Making 'that decision' about a horse

[redhen]

If you wouldnt give your dog to a shelter then i wouldnt give a horse to a sanctuary either....
Its your choice and what you believe in whats best for your animal. Everyone has different beliefs...

 

[welsummerchicks]

I would suggest you look at if bank, state or federal programs might prevent loss of your home. There is a lot out there for help. Even the banks are making arrangements. It's awfully hard to investigate options when you feel like everything's coming apart, but you really need to.

I would inquire at breeding farms, and try to network with some private owners who need a pasture mate. Advertising with a pinned up ad at a tack shop isn't a bad idea. No matter how you advertise any horse, you will always get a ton of 'bad replies' that aren't suitable. It's always a job to sort through them.

Too, did you know many retirement farms exist for horses, and they charge a very, very reasonable monthly board rate? I have priced several good looking places at under 200 a month. You may not be able to afford that. I would give it every chance before I would put the horse down, but yes, it would be better to not put him in a situation where it''s fairly sure he's going to suffer.

Horses with special needs often wind up getting euthenized when the owner gets into financial trouble. Someone buying a horse, especially these days, needs to really think about it before they buy.

 

[michickenwrangler]

Quote:
The KINDEST thing you can do is put him down,....
I'm SURE its VERY stressful for him to be passed off on another family/home/barn...at his old age.
I KNOW that i'd put my horse/dog down rather than have him stressed at this late stage in life;....he deserves better than stress at his age. Just let him go to sleep with you all by his side...

If this were my mare and if I were in your situation, I would put her down. If he is prone to colic, he may even colic on the ride to the new owner's home. That's not fair to him or new owners.

 

[Rusty Hills Farm]

Gawd, it would break my heart to have to make this kind of decision! But, y'know, if this old boy had been with me most of his life, there is no way I would pass him along to someone else. He deserves to be with me. He EARNED it. I would do the kindest thing. It would kill me but if he was mine I would put him down before I'd pass him along to anyone else.

I have trust issues myself. Guess I've seen too much.

My heart goes out to you and him. I have an old timer who turns 24 next month. She is crippled with arthritis and has never known anyone but me. It's what I would do for her. I wouldn't do it until the very last possible moment and I'd cry for days. Heck, I'm all teary right now, but it IS what I'd do for her.

HTH


Rusty

 

[patandchickens]

Except for the very rare horse who is miserable living outside, I don't see any problem (other than the modest financial cost) with keeping a pensioner at pasture. That's what my horses are -- well one of them is only 10 but he is de facto a pasture pet since I got him before I realized that with two young kids and a whole lot of house repairs and so forth I would never really have time to do anything with him -- the other two are 23 this year and live out 24/7/365 (except for the occasional really nasty night when I'll bring them in for a while) and seem quite happy. (One of them cannot be stalled due to mild heaves and severe arthritis). And they will stay here with me, at pasture, for the rest of their lives, however long that may be. I owe them, and they have no apparent complaints about the situation, they are enjoying themselves (and have been for years now).

OTOH if finances are an issue and it is simply not *possible* to keep the horse as a pensioner, or if despite a good long transition period he remains really miserable being kept that way (a companion often helps), then I can certainly see considering euthanasia. I have often thought about what would happen if I had to leave my husband and obviously would not be able to take the horses with me, and unless I could find them a good solid *dependable* living-outdoors home before they became literally homeless, I do think it would be a lot kinder to have them euthanised (at least the older two) rather than have them go somewhere Bad or run thru a sale barn. Not necessarily true for all horses, but for these two it would be, IMO.

So yes, difficult decision.

Best of luck,

Pat

 

[EweSheep]

Quote:
2x

I have a good friend of mine who has horses in their 20's and one will be 30. If they lost their farm or anything of that nature, she would put all the older horses down on the farm and try to give homes for the youngsters. Worse case scenerio, ALL of them put down that way they do not go to "bad" places and the shelters are overflown with horses that they are unable to take anymore. At the shelter, if a horse has too many problems that is costing the shelter alot of money, it is much kinder to put them down and end their suffering. There is a limit to it in what the shelters can do for unwanted horses.

I'd prefer euthanization rather than facing shelters or in the wrong hands. People would have good intentions and as soon they get the horse home, they would turn around and sell it to someone else for other means......a trip to Mexico.

 

[Orchid]

Unless you can find the PERFECT home as a companion horse (i.e. a home where you can check up on him anytime you want) I think euthanizing him would be the kindest thing to do if you can no longer care for him. Many (not all) of the "rescues" and "sanctuaries" out there right now are not much more than hoarders of free and cheap horses.

I have a 32 year old gelding who I've had for nearly 21 years who can only live out on pasture, but he requires extra feed and medication at least twice a day, every day. If for some reason I could no longer care for him, I would definitely put him down before putting him into an unknown situation. I just don't wear the rose-colored glasses of my youth anymore, and have seen FAR too many horses rehomed as companion animals only to be found months later starved nearly to death.

I feel for you, Hound.

 

[Hound]

Thank you for the replies. Unfortunately there is nothing the bank or any governmental agencies cand do about our situation; my husband was employed by the ranch that we live on and our housing was part of the deal. He grew up here and his father was the manager until the new owners did a similar thing to him in August. He had been here for 40 years. The new owners are gradually firing everybody that works here, we're the fifth family to be hit. They gave my husband two weeks pay and a month to be out, the day after Christmas. It's a bad time of year to be looking for another ranch job, usually hiring is done in the spring and fall.

He isn't an expensive horse to keep, but obviously that will probably change as he ages. He has nothing wrong with him other than old age. He lives in a large trap, probably close to 10,000 acres, and gets around fine. He just grazes for most of the year and has some sweet feed in the winter. We haven't had him for all of his life, he was born and raised on a friend's ranch and we got him as a confidence builder for me when he was 20. They don't want him back.

It's not an issue so much for the expense of keeping him with us, it's physically having somewhere to put him. We don't know where we will be. Financially boarding is not an option right now. I'm torn because I need to wait and see if we can find another ranch job and take him with us, but obviously if I find him another home I need to get onto it now.

 

[Orchid]

Oh, that really stinks. I'd take him in until you found a place to live, if I lived close enough to you.

 

[RiverOtter]

Hound, I've done ranch work and have been in your spot. I can give you some links to jobsites for similar jobs but I can tell you your best bet is to talk to the local vet and farrier and ask them to be on the lookout for jobs for you (if you want to stay local) or just pick up the phone and start calling round. It is a little early in the year for it, but not by too much.

If you can't find something by the time you need to leave, go on and give the old boy his final rest, in a place he knows, surrounded by your love and familiar places. If he could speak he would thank you for your courage to do so.
You know your old man better then any of us and if you say he may have another winter in him before going downhill if he can stay in the best circumstances then that's the way it is. If he can't stay in the best of circumstances ... You and I both know how fast an old horse can go down if stressed and after all the years of service he's given he deserves better then that.

Good luck to you finding a new place.