What to do with an old mare?

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Berkeley

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Ok guys, help me out on this one. I have a 20yr old TB mare who I don't ride. She's too much for me in so many ways. I have not ridden her in 4 months. She just grazes and enjoys a very luxurious and loved life which is costing me allot of money (£75p/w).

I need to make a decision. What are my options? I am not intersted in PTS, she's a perfectly healthy horse.
 
companion. cheap grass livery. That's about it tbh. loan.
Obv companion/loan would ideally be close and by word of mouth.
 
Do you not ride her because she can't be ridden or because you don't want to? If she's perfectly healthy and can be ridden and is sensible you should be able to rehome her. But are you happy with that? I would have to know the home was A***** or I would pts myself.
 
ps- I have oldies who were competition horses-tb's too. well rugged (or not at all in some cases) and they're happy as larry out.
 
Kate Sturgess said:
Do you not ride her because she can't be ridden or because you don't want to? If she's perfectly healthy and can be ridden and is sensible you should be able to rehome her. But are you happy with that? I would have to know the home was A***** or I would pts myself.
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She is perfectly fine to ride I just don't get on with her. Any open space is Newmarket to her and I have low confidence as it is. Plus her age...I am not sure she is marketable now.....even if it was for free gto the right home.
 
Or find a sharer? My mare is 19, I don't ride her mainly because she drives me mad as we just argue these days as I want her to work properly and she can't really be bothered! She is a lightweight WB but has wintered out since she was 15, prior to that always stabled overnight. Sharer absolutely loves her and pays significant proportion of what she costs to keep.
TBs absolutely can live out! We have a 21 year old TB who lives out as well as my girl at yard along with natives/heavier types.
 
Berkley, all you can do is try. I'd advertise her honestly for loan with view to buy at a reasonable price and if you don't get a bite (or as Susie says, a good companion home), don't feel bad about putting her to sleep. If you can't get her a happy new home, better that than allowing her to be shoved in a field by someone who doesn't love her. Remember - the horse doesn't know - only we feel guilty, but that's part of having a horse.... making the right decision.
 
Dont see why not! If someone wants a horse but cant afford the initial outlay to buy one then I dont see a problem. I know a few people who have been in that position.
 
if you were closer i know someone that would be very interested in her, i hope you find her a lovely place for her to live out the rest of her days
 
Berkeley said:
Grass livery for a TB? she has been stabled at night her whole life. I don't think living out now would be an option.
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I was under the impression you wanted to reduce the cost of keeping her.....

I know of several TBs that live out all year......though I dont have 1st hand experience.... Mine are cobs and come in at night all winter, but I'm not the one asking for suggestions on how to reduce the cost.....
 
This drives me mad, why on earth should someone take on an old mare that you dont want. We have horses and we have decisions to make, that is part of being a responsable owner and not passing the buck. It is the real world out there and money is tight, do the right thing and dont pass your problems on to someone else, please.
 
Poor old girl. 20 years of service to humans, and you're begrudging her 4 months livery!

I think your options are firstly, to put her onto grass keep (my 21yr old Tb lives out, and as long as she is fed/hayed twice a day and rugged well, she's fine). You might actually find that she likes it better, and is quieter for you to ride.

Secondly, you could loan her as a ridden horse, or as a companion - but vet the home carefully, and check up on her frequently.

Thirdly, you could have her PTS.

S :D
 
I hack my 20 year old tb daily and she is as fit as any of the young horses on the yard. If yours wants to tank off on any bit of grass then i think she must feel ok too. Is there nobody who knows her locally that would want to ride her a few days a week and pay some of the costs. I think selling her is not really an option as you will get all sorts of dodgy people looking to buy her cheap and sell her on as a younger horse and goodness knows what would happen to her. plus you owe it to her at that age to see that she is cared for properly for the rest of her life. Is there nowhere nearby that is a bit cheaper than where she is?
 
I have to agree with pastie2 on this, we keep our oldies in retirement and they always cost more to keep than the ridden horses. We make the decision to pts when their quality of life is no longer acceptable to us.
 
I don't understand what you want any-one to say. You don't want grass livery, you don't want pts and you don't think she's marketable for either sale or loan. What other options are there?
As others have said, yes a 20 yr old can still be working at that age but usually with some-one who has known them for a long time. We have had horses working well into their 20s but they have retired when it has become too much for them and then after varying periods of retirement we have pts, when quality of life has been reduced. That is our last responsibility to them and one that shouldn't be shirked IMO.
 
My 3/4 tb mare is 34 and still in (gentle) work several times a week. At 20 she was still going out and about regularly and was still very much a 'spring chicken'. If you don't want to ride her yourself, then seriously consider loaning her or getting a sharer as she still has loads to offer someone.
 
I never understand this. Why is loaning or selling a rideable and perfectly healthy oldie seen as passing the buck? People sell young crocks (which would be better being PTS) all the time with little criticism.

I've an oldie, well above the age of this mare who hates not being in work, but only enjoys a specific type of work (being a LR pony). We can't give him that type of job anymore, tried retiring him and he got miserable.

He's being loaned (thankfully where he is at the moment) with view to buy. I'm happy to sell him because he has YEARS of work ahead of him doing what he enjoys and giving another child endless pleasure.
I trust the person, I wouldn't have let him go to just anyone though. There is a future for some oldies. I agree if they're retired and past it its a bit off to sell them, but if the OPs mare is healthy and can do a job then why not let her go and do that job?
I've been heavily criticised for my decision, but i did what was best all round, the pony had little quality of life being unhappy retired, and i had the power to change that in letting another child learn to ride on him, making her happy, him happy and me safe in the knowledge that when he's finally signed over in purchase then the new owner has her own land and will do the best by him.

Treat each case as an individual. OP: do what is right by the horse, advertise her for loan with view to buy and see what response you get.
 
pastie2 said:
This drives me mad, why on earth should someone take on an old mare that you dont want. We have horses and we have decisions to make, that is part of being a responsable owner and not passing the buck. It is the real world out there and money is tight, do the right thing and dont pass your problems on to someone else, please.
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Hi Pastie2. I’ll tell you what drives me mad; uninformed, over-opinionated and frankly unwanted comments on message boards. Do the ‘right thing’ and leave me and the rest of the readers free from the ramblings of your chubby pastie digits.
 
Hiya,

Haven't read most of the replies since it's all getting a bit heated and I have a headache today! ;)

Anyhoo, I got Monty, a full tb when he was 25 and he lived out all year round well rugged until he was PTS in February aged 30.

I would suggest firstly getting a sharer for her, this is how I got Monty. There are plenty of people who are happy to have an older horse, even if they are a bit flighty. Failing that, you could put her on loan. I bought Monty for £1 and was very happy with him so there are people around who want horses like that.

With regards to living out, Monty was much happier when he was living out 24/7. He did drop weight towards the end, but then again he was ALOT older than your girl. It also kept him going longer since he was moving around all the time so it helped his arthritis no end.

Good luck, all you can do is try and advert and see what sort of response you get.
 
If you prefer not to loan/sell/get a sharer, what about trying to find a retirement livery? They can be cheaper than "normal" livery so perhaps you could reduce the costs a bit. If you post asking for retirement livery in your area perhaps people have recommendations.

If you prefer her to be in at night at least in winter, one cost efficient alternative may be a retirement livery or a stud where the horses are kept in a barn at night, if that works for your mare.
 
i would either share or find a local loan home.

or find grass livery- plenty of tb's live out all year very happily.

or PTS.

I would entertain the thought of selling her on.
 
I think you'd be surprised how well she could do on grass livery. The is a 27 yr old ex race, then broodmare up our yard that lives out, rugged in winter and just fed once a day. She's not a "brilliant doer" either. About as good as any old tb. Just needs management. There's another 24 yr old too. It is actually much more comforatble for oldies to lives out on their joints as being in can stiffen them up.

I'd suggest looking around for retirement livery somewhere. It would be cheaper than £75/week that's for sure.
 
My TBx mare is 37 & was in full work, competing & winning sj (too nuts for dressage) including scurries & chase me charlie (also too nuts for gymkhana) until she did a tendon at the age of 29. Someone actually wanted to BUY her when she was 29 before her accident...and to keep & enjoy, not sell on as a 10 yo.

Once she'd recovered from the tendon, she was still a v strong & lively hack & spent another few years bucking when her feet touched grass & running off with her sharers.

So if your mare would enjoy being in work, and it sounds as if she would, then I don't see why you couldn't get a sharer. Jenny had 3 sharers doing various days, teaching children to ride & taking adults for hacks, & she loved the attention.

She is now teaching Trev the racer to hack & load.
 
Berkeley said:
Hi Pastie2. I’ll tell you what drives me mad; uninformed, over-opinionated and frankly unwanted comments on message boards. Do the ‘right thing’ and leave me and the rest of the readers free from the ramblings of your chubby pastie digits.
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Berkeley, the hho doesnt do just fluffy bunny wunny replies. You have just lost all your brownie points through your very nasty childish post. I am one of 'the rest of the readers' and find you slightly obnoxious. Take the rough with the smooth and stop thinking that your presence here makes you special. We all have the right to reply and each one of us has different beliefs and experiences.
My advice is-grass livery, loan, sell or put to sleep.
 
Grass livery - might be calmer then too, and you might want to start riding her again yourself.

Loan or sell I wouldn't pts, but then I think a perfecty healthy, happy useful horse should never be PTS - thats how we got our (now 25) 19 yo TB as his owner was going to pts. He now lives out 24/7, has the shiniest coat ever and gets out on the occasional hack (still the most exciting thing on the planet those :rolleyes: )
 
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