I’m in the Hamilton region of Southern Ontario. We have horses euthanized by our vet and the deadstock picks them up. The deadstock are very efficient and do not require you to be there when your horse is winched onto their truck. When one of our boarders wanted to send their daughter’s old, crippled mare to the meat sale, we flatly refused to participate in a process that would be terrifying to an animal that had been their daughter’s best friend and teacher for the past three years. When we put it that way, a few hundred dollars suddenly lost all its appeal and the mare got the dignified death that she had earned.
Sorry for the gross / depressing topic, but I am doing some research…
How do you dispose of deceased horses in your area?
We are fortunate in my immediate area that we can bury them on the farm. The other option is to pay a rendering plant to take them away after they’ve been euthanized. But in different parts of the country, you may not have the option of burial, or a rendering plant may be too far away (or so I am told.)
What do you do with horses that are permanently unsound, chronically ill, or otherwise at the end of their useful years?
How important to you is the option of sending your horse to auction, or selling directly to a slaughter buyer?
Thanks in advance for your responses. I would especially like to hear from folks in different parts of the country, e.g., Rocky Mountain states.
Ellen
Eek, this is something that gives me nightmares. When our first Shetland pony died, my mom swore it was buried on my grandfather’s farm. Funny how she changed the subject every time I asked to go see his grave.
I knew of someone in Arizona who had a horse cremated, which is the route I’d like to go when my old guy’s time finally comes. (Which had better not be for a LONG time… he’s “only” 24, and I expect him to be around another 10 years!)
Myself, and most of the folks I now have gone the rendering plant route. Cost on both coasts was between $100 and $200. I have never known anyone who sent their horse to the killer auction. I do know a few that had a horse euthanized by the vet to prevent that outcome, when the horse’s problem was behavioral combined with physical and the owner feared they wouldn’t be able to guarentee its future care (example, a woman with a nasty, ancient mare whose husband ran off with the nanny.) The horse was not safe for the average person to ride or be around, and she feared the finacial changes the impending divorce would create would compromise her ability to keep up with board bills.
Most people I know reitre the oldies/lamies/
uselessies–either on their own place, or in a retirment facility of some sort.
I’ve known a few that were buried, but most places I’ve lived have strict rules about it.
As far as cremation, oddly enough a good freind of mine lost her old guy at the beginning of December. She had always joked she was going to have him stuffed like Trigger. Instead she had him cremated. She said it was actually cheaper than Valley Protein, though she drove him up there herself. She got the ashes back about 2 weeks ago and they are HUGE. It seems silly not to have thought of it, but a horse is much bigger than a person, and they make a lot more ashes. A LOT more. She actually decided the only thing she could do was buy one of those fancy lacquered hard wood tack boxes, put his old halter name plate on the lid, put a brass lock on it (to prevent spillage) and now Fritz is a coffee table! Seriously! So if you go the cremation route, decide what you are going to do with ashes, because it’s not exactly like having a little urn to stick on the fireplace mantle.
I personally wouldn’t ever sell to a killer buyer. Euthanizing a horse costs $125 dollars–a small price to pay, IMHO.
One place where i used to ride buried the horses on the farm. Their locations were scattered and not always accurately known…one year while the foundation for a new building was being dug, they unearthed my trainer’s old showhunter and her brother’s elderly pony…EEWWWWWW.
The breeding farm i worked on also buried on site, a neighbor had a backhoe…
Here, for a private cremation (where you get the ashes back), Midwest Cremation charges $1500.00 for an average horse, which includes UPSing the 40lbs of remains back to you. My first horse cost that much alive!!! LOL Alternatively a group cremation is about 150-200 I think, and the main equine hospital in the next town will take care of it for you.
For anyone’s information, you can take your beloved horse to the University of Maryland Godawski Building where they do the autopsies, etc and have your vet meet you there, put your horse to sleep (or dog, etc) and have it cremated. They have a rate sheet and are really great about the whole thing. If you need an autopsy, the charge is $75 I think. I don’t know the cremation fees, but it is an excellent service. I have also heard that the animal shelter in Frederick provides this same service.
Valley Proteins has charged me $150. A very sad but necessary topic.
A little off subject but I am so angry. About a month ago one of my friends was jumping a show mare of mine, she was an 8 yr old, 16h, Old. I had had her for only six months and had recently shown her in the schooling jumpers at Duke ( where she placed in several classes and at schooling shows all summer long}. She was still somewhat green, but had been well riden, showing the best mind, rather scopey and talented ( I had decided to sell her as a Ch/ad jumper as she was a little too small and quick for me to do her in bigger classes ( I do the Am/Owners). So I had had a friend start riding her, a good rider but a Ch/Ad rider. She had shown her for the first time the previous weekend and had gotten Reserve CH. in the low Ch/ad division.
She was jumping up till then great ( the footing was perfect) and the horse took a tight spot to a small vertical (3’max) had the rail, landed and just fell on her side, couldn’t get up ( I knew immediatly that she had a broken leg). She eventually got up after 3 minutes, someone called the vet. I could see that they would not be able to fix her, it was a high bad, break in her right front, elbow area. I gave her as much banamine IM as I had, she was in shock. The vet took 45 long minutes to get there and immediatly put her down. She had in 6 short months become a barn favorite, so you can immagine us 4 girls ( friends of mine who ride at my parents farm) crying our eyes out for about 3 days ( my parents where in Europe at the time because my aunt was dying}.
So today I hear trough a friend at the local feed store that it must be horrible especially with all the rumors about us mistreating our horses!!! First I had heared about the rumours! I live in an area where most horses are backyard ornements. We are a show barn, 12 horses, we take the best care of them. Normal show barn, they work, they get turned out, fed 3 times a day, groomed daily, all are “fat”, fit and happy.I guess I am just floored that people who keep their horses in barbed wire fields, hardly ever bother to check on them, and never ride them except when, on a nice summer day decide to go for a 4 hour trail ride , dare question how we ( who live for our horses, it is my full time job) treat and care for our precious and expensive horses. Sorry I am in a state and just had to vent.
has come for my three euthanasias in the past 10 months.
We are not allowed to bury large animals in our county.
I swear it was $50-$75 rescuemom! We were in Frederick at the time (maybe 3-4 years ago?) Could it be that the stable owner had worked a deal with them? Not sure about this but I definitely remember it was $75 when we put my pony down. 
One horse had a medically (veterinalrily?) interesting condition. When she had to be put down, UMd was interested in doing a necroscopy.
She was led into a horse trailer, the vet administered the injection there, and the trailer drove her to UMd. After the necroscopy, they disposed of the body.
I was looking at some pictures of her (healthy) last night, and it still hurts- almost 20 years later. I remeber dramatically the moment when I realized she probably wasn’t going to make it.
NEVER let your horse near barbed wire.
Everything is too recent.
Mandarin–buried (against local laws—toof333333 bad)
Zeb—right before Christmas–try digging a swimming pool in upstate NY in late December!!!(he was a draft)Had the renderer come out Christmas eve day–$120
Miss Piggy–buried on the farm where we lived at the time (less than a year ago) with my best buddy-dog (both were having congestive heart stuff). Don’t care what the laws were
Disposal in this fashion is an excellent way to solve the problem. Unfortunately you have to be able to get the horse there.
A friend of mine did just that, and was able to arrange to bring the horse on the day it would be put down (apparently the usual deal is to bring them days or weeks earlier and she didn’t want the old mare to have to settle in to a new place).
Unfortunately for me, none of my recent losses were possible for such an arrangement. Emergencies and a neighbor who unthinkingly SELLS his backhoe spell a call to VP.
Yep, Valley Protein. They are out of Winchester, VA, I believe. I think the fee is $50-$75? Not sure.
DocEllen, I am right around the corner from you in Crofton!
We call John de Vries in the yellow truck. I think he’s $100, and he takes them to be rendered. You can spend $250 or so and they go to a landfill in Simi Valley, which will eventually be made into a park. Only know of one gal who has done that.
Heather - thanks for you gentle “warning” Never in a million years would it have ocourred to me - that horse’s ashes wouldn’t be urn-size. Yikes!
That tackbox coffee table…well…let’s just say I’m biting my tongue. LOL.
I’m with you Jaime Lynn! I didn’t ask what the law was, I just called my BIL’s friend with the backhoe.
edit
Even though we’re in the same neck of the woods as you our disposal method is different. As a rescue we only need to dispose of horses when death occurs, either naturally or through humane intervention. And then we call the renderer, Valley Protein, to remove the carcass.
Some of our horses come from auctions, rescued by individuals from the kill buyers.
Cris
Days End Farm Horse Rescue
I have to call the renderer service too. I could bury them without notice but don’t have the equipment. Service is $150 and goes up every year, it seems.
My vet also does a nice thing. If we have one die that was a difficult case or sad situation, he makes a donation himself in my farm’s name to the vet school. The only way I found out was I got a card the first time, thanking me for my donation! That’s so nice of him!
~Odin
Oh…the story about “Fritz” is too funny (sorry). Can you imagine guests comments when you tell them what the coffee table is “made” of? 
