Someone close this thread and put it out of it’s misery. There just can’t be anything more to be said.
I’m so sorry - I lost 2 unexpectedly this summer and you have my heartfelt sympathies.
Can you share what happened to him?
Well, Laura, it depends on where you live. I’m 17, I did work for a while but I don’t any more, and there is no way I could have supported my horse on my own. Here in Los Angeles, it costs $500 a month for board alone- and more than that per month for training. That’s not even for full care (which I don’t do).
Then you have vet bils, farrier bills, which, routine for my mare is $150 every five weeks for shoes (her hooves grow quickly) and about $100 every other month for a hormone supplement from the vet.
Then we get into my horse’s very expensive habit of eating her blankets, sheets and leg wraps.
It adds up. I thank god I have parents who support me despite their dislike for horses.
My dad keeps saying “Tennis, Tennis” every time I need anything else for my horse.
I pay what I can, they pay the rest. I bought the horse with my money, but because of the area I am in, they have to pay her monthly fee’s- there’s no way I could support her and go to school at the same time.
So, for some people it is impossible.
Valerie
~VWiles02@yahoo.com~
Valerie’s home page
just_me
I think we were burning up the keyboards at the same time. I agree with you totally!!!
“May the happiest days of your past be the saddest days of your future.”
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Serendipity:
assuming MJ does NOT seek counseling (she has to want help as much as we want her to get
it, and even in her last post, I didn’t see any evidence of that)<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Exactly what I was thinking as I sat and read the posts from the last 24 hours…it’s obvious
MJ needs help, but how do you help someone who doesn’t want to be helped?
I share the same feelings and opinions many of you have expressed, in particular ETBW, heidi-ugh, AAJumper, and Natty. 
Thank you, Touche, for your post.
ErinB and ClipClop: no need to feel silly for doing the right thing by offering support for a
friend, regardless of the outcome.
I am so sorry for your loss. My heart goes out to you and I wish I could reach out and give you a BIG hug and a shoulder.
He is at peace and you are a very brave person for letting him go. He was very special and so are you.
Maria
Is no good if you dont call in time.
If you have a sick horse, you do ANYTHING to get it to the vet. Sell your show clothes, sell your computer, sell your saddle, call a rescue. You dont sit around and WAIT for a vet to come to you.
I’m simply responding to the facts that were presented by M-J, nothing else.
If the horse were in such Bad condition that it needed to be put down, and it was known that it was in a bad condition for at LEAST 10 days, well…thats neglect to me. For anybody to defend someone because “they didnt know” is inexcusable. For someone to simply say “she learned her lesson” is inexcusable! If “Learning lessons” involves neglecting to call a vet to the point that the horse is put down…well, thats just plain sick.
Point Blank, The only information that I am referring to is the fact that a VET NEVER SAW THE HORSE until it was too late! I dont care if the local yokel hog vet came down the lane to look at poor segar. SOMEONE should have…Excuses do not make a horse healthy. Excuses do NOT save a life.
If you dont have the ability to haul a horse to a hospital, or at LEAST a plan of action to BORROW one, you have absolutely NO business owning a horse. If that makes me judgemental I’ll take the beating…But once you put that halter on “YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOREVER!!!”
Always,
FairWeather
If you ever reach total enlightenment while you’re drinking a beer, I bet it makes beer shoot out your nose. - Jack Handy
MJ’s parents were definitely concerned about the horse’s welfare. They could see that he was not thriving and suggested that MJ find another home for him and, later, that she have him put down.
They knew the horse was in trouble. Why didn’t they get involved? I dunno. Maybe they had an ironclad agreement with MJ that the horse was her entire responsibility. Maybe they felt she ought not to get off the hook she had swallowed. Maybe she refused their help, their advice, and their caring. Maybe she had so withdrawn into the her own cyber world that she couldn’t/wouldn’t listen. I agree with the rest of the board that she needs help NOW, but maybe this horrible event and its consequences have brought MJ and her parents together again–because she will need all the consolation she can get now to keep living from day to day.
The one thing that I personally don’t understand is why neither MJ or her parents contacted Touche when it became obvious that something was going badly wrong. If the previous relationship was as Touche describes it (and I believe her), WHAT HAPPENED?
Now that I’ve posted, the thread will die–and that might be a good thing.
M. O’Conner - Don’t feel bad for starting this thread. I think a lot of us felt something funny was up, but some of us (me included) wanted to believe that everything was as it was stated by M_J. I do hope that she or someone close to the situation will let us know what the vet report indicates.
There was a point where M_J did say that the vet had asked her to stop feeding the grain due to the diaherra (sp) before he came to see the horse. I have a question - does a undernourished horse produce diaherra when his body starts some of its wasting/shutting down? What is the “usual” process of the equine body during under/malnourishment?
I also seem to recall that M_J said the vet had indicated conflicting blood test results “again”. Meaning what???
Still lots of questions!!
Of course! You more than deserve a fun night out. Would Seger rather you be sitting around sad or having a good time?
~*~
This signature is being rented by JumperEq.
OMG poor Seger at least where he is now he won’t be in anymore pain.
Thank you Touche’ for being strong enough to post the truth, I’m sorry you had to see that. As a witness I hope you’ll be able notify the SPCA and get the proper authorities involved. It won’t bring Seger back but it may stop them from getting another horse.
Ignorance is not and excuse.
Thank you ETBW. I think each and every one of us feels a little responsible for this. It isn’t about making a child feel bad anymore. I hope that anyone who thinks charges should not be brought on this issue changes their minds.
As a person who does not have a problem with putting a horse down as an alternative to shipping it off to be slaughtered if its maintenance becomes too expensive (if you cannot find a suitable home where it will be used)I think this situation was deplorable. Suffering should never come into play.
Behind every good woman lies a trail of men
Natty, when It says 3:00 AM, it isn’t three am for everyone 
Valerie
~VWiles02@yahoo.com~
Valerie’s home page
M_J - if you can, I think it would be a good idea to go to the concert. You need to get on with your life now, and it isn’t as if you bought the tickets knowing that seger wouldn’t be there to tell how wonderful Kenny Chesney was.
Kenny gives a great concert, from what I hear, go - enjoy!
This is disgusting…I don’t care if she meant to starve the horse or not…this is no better than what happens to those poor horses in India and Jordan. In fact it’s worse. If she didn’t want to/couldn’t care for the horse, she could have given it to the vet, a rescue, anything. She had the resources to take care of this animal. This is sick. All abusers and neglecters are lumped into ONE category for me…no matter what their sob story is. Thankyou touche for posting this story. I’m glad everyone knows the truth.
You are always the voice of reason!! Thanks!
Its like watching a movie without an ending!!! I still can’t get over the fact that he was only 5!!! Argh!! Fill us in please.
Dublin I agree…and while I’m sure this girl does need councelling, she is the least of my concerns at this point. I am more concerned with the fate of any future horses she may have. She is 16, not 6. Afraid to ask for help? Please.
I’m curious, has anyone read M_J’s tribute to Seger on her site?
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Kcorseinop:
…M_J would not intentionally kill her horse, not even for lack of money. She’s a kid, her parents know next to nothing about horses, she has had no formal training, no trainer, and she’s already said she doesn’t have much money - not to mention she was paying for this horse herself! <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I think you should re-read what Touche’ posted. She was a member of Pony Club; she WON the Know Down! Touche took her to all sorts of events. If a kid is knowledgeable enough to win a Know Down, then she has the knowledge to recognise an animal in physical distress. Yet she did nothing until much too late. Why?
As to her trying to get a vet out…well from the sounds of her posts this process took uh…weeks?!? 
Earlier this month, I called my vet out over two minor nosebleeds. He referred me to another vet with whom I’ve never dealt before, but who had the equipment to perform the examination. This new vet, who didn’t know me from Adam rearranged their schedule and came out within 36 hours. They simply asked for payment at the time services were rendered, since I was a new client. It should never have taken weeks to get the vet out. Her parents knew that something was wrong; even they recognised a problem. They were saying something had to be done. Obviously MJ led them to believe the situation was “fine”, for if she needed the vet and asked them to call for her, due to her age, I’m sure they would have. They saw it themselves. Why they didn’t act further is beyond me…
Originally posted by ETBW
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Imagine how quickly that horse would deteriorate from that photo in August given once per day (if that) feedings which M_J has already told us contained no grain. I have no idea if the pasture held up, whether or not the precipitation in the area was average for the area. What I do know is that my own young thoroughbreds would not maintain their proper weight/growth without additional nutrition provided beyond the grass in the field. None of us can do more than speculate if the horse was wormed (my own in the same time frame were wormed 4 times with Quest, Ivermectin, Safe-Guard and Quest) <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Horses can live just fine without grain in their diet. But they still need to eat bulk roughage, be it hay or grass in sufficient quantities to maintain their weight. Pasture coming into fall would not be sufficient as the grass would be losing its nutritional value as the season waned. Without grain, he should have been eating at least 3/4 square bale of good quality hay (timothy and/or alfalfa) per day, plus grazing. Being a TB, he would also need a blanket, most likely.
I’ll leave my personal opinions about MJ’s ego out of this. Hubris was the undoing here.
What I do, I do for my horse, and thus I do for myself~me
