I used to love thunderstorms but not anymore; horse struck and killed by lightning on 8/11/23

[FatCatFarm]

On 8/11 while I was at work and my daughter was home packing for college, we had a thunderstorm come through that morning. A couple of hours later, My daughter noticed one of my geldings laying oddly on the ground; went to check and found him deceased in the pasture. As I was an hour and a-half away, I sent my husband, who works much closer, home to check it out, and Bliss had been collateral damage to a lightning strike to a Oak tree he was under.

His being beneath the tree was actually unusual as he and his brothers normally would be out in the open during a storm though they did have access to a loafing shed. The only thing I can figure is it was not actively storming at the time and he had gone beneath the tree as bug relief and it was one of those odd lightning strikes as the storm was moving out of the area. I consider myself fortunate that his two brothers were not also killed but apparently they were not near the tree. Bliss appeared to have collapsed moving away from beneath the tree.

It was tremendously heartbreaking as he was 14years old and in great health. 17hds of gold and white palomino pinto gorgeousness. Not that I truly wish any harm on his year older brother with DSLD but given his prognosis, it would have been so much easier to have lost him.

Here in GA in summer, Thunderstorms can be quite random and working away from home, I can’t be there to move horses in and out with the storms on any given day. Age 57 and have had horses my entire life and never anything like this until now. A surprising number of people I know with horses though, have lost at least one to lightning. Tragic.

I used to love a good thunderstorm, but no more. Farm life/horse life sure sucks at times.

[endlessclimb]

I’m so sorry for your loss.

[NaturallyHappy]

I am so, so sorry.

[clanter]

none personally owned but four of the six horses I took care of while working for a saddle horse farm while college were killed in four separate lightening strikes. They were standing under trees in pastures, all four were really nice horses.

I personally witnessed a horse getting knocked to the ground due to a lightening strike on a steel pipe fence. The bolt hit about 1/4 mile up the fence line, horse was standing next to the fence and fell to the ground. We thought the horse had been killed but after about ten minutes it got up but could only turn to the left. After a few months it had recovered but never was 100% again.

A few months ago we had a lightening strike next to our barn, the bolt hit a steel T post that was ten feet from our barn. Barns are fully grounded, nothing was harmed, even the WiFi cameras kept working

The T post is for a corner of the electric fence we use to separate the pastures … everything is grounded as per specs… the nearly 25 year old fence charger was not harmed.

All of our horses are stalled during bad weather, even the ones that insist on being out 24/7 want to come to their stalls when there is a storm

[2DogsFarm]

So sorry for your tragic loss.
When it comes (literally!) out of the blue, there’s no way to prepare yourself mentally.
Take some solace in knowing it was a quick end.
Godspeed, sweet Bliss.

[Jarpur]

Please accept my condolences on the loss of your beautiful Bliss – who must have been an especially good boy to earn that name.

[beowulf]

I am so sorry for your loss. I lost a horse 11 years ago to a lightning strike who was in his run in stall. The bolt hit a nearby pole and traveled through the barn, right through my horse, as far as we could tell. He was 10. My only comfort was knowing how quick it was. It took me a long time to like thunderstorms again - like you, they used to be something I loved.

Godspeed to Bliss. Wishing you and your daughter peace.

[Bluey]

So sorry for your loss.

Long ago we needed a new stallion prospect.
A friend in NM had some great stock, proven on the track and on the ranch and rodeo/shows.
We went to look at her yearlings and choose a really nice one.
It was August and she said just keep him here until the race meet is over middle of September, then take him home as the track closes.
A week before going to pick him up, they had a summer mountain storm and several colts were standing on top of a dam, lightning hit and killed our colt.
Friend returned the money, said it happened on her watch.
First time they had a horse hit by lightning.
We were all so very sad for long time.

[LCDR]

My condolences. This happened to a group of 4 retirees from fox hunting who lived together - 2 of mine and 2 others, all had hunted together for years. One was killed and another was blinded. My saintly old retired QH became the seeing eye horse for his blind pasture buddy. For another ten years they were never more than just a few feet apart.

Like you, since then every time a storm is forecast, I start to worry.

[colorfan]

@FatCatFarm

Farm life/horse life sure sucks at times.

Yes it sure does! I’m sorry this happened, hugs

[fordtraktor]

I am so sorry for your loss.

Pop up storms are very hard to predict. I have one field with trees, and I worry about that field a lot when I don’t get the horses out and it storms. My uncles once lost 9 cows to a single lightning strike.

[sophie]

I am so sorry for your loss.
Most dogs are terrified of thunderstorms, and I totally understand why. They can be deadly. Horses, though, don’t seem to mind them.
My BM keeps an eye on the weather and sometimes scrambles to bring everybody in when a bad lightning storm is approaching, but they do pop up unexpectedly at times.
My heart goes out to you.

[tl.jumper]

I am so sorry for your loss. I have noticed that in Kentucky they fence around the trees in the pasture so the horses have to use the run ins in a storm.

[trubandloki]

I am so very sorry for your loss.

[GoodTimes]

Sorry for your loss. It was never really something that I though about until I went to renew one of my memberships several years ago and one of the optional insurance add ons was specifically for lightening strikes.
I don’t personally know of any animals who have been struck, but I’d like to think that it would be quick and painless.

I do know of two men who were hit by lightning though. I went to high school with both of them. One was hit while working on the top of a building (it wasn’t storming at the time, just overcast and windy). He never woke up after being hit and died a couple days later due to significant organ damage.
The other one was standing outside during a storm and a lightning strike hit a building, travelled down a railing and went through him. He went to the hospital and was physically ok, but he still struggles with being outside unless it’s a clear sunny day.

[FjordBCRF]

I’m so sorry

[PaddockWood]

I’m so sorry. We lost a horse vet when I was young to lightening and maybe that’s why I’ve always been somewhat terrified of it. Your post is helpful as my DH planted trees in our pastures and it’s a reminder to keep them closed off if we are going to have storms. Thank you.

[SharonA1]

I am so sorry for this tragedy. Life makes no sense/is so unfair sometimes. I am grateful to you for having given Bliss so much love and good care for as long as he was destined to be with with you. I believe that you could not possibly, possibly have known that he would be under a tree when a thunderstorm moved through. It seems to me just a terrible random accident, and death does not take away from what was obviously a well-loved and well-lived life.

Wishing you peace and many memories. If you feel up to it sometime, I’d love to hear more about how he got his name, and his funny habits and of course his wonderful qualities.

[pony_grandma]

SO sorry for your loss.

Weird story. The week of 4H County Fair always has the worst weather. We had lightning strike the horse barn one year. It electrified the metal portable horse stalls. A horse touched a wall and got zapped and went nuts. Rearing up bouncing off of and hitting the portable walls. It looked like the whole front line of the stalls was going to come down! And families with kids and strollers had taken shelter in the barn from the storm. I was the first one who realized what exactly was going on. I saw the glow of the charge running down the metal stall fronts! I yelled out that the stalls were electrified. One very quick man jumped up in the air and pulled the electic cord of the stall fan on that stall - it was plugged into a drop cord from the ceiling. The horse owner had put up a fan with a metal shroud front vs the required plastic shield fronts. Oh what a fine mess we had Ollie. We have a large animal participation and have a vet on hand that week. Lucky bc he sedated that horse. And the owner had to haul it home.

The horse was never quite right after that. So just a PSA for everyone.

[red_mares]

That stinks.

I know a couple people who have had horses struck by lightning, both Percherons. Strangely, the nice horse actually lived, though he had a leg kind of messed up. The miserable, lazy mare didn’t. Usually Murphy dictates that the good horse dies and the one you can do without survives.