guess the mentality of horse producers are different from pet owners. Horses are my entire livelihood therefore I possibly see things differently from many of you on here.

 

[Tia]

Ah see 50,000 isn't out of order over here to be honest. For my stallion with the broken neck I was quoted between 15,000 to 40,000 to have him treated and a positive prognosis was in the low % rates.

 

[Tierra]

Well thats a completly different issue Tia and id never criticise anyone for the decisions they make about their horses. I dont think i could ever have horses as a business like that precisely because im too sentimental but that doesnt give me any right to make judgements on what those people do

And i dont

 

[Tia]

Me neither; I just couldn't imagine spending tens of thousands of pounds for an animal that's all....but that's just me.

 

[JaneMBE]

Ok. When eric first became really poorly, costs never entered my head. I had the vet out daily, at weekends and it didn't occure to me about how much it would all cost.
When I was told (and knew even befiore vet said) that nothing could save him, but they could try a clinic stay with various hock treatments and drips and stuff, it wasn't the cost that decided it. It was eric, he needed to go.

The riding school horses would have to be considered, but unlikely that each one needed vet treatment at the same time, so of course the horse would be treated (unless vet said, many thousands, in which case I think the only thing would be to say goodbye....but then again, I can't say that definitely as I love them all and would find it difficult!)

Selling them... well, have had to lose some very precious horses last few years, due to many reasons.. arthritis, extra bone growth (don't know the proper name!) and pure wildness. each has gone on to a lovely home where they could be looked after accordingly. very sad, but cannot keep every single horse that needs to retire or is not enjoying life at a RS...

Personal horses, keep for life, whether that be with me or loaning them (my old Newfie mare is on loan) Can't put a value on the special ones....

 

[Skhosu]

All of ours are priceless in my eyes. We have only had one horse where we had to make the decision to PTS, but as he had arrived the night before and then coliced, was in a bad way and 17yrs, his owner had final say but we would have made the same decision to PTS.
Slightly different but about 7/8 yrs ago my cat (bog standard farmyard moggy!) got hit by a car and his pelvis broken..not insured=£500 . Did we pay? Yup. A bit later, got his side sliced open from tail to shoulder. OVer 500 in staying at vets for a month etc. etc. Still here and priceless to this day. Mind, got him insured. Uninsured him last year, he instantly got ill and is now on special expensive food and hasn't looked back.

Only one of ours is uninsured, my pony and if there was likely a positive outcome, I don't think money would be any object although I have very little say as not his owner(parents are) I think he would get whatever was necessary.

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

My horse is very special to my family & me. We do have insurance on him & have called upon it several times. However if he needed an extremely expensive operation, which would not be covered by insurance, I would have to weigh up the prognosis together with the quality of life he would end up with. Coupled with this I feel searching questions must be asked like "Are you having the operation for your own needs or for that of the horse?. Sometimes just because a certain operation can be performed does not necessarily mean that it should

 

[tabithakat64]

I'm a very sentimental owner too and believe that I will keep both my horses for the rest of their lives unless Fudge needs more than I can provide him with, but thats a seperate issue. Both mine are insured for £5000 worth of vets fees for each illness or injury and if necessary I could probably find another £5000. However I wouldn't put a seriously ill or injured horse through months of painful and stressful treatment unless the success rate of them at least becoming sound/well enough to be turned out at the end of it was over 60%. It's not really an issue of value but one of quality of life or months of stressful boxrest and/or pain that would lead me to having either of my horses put to sleep.

 

[RachelB]

I agree with Shilasdair, I don't think it's as simple as putting a price on the horse. I really wish it were and I were as sensible and level-headed as you Tia but unfortunately I am also a very sentimental horse owner and would pay out far too much money for my horse!
I bought Maiden for £3000 a year ago, and after her tendon injury in February, and seeing as she's going to have to be rested now for a year (and has had 4 1/2 months box rest at the price of full livery which is approximately £200 a month all included), I'd say she would be worth around £500 at a push now. I've also spent about £3000 on diagnosis so far and about £500 on treatment which may or may not work to ensure she does not become permenently lame. So that's £3500 for a £3000 horse. Plus the livery, it will be 5 months at £200 a month so that's another £1000, plus 12 months at about £60 a month... £720, round it up to £800 to be on the safe side. So that's £5300, plus cost of horse, £8300 for a horse I can ultimately only hack - *if* she ever comes sound. It's a stupid amount of money, but what can I say other than I'm human, and my horse is my friend. She wasn't bought for anything other than to enjoy being an allrounder, she's not a competition horse. She has however given me SO much confidence (which is why we chose her over the other horses we saw) and has at least paid back the initial price we paid for her, if not more. And I owe her so much, she is such a lovely personality and I wouldn't let her come to any harm as she deserves more than that.
It's swings and roundabouts really, value added and taken away by what we've paid and by the prognosis of any injury or illness... ultimately we're just human though and some of us are much more realistic about our horses than others!

 

[Tia]

Tabitha, yours was an absolutely sensible reply and one that I had expected to read. This is pretty much how I feel about my special/personal horses. Thank you for that.

 

[druid]

I'm confused - you say you wouldn't spend 10's of '000s but I thought you did have Ezy treated (quoted 15,000-40,000)? Or am I horribly wrong and he's been PTS?


For me it's a case by case basis - S cost roughly 2k for pneumoniea and viral chest infection....

 

[Tia]

No Ezzy is alive and well!

Ezzy recovered. I spent 1,000 at useless vets up the road; fired them, got my own vet in, he gave me months supplies of injections costing a total of $130 and then waited for 2 years for him to recover. It worked - vet thought I was a bit crazy but hey I was given about 20% recovery if he had gone in a neck and body brace for 10 months so I thought it was worth a bash.

 

[Mbronze]

I honestly would pay the earth for both of mine if they had a serious illness or injury. My new horse now is almost as valuable to me as my horse i have had for 15 years, couldn't be parted with either one of them for the sake of an illness or injury.
My oldest is 28, and the youngest is 5.
A bit sentemental me thinks..but on the other hand if horses where what i make my living out of then it may be a different story altogether.

 

[legend]

Hmh, good question!
I have thought about this before because my boy was colic op'd 12 years ago and consequently is no longer insured for colic. I've come to the conclusion that if they are happy that they have a good chance of a return to full health afterwards i would have him put under again. But I'm not prepared to put him through it again without him having a bloody good chance, as although he recovered fantastically well last time, he's now 16 and i also think age has to play a part in the decision making process.
Lameness/broken legs he is insured for, but that does not necessarily mean i want to put him through surgery or more than a couple of months of box rest unless the chances are excellent that he will be come sound. I know one horse that was on box rest for a year, and there are NO circumstances in which i would consider that personally as I am pretty strict about quality of life and know that for my boy anything over, say 3 months is not fair.
I totally agree with whoever said just because something can be done doesn't mean it should be, and at the risk of raking old coals, would never have agreed to the treatment that Barbaro had.
Sorry, thats probably a bit rambling- the short version is probably about 5k, dependant upon ability to recover and have a decent quality of life.

 

[Lucy_Ally]

Up to my insrance limit. However, it would depend on what had happened - if it was a case of just prolonging her life and not allowing her to remain healthy and useful then I would probably have her pts (i.e. broken leg etc). Selfish as it sounds I cannot afford two and would want something to ride.

 

[mickey]

I have one horse and he means a great deal to me. He really is part of the family and a huge part of my life. He has kept me going through good times and bad. He has not always been easy to handle but it has been a fantastic learning experience. Similarly he has had significant veterinary issues but we have worked through them. He is insured, but should he require treatment/expense above the norm then I would do everything to raise the cash including re-mortgaging the house, downgrading the car. You name it. He is priceless to me.
Having said that if I thought he had little quality of life I would make the appropriate decision for him. That's my responsibility as an owner. But I would have to be convinced that there was no hope at all of improvement. I don't believe in giving up easily.

 

[vicijp]

Im about the same as you Tua, if a horse needs to be PTS it gets PTS. It doesnt matter who they are or how much they are worth, if the prognosis is bleak then that is it.
Regarding situations worth £1000's in vets bills the money would be found if the horse had a reasonable chance of recovery. Im thinking more towards fracture surgery, tendon sheath surgery, colic ops - not much else crops up with racehorses.
I do sometimes think that people with insurance use it unnecessarily.

 

[catembi]

When Cat was ill, the hardest part was reaching the limit of our insurance (5k) & deciding what to do. I wanted to be 100% certain that the decision to pts was based purely on what was best for him...but at the same time, there was a voice at the back of my mind telling me that every ££ we spent on him was ££ less in the budget for my new horse.

I felt awful thinking like that when he was still alive. There's a very fine balance in doing what is best for the horse, and I was trying so hard to tread the line between chucking money at a hopeless situation & giving up for financial reasons when there was still a chance.

In the end, Cat made his mind up that he'd had enough, about £1,000 after the insurance ran out. That was at the end of Feb, & I'm crying now remembering how deperate I was to keep him, and how equally desperate to do the right thing for him.

If there had been a realistic chance of a happy outcome, we'd have carried on, but there wasn't.

 

[TGM]

I'm quite happy to admit that mine are all pets and I am quite sentimental about them. I don't think I could really name a figure in pounds that would be my limit for vet treatment - it all depends on the circumstances. There is definitely a financial limit though - I just won't know where that is until the situation occurs! I would take into account quality of life both during and after treatment though.

If you take the example of a colic operation, then that would definitely not be an option for my 22yo mare. All the horses I have known have colic ops have taken a long time to recover, so I don't think it is fair for me to put my old horse through it knowing she probably would only have a couple of years life expectancy after the op anyway. I had our old pony put to sleep for similar reasons a couple of years back - she had a twisted gut and vet said would I consider surgery and I said no. She already had Cushings and arthritis and I just didn't think the trauma and cost of the operation was worth it.

My young mare I would almost certainly operate on if she had colic and probably daughter's pony - although she is 17 she seems otherwise fit and healthy, and has the added value that daughter absolutely adores her.