Euthanasia in a young horse...how do I get through this?

[longlanefarm]

You’ve received some wonderful feedback here. I’ve fortunately never dealt with your type of situation before and I’m so sorry you are going through it. It sounds like you’ve given it your very best effort to figure out what’s going on and help your young horse.

I did have to euthanize my 7 yo OTTB exactly one year ago this month. She coliced and declined very rapidly before we could even get her on the trailer and to the university. My vet said euthanasia was the kindest thing I could do for her at that point. It was a horrible decision to make but the right one. I was present during the procedure and glad to be there (I understand some can’t see that).

Make sure your horse is in an easily accessible place (easily accessible by machinery). I didn’t even think about this when my vet recommended we move her to the round pen and out of a stall. We would have had to tear down part of the barn to get her out otherwise. My vet also sedated her, let her fall, and then proceeded with the euthanasia. It was heart wrenching. There’s no way around it.

Good luck with whatever you decide. I think it is extremely commendable that you’re not willing to sell her off or even give her away as the outcome is never good for a horse like you describe. Hugs and best wishes to you.

[Outyougo]

Remember you are giving this horse a gift…free from pain. Free from abuse. Free from neglect. Life is tough do the right thing and know you made the best decision.

[horsenut_8700]

I haven’t done it in a young horse but very recently in a young dog that I put my entire heart and soul into rehabbing. After two years, medications, trainers and behaviorists, I came to the very difficult decision to euthanize her before she hurt someone. It really really sucked but I work at a small animal practice and we made it as stress free as possible for her. With a horse, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend watching the entire procedure as there is no graceful way to lay down an animal that big and it can be a little traumatizing even if you know what to expect. I’m sorry you don’t have more support

[chickenstuffer]

I don’t know your background with this horse but are you 100% sure she’s mechanically unsound?
Many things can cause a horse to go lame (or just look lame) and not all of them are permanent.
Stiffness from being out of work, bridle lameness, conformation, sore feet, sore backs, improper muscle development from improper work, poor posture…

Some really lame-looking horses just need correct working over their backs and their lameness magically disappears.
As I don’t know your or your horse, please do not take this as a criticism but are there any trainers who can help you with this horse? Someone to try and improve your horse’s musculature and suppleness, to see if it improves his lameness?

It can be pretty easy to get emotionally overcome and feel like you’re stuck in a box with no way to escape. Like you’ve done everything you can think of… but sometimes it’s just that you haven’t thought of everything. Or have overestimated your diagnostic ability. I do it myself, we all do it. and we all benefit from another set of eyes on a horse.

Unless you have a good… and I mean real good… lameness vet… I wouldn’t 100% bank on their opinion because there are so many factors involved. It’s not just medical stuff that contributes, the way they work definitely contributes and not all vets are knowledgeable on that aspect. Me personally there is only one vet whose opinion I trust on lameness.

If you say that you don’t have enough support in the real world then I just worry that you haven’t had ample opportunity to have this horse properly evaluated and you may be jumping the gun on having her put to sleep.

[gottagrey]

Discuss the situation with your vet to see what their thoughts are on euthanizing your mare. Another option might be to reach out to some vet schools to see if they may take her. If she’s donated you never know what might happen - there are many instances where the horses live out their lives after a study is done or then there is the opposite scenario but you know that if that’s the case its done in a very humane way. I kept my lame horse for 2 years on pasture and I couldn’t afford another horse. A friend had donated her horse to Cornell and gave me their contact info. He was accepted into one of their lameness protocols so off he went. In the months before I shipped him north, he had become mean which I felt was due to him being in pain. Sure it was absolutely heartbreaking to send him away but I felt it was the right decision at the time. I have another friend who sent her 6 y/o lame retired horse to another vet school where he was a blood donor.

I had a 6 y/o that broke it’s leg and was euthanized He was such a sweet horse… Those at the barn said they would 'handle" him for me but I mustered up the strength to be there for him. There is no right or wrong - we all have to do what we feel in our heart is what we feel is best for the animal and for us.

[ASpoonfullaSplash]

Hi all,

Thank you for all of the on-going support. It has been an excruciating decision, but after all of your wisdom, I do feel as through it is the right choice. I broke the news to my parents and my sisters this weekend and it was very emotional. We all love my mare so much. I have their support when I thought they would be angry and not understanding of the situation. Fortunately I was wrong in that assumption. I have a call into my vet to have a conversation about it, not to set a date yet but just to open that door.

I do want to address those offering other options and ideas to treat her. I appreciate the thoughts and advice, I really do. I don’t need to explain myself, but I am having a rough morning already so here it is. We have hit our limit on options that I can afford and/or feel is best for my mare. She has been consistently lame for 2.5 years, gets very agitated under saddle and can rear/buck if she gets pushed, so we retired her. We have to sedate her to do a simple barefoot trim because she cannot hold her hind feet up (farrier has to keep her hoof rested on the ground). We have (not in this order) gone to the university for a nuclear bone scan, had xrays done, gotten 2nd and 3rd opinions, done 3 rounds of injections, tried osphos, previcox daily, put her in active/correct work, gave her time off both on turnout and stall rest, done regular chiropractics even as often as weekly when needed, sent her to a barn for magna-wave 3 times weekly for 6 months. All of this within the last 2.5 years. She has never felt relief. At this point, whatever is wrong will probably affect her for the rest of her life no matter what we do. I promise everyone, we have done so much to solve this but my heart and wallet are exhausted. She is 7.5 years old - one third of her life has been spent just trying to make her comfortable.

This is not a decision I am making lightly and I have been crying every night over it. It’s really the absolute worst situation I will ever go through and I will not be okay for a long time.

Thank you for understanding and being supportive. I appreciate you all so, so much.

[caryledee]

I’m so sorry you are going through this. A horse that can’t hold her feet up for a farrier is not a happy, comfortable horse. By nature they are programmed to not show pain so once you are seeing it to this level it has been going on for a while and she may be in more pain than you are even aware. I commend you for choosing euthanasia over rehoming. I unfortunately had a very bad experience with trying to rehome when I was in a similar situation.
Did anyone give you any indication of what they thought was wrong? Your description sounds so much like mine that had neck arthritis but only presented as a right hind lameness. It took me 9 vets to get an accurate diagnosis.

[anon6003733]

del

[2DogsFarm]

New to this his thread, but not to losing a horse by euth.
Some planned, some by urgent need, but every name in my signature took a piece of my heart.

Your Lilo is beautiful and you are doing your best for her.
A Good End is never a bad choice.

For myself, I chose to be with every horse Iost, with the exception of one who had to be shot onsite after a trailer accident. State Trouper (& farrier) who did it would not chance ricochet.
And, oddly, my WB was at the vet college hospital and plainly “told” me I did not need to stay with him.

You do what your heart tells you.
Stay with her or not, she knows she is loved.

Also know that the hole she leaves in your life will fill, over time, with memories of the good times.

{{{HUGS}}}

[Wyndwolfe]

Also new to this thread, but not to the decision you are facing. IMHO, you have done the best that you can do for your horse.

[Lunabear1988]

OP, just wanted to reach out for support. You do not need to explain yourself. You’ve went above and beyond for this mare and it is okay to say “enough.” Like others have said, you are relieving her of pain.

I had to put down a 5 year old last year. It was so incredibly difficult but in my heart I know I did the right thing. It’s even more clear now.

Be gentle with yourself. Sending you support ❤️❤️

[kashmere]

When you know, you know.

You are doing what many, many people cannot bring themselves to do and that puts you at the very top of the pile, horsemanship-wise.

I stayed for my dear old girl’s euthanasia - which I’ll describe a bit below so you can read if you want to, but can also skip if you’re not up to it. Just know that whether you choose to be there or not, you are doing the right thing for your horse. A life in pain is no good, especially for an animal that only lives in the moment. Sending you and your girl many good vibes.

---

I can’t say it was a pleasant experience - but I had promised her early on that I would be there for her and be the one to hold the rope and keeping that promise was good for my heart. They are big animals with a lot of mass, and it can be scary to see them go down. And because they really are gone as they go down, it’s not always very graceful looking, which can be upsetting. My vet administered a heavy dose of sedative before giving her the final dose, which she says she finds makes them more likely to sort of just fall quietly. One thing I was not prepared for was the sort of “ugly” way she ended up initially - sort of sunk down, not how I was used to seeing her lying down. Once the vet had confirmed no heartbeat I took a bit of a walk and my dear and lovely BO adjusted her so she was more or less just lying out normally, and it made it much easier to go in and sit with her for a few minutes to say goodbye.

An important thing, if you decide to be there during the euthanasia is you must be prepared to listen to your vet and get out of the way quickly. Sometimes horses do fall unpredictably, or have a physical reaction that can be violent and you need to be able to listen and move if necessary.

---

One positive thing - that I didn’t expect - was that after it was done and I’d said goodbye, I felt a lot of relief quite quickly. While this horse wasn’t young, she’d had some challenging pain management issues in the last year of her life, similar to yours. I did a lot of agonizing over first if and then when to euthanize. It was a lot of stress that after a certain point was constant and I didn’t really register it anymore. But when it was over - it was a really big weight off my shoulders.

[cutter99]

It is never an easy decision to make, but from what you have written here, you have put out an extensive amount of effort trying to find a solution for your horse.

Please be as kind to yourself as you are being to her. Many owners cannot make this decision and you are choosing to end her suffering in the kindest way possible.

Godspeed Lilo! (((((Hugs))))) to you OP!