A 23 year old girl was riding her horse and both were hit by lightning…both have died. Very sad.
I used to worry about lightening strikes during lessons in the summer. I sort of shrugged off the fear over time - so, so sorry for this young lady, her family and her poor horse. RIP.
[QUOTE=ReSomething;7663548]
I used to worry about lightening strikes during lessons in the summer. I sort of shrugged off the fear over time - so, so sorry for this young lady, her family and her poor horse. RIP.[/QUOTE]
Me, when I was riding, I would hear thunder of any kind, I was off and in the barn. Not worth the risk… not ‘afraid’ but avoiding a potential risk…
I used to sort of shrug it off but reading about these lightening strikes I’m off and back to the barn first rumbles of thunder, I’m almost as bad when it comes to walking my dog too
I was once nearly hit by lightning while riding. The flash was so close that it was just one big bright white light instead of an identifiable bolt. Freakin’ scary. A friend and I were riding together when it happened. Both horses kind of freaked out (understandably). We went back to the barn REAL quick!
I have twice been within 100 or fewer yards of a bolt, once with horse and once in a tennis tournament. And lost a great horse to lightning once. So I tend to avoid that risk.
Lightning is nothing to mess around with. A bolt struck close to me while walking my dog a few years ago. Similar to what happened to Fine Already—totally surrounded by such a bright light (reminded me of being “beamed up”). Also heard some popping noise close behind me.
Years ago we had our basement bathroom’s shower glass door shattered by a bolt. Now I stay away from sinks and toilets when there’s lightning nearby.
How common is it for horses to be hit? I worry now that my horse is on nighttime turnout when we have these freaky summer storms that blow through.
I’m always afraid my horses will be hit in the field, they are on 24/7 turn out.
The other day lightening zapped our house, blew our cable boxes and one of our TVs. My entire house smelled like a bon fire.
First barn I had my horse at - the first month - we were coming back from Saratoga so stopped to see how he was doing. They had yet to create a suitable turnout and it was nighttime turnout in summer - so he was stuck with several others in their smallish “outdoor ring” - right next to the barn - about 10 feet away. With one of those shorter metal silos RIGHT next to the ring. No grass. Just dirt, and a couple flakes of hay per horse.
Storms were coming in as I stopped to visit the horse. Drove on home. BO had told me they were fine out there - to not worry about it, but I could do what I wanted. Got home, thought to myself “nope” and drove back to the barn. Pulled him out of there (of course with several others seeking to follow) and stuck him back in his stall. Was one of the most horrendous thunder/lightning storms I’d seen in awhile, and the horses in that paddock were not just casually munching.
Turnout situation was never resolved there. Frankly, the place was a disaster, except for the indoor and the trails and it wasn’t far from home. BO mocked me incessantly from then on. For that and a few other things. Probably because I was the only one who showed up and rode daily.
But I’ll never forget that storm, nor their stupidity in leaving the horses exposed like that - with the silo right out there in the open and right next to the horses. And no, no lightning rods. In fact, they had exposed outlets right at head level next to some horses’ stall doors. A swell place.
Am so sorry for this lovely young girl.
Also reminded of just how vulnerable we are. The tornadoes that came through NYS this week and killed 4 were just north of me as I drove home from the barn. The one day during the past 2 weeks I made the 75 mile trip over. Very, very sad.
Believe me - the barn he’s in now is locked down tighter than a ship during storms. It may be a hike, but I can sleep at nights.
[QUOTE=Beverley;7664473]
I have twice been within 100 or fewer yards of a bolt, once with horse and once in a tennis tournament. And lost a great horse to lightning once. So I tend to avoid that risk.[/QUOTE]
Truly sad. RIP.
I lost my heart horse over two years ago, lightning struck the property and unknown to us at the time, part of the barn sat over buried scrap metal. My horse was killed immediately. All the others refused to go into the barn, a wooden “polestyle” barn with run ins, in torrential downpour and lightning all around.
You can do everything right and still lose everything. So sorry for the poor girl’s connections, family.
[QUOTE=pony baloney;7664660]
Lightning is nothing to mess around with. A bolt struck close to me while walking my dog a few years ago. Similar to what happened to Fine Already—totally surrounded by such a bright light (reminded me of being “beamed up”). Also heard some popping noise close behind me.
Years ago we had our basement bathroom’s shower glass door shattered by a bolt. Now I stay away from sinks and toilets when there’s lightning nearby.
How common is it for horses to be hit? I worry now that my horse is on nighttime turnout when we have these freaky summer storms that blow through.[/QUOTE]
In the south especially, very common. The very storm that I lost my guy in, Lellie Ward out of Paradise Farm not seven miles away lost one, ad a week before, Narnia Farm lost one as well.
I lost my horse last week to lightening or so we think. We aren’t really sure because there was no exit or entry wound which I thought I’d see if it was lightening. What I do know is we had a wicked cell right over my farm and it let loose the loudest thunder I ever heard. I thought a bomb went off in my back yard, it rocked the house, made my GS pee her bed and caused me to cover my head. The rain that came during this storm was so torrential that even with a heavy duty flashlight, visibility was all of 10-20 feet. My horses can go into the barn or out which ever they prefer so when I checked on them and saw 2, I figured the third was in the barn.
The next morning I woke to find my beautiful boy dead. I can’t be sure if it was lightening, he ran into a tree and broke his neck or a heart attack. I can find solace in knowing he didn’t suffer at all and was probably dead before he hit the ground what ever the cause. There wasn’t a single sign of a struggle and not a mark on his body that I could see other then a small trickle of blood coming from his nose.
One of the strangest things about this horses death was I was going to be signing him over to a family the afternoon of the day he died. I rescued him from the trip north 5 years ago and placed him in May because I have to sell my farm. That placement didn’t work out and he was returned to me just 2 weeks before he died. In a strange way I am happy for the horse that he died at the farm he loved, with his buddy and me. He had quirks and anxiety but was the friendliest horse I ever met and would have been my go to horse to ride had I been 30 years younger and the guts I had at 20. Now I will never have to worry about him again.
This is so sad and my deepest condolences to her families and friends.
How terrible. Lightening is scary stuff!! My uncle had a breeding farm for years in western PA, lost a few over the decades to lightening.
Lightening is very rare out here in CA, especially in the summer. Early in the spring we had a freak lightening storm - I was out riding and started hearing distant thunder. Then sundently CLOSE thunder and many strikes over the ocean that I was riding along.
I NEVER let my horse “run back to the barn” - expect for that day! First time we cantered / galloped wee wee wee all the way back home!
Sorry that you lost your guy, Casper. Must have been very sad to discover.
But also understand no longer having to worry, and going in what he knew to be the best scenario. :sadsmile:
[QUOTE=casper324;7665304]
I lost my horse last week to lightening or so we think. [/QUOTE]
I am so sorry.
How terribly sad. Prayers for the young lady’s family.
One of my friends lost her horse to lightening. I don’t mess around with it. If I hear thunder or see lightening - humans and horses go inside. If there are thunderstorms in the forecast and I won’t be home - horses stay inside. It can be a pain when the forecast is iffy, but in those cases, they get locked into the sacrifice paddock with no hay, and access to their stalls WITH hay - which will usually encourage them to stay inside.
I used to stay out until I could “see” the lightening and I could count 2-3 seconds between thunder & seeing it. THEN I read about a girl & horse killed when the storm seemed to be really, really far away. She was taking a lesson and she & trainer had agreed it was too far off to worry about. Then BAM!!! Now, if I hear thunder, I take precautions!
So sorry for those who have lost 
According to the statewide Mississippi paper, the horse was killed but the rider was not. http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2014/07/13/mississippi-woman-struck-by-lightning/12597279/
This was a story from yesterday, so it’s possible that the rider has died since the story was published. But there is no update.
She did die; I found her obituary in her local paper, published two hours ago on Facebook. She did die on Saturday, but the Clarion Ledger did not publish the update that I could find. In fact, they published their story after she was already dead if her local paper’s obituary is to be believed.
We’ve had lightning hit trees on the farm- one was right when I was coming out of the barn to feed and it struck a tree about 100 yards away. I immediately turned and went back in and sat down. We waited THAT one out!
Another hit the big cedar in our mare field- I had JUST opened the gate that day to let them in that adjoining field, or there would have been mares hiding under it. Grateful for THAT!
And one hit the neighbor’s house across the road, about 100 yards away from the stallion barn. Didn’t do any initial damage that I could see, but less than two weeks later the house caught fire! I feel it smoldered for a while or did electrical damage…
