How to manage other horses when euthanizing another horse

[Ready_To_Riot]

My condolences to you. I just lost my “first” horse on Tuesday.

I didn’t think about having my horses say goodbye to her (or the pervious 2 I’d put to sleep), but I’ll tell you my story of all of them and how the others coped.

Almost 17 years ago I got her and my gelding right around the same time. I call them both my first horse anyway, they were BFF. Like eat out of the same feed pan BFF. If he were still around, they would have shared a stall. A few years later I got Cinniman who was barely weaned and took right to my mare, Tequilla, as if she were her mother. Tequilla was a broodmare for most of her life before I got her, raised probably 8 foals, so her mother instincts were strong. She took Cinniman under her wing and Dusty (my gelding) followed her lead. They literally acted as Cinnimans parents. They were inseparable.

13 years after Tequilla and dusty met and 10 years after Cinniman was introduced, we lost dusty unexpectedly to colic. He broke the fence when he went down in the middle of the night, so when we euthanized him, all the horses were in the barn. The body was there for several hours before burial and I kept the horses away. I didn’t want them to see him like that. I didn’t even want to see him like that. I really thought Tequilla would go soon after due to loneliness as I had another horse in the herd who Cinniman had grown close to, but surprisingly she just grew more interested in feed time. I have no idea why. Doesn’t make any sense but the horse who id have to drag in to feed became the first one to start running from the bottom field when my truck pulled up. Maybe dusty never wanted to come and she did and she just stayed with him? Who knows. But she never seemed sad. Nor did Cinniman.

Cinniman is on stall rest now, so when Tequilla went down on Tuesday she had no idea. Sapphire (other horse) hung around her until I got there but then made her way up to the barn. She couldn’t care less. I’m sure of this because the Wednesday before I was coming back from the vet with Cinniman and Tequilla and Sapphire came barreling to the gate. Tequilla is too old for that and lost her footing some where and slid and fell. As she is struggling to get up and I’m certain she has just died because for about 45 seconds she just stops trying all together and lays there, Sapphire almost steps on her head twice. Sapphire doesn’t care. Cinniman seems to be as chipper as ever given the fact that she has no idea Tequilla is gone.

Bubbles was the other horse I had to put down. She was only around for 6 months before she passed (rescue I randomly brought home from an auction for $12. Yes $12). All the horses saw her be put down and saw her body there until someone was able to come out to put her in the ground. They came
up to the fence (she was just on the other side in a connecting quarter acre lot) and looked at her before and after, but none seemed to care.

All in all, I don’t think it matters. Do what makes you feel better, but honestly, I think having to take the extra time to bring the other horses around is just going to be harder, emotionally, on you.

My thoughts are with you!

[vxf111]

@DMK

I had a deeply bonded pair who went out together on and off for years , and the younger one was away at a show when the older one had to be put down. So robbie came home and rebel was gone… that horse genuinely grieved for months. I admit, I was surprised even though I knew they were close. Then a decade later I had to take robbie on one of those awful one way trips to UGA for colic. He had a pasturemate, and for all of their respective time together they were close but totally fine when one or the other left the farm (there is a third horse so nobody gets abandoned). When robbie got on that trailer, lido apparently lost his shit and was fairly distressed for days.

So this spring it is probably time for that third horse (much like the op’s horse, he is older with multiple conditions that are taking their toll). I’m a believer, the remaining two will go say goodbye. It might not make it better, but it couldn’t possibly make it worse.

I have two that are so deeply bonded. They have been together for almost 15 years now. Always turned out together. When they were riding horses, pre-retirement, usually ridden together. Stoney is 27, Shane is 17. Stoney is a pro/show horse through and through and would be fine on his own or with a different buddy. I think Shane would literally kill himself trying to get to Stoney if Stoney died and he couldn’t be with the body. I think there is a genuine possibility that if I have to put Stoney down, I will have to put Shane down too or else he will literally kill himself

[gumtree]

I’m with G on this. IMO and lots of the emotional experience of either having to put a horse down or finding one dead of “natural” causes. “Closure” is very much a human conjecture. We remove the horse from the paddock/field for easy body removal. Life goes on for the rest with hardly little to no difference in the over all heard dynamics, “mood”.

We had to put a mare down that had a foal at side this past fall. Fortunately everybody in that paddock was on the verge of being weaned. We pulled her from the field and laid her to rest. The foaled reacted like any other foal that has been “weaned”. The mare’s paddock mates went about their business as usual.

Years ago we did the “closure thing”. Most likely we would have continued offering “closure” but because of logistics of body removal we had to pull some out while they could still walk. Made absolutely no difference. These are horses that had been living out together pretty much 24/7 for years.

For those in the situation with 2 old paddock buddies posses a different “dynamic”. Personally I don’t allow horses to become “heard-buddy” bound if I can help it. Which can be done even on a small set up. Just requires more work. I have never had to deal with this scenario. If I had to I think I would give a good dose of Ace before putting their buddy to sleep. I would leave the body for say 24 hours and then remove. Giving another dose of Ace before. Hope that the horse settles after a couple of days. Continue with Ace if needed. IMO the stressed out paddock buddy has nothing to do with death.

[LookmaNohands]

It is very difficult but let them see that he is gone. They will understand but it is not easy to witness. I just talked to someone who did not do this with a deeply bonded pair. The remaining horse ran an winnied for 6 months.

[Nezzy]

i would let them all see the body so they understand. Horses understand a lot more than some give them credit for. They do Grieve, and they do miss their buddies when they leave. I am so sorry for your situation.

[DMK]

@gumtree

I’m with G on this. IMO and lots of the emotional experience of either having to put a horse down or finding one dead of “natural” causes. “Closure” is very much a human conjecture. We remove the horse from the paddock/field for easy body removal. Life goes on for the rest with hardly little to no difference in the over all heard dynamics, “mood”.

Just because a horse doesn’t have “human” closure (you might be the only one thinking that way) does not in any way mean they don’t understand it and use their frame of reference to death in a way that works for them. If anything they understand better than we do. Appreciating that =/= anthropomorphizing the experience.

[gumtree]

@DMK

Just because an animal doesn’t have “human” closure (you might be the only one thinking that way) does not in any way mean they don’t understand it and use their frame of reference to death in a way that works for them. If anything they understand better than we do. Appreciating that =/= anthropomorphizing the experience.

I didn’t say “animal” now did I? That would be casting a very wide blanket. The question was about horses. My comment is based on my experience working with, observing many horses over the years since childhood. It is what I do for a living not a hobby. Wish is was at times.

I do not ,make “light” of having to put a horse down. It is an agonizing decision. One that I have had to make way too many times. For most of us it never gets “easier”. This is the very tough part of being in the business of horse and “dealing” with a much larger population than the average horse person will have in their lifetime. I have waited longer than I should have for personal reason, human reasons at times.

After posting my comment t took the time to see what has been written on the topic by those who study, teach horse behavior. The following is a quote from Upenn Vet school when the question was asked pretty much along the same lines as the OP’s.

“Thanks for asking all these tough questions. You certainly are not alone in your thoughtful consideration of these issues. I don’t know if there are any correct answers, but I’m happy to share my thoughts and experience. Similar questions have come up over the years of my professional career, and I have spoken with colleagues and respected horsemen about their related experiences”

Judging by the behavior of wild and domestic horses, we believe that most horses are not more affected by the death of a herdmate than they are by separation without death. In other words, the horse’s behavior rarely changes when a herdmate dies. I don’t believe Gabby will have a concept of death. A mare which has lost a foal might continue to try to mother it (guard, nuzzle, vocalize to it) for a few hours as if it were alive, just as she would worry the gate through which her foal was taken away alive. But the mother of a dead foal soon moves on with the herd, almost immediately returning to a normal behavioral time budget. This would suggest no suffering we humans know as grief"

I totally agree with “I don’t know if there are any correct answers”. My comment like the one quoted is based on my direct experience of having to deal with this way more than the average horse owner, caretaker. The same opinion I have gotten when I have asked others I know have had to do the same thing in their professional careers with horses.

The TOUGHEST decision is when the financial aspect has to be taken into consideration. Yes, the horse can be saved but it will cost $10,000, $20,000. I have seen people basically bankrupt themselves because they can’t bring themselves to make that VERY difficult decision. We have put ourselves in some difficult financial situations based on emotional decisions instead of the right decision.

If an horse owner wants to offer “closure” as part of the process there is certainly nothing wrong with that. But studies have concluded it does far more for the owner than it does for their herd mates.

Too each their own on this.

[PossumHorse]

My farrier swears that horses can’t count. His method is to walk two horses away from the barn and return one. He says that the herd is ok once a horse returns. YMMV.

[Mango20]

I have not let my horses watch, or inspect the body afterwards. When my old pony went down and was euthanized a couple of years ago, the other horses didn’t see. When the other three were turned out a few hours later, they all sniffed the spot where he was last. The two mares moved on. The other pony gelding spent a long time investigating that spot. I’m guessing they were able to determine he had died based on the smell left behind. There were no fluids or anything at the spot - just the smell of the pony himself.

[draftdriver]

I let my other horses see and sniff the deceased. In fact, my ancient pony was euthanized right where he went down in the loafing shed, with the other three (a horse and two donkeys) standing nearby, watching. They were all very quiet. Once the pony was on his way over the Bridge, they came, one by one, sniffed him, then went out to graze. “The horses understand what is going on” my vet said. It was stress-free for all of them. Not so much for me.