For what reasons would you retire your horse?
- Thread starter Bobbin
- Start date
Depends on their condition really!
Why do you ask??? Are you unsure on what to do with your horse?
I would retire an older horse that has arthritis etc. Or a horse that has lameness problems and other such problems!
sorry i couldnt be of much help!
Why do you ask??? Are you unsure on what to do with your horse?
I would retire an older horse that has arthritis etc. Or a horse that has lameness problems and other such problems!
sorry i couldnt be of much help!
i like you're post its quite intresting, only untill recently i seem to take on the oldies and iv had retired horses for twise a week hacking lol....
i think you have to assess your horse, is she/he fit and sound, is aurthritus or stiffness present do they enjoy the work load and the age ?
my oldest william 28, had cushings,, ringbone aurthritus etc .... he was on msm supliment and could only walk out on the roads but by walking him out kept his joints loose ( was a hunt master horse and my poor old man was hammered to death with a previous owner at some point).... but on very soft ground while out hacking if he felt up for a trot or canter i'd let him take my lead and i'd let him stop when he felt he needed to.
yet i know of horses and ponies on riding schools which do 3/4 hours of schooling @ weekends who are well into their late 30's and one in his 40's
try easing off hte work load and see how the horse responds, if they start pratting about like a 5yr old with too much energy then i'd take that as a sign that the horse isnt ready to slow down yet lol....
im sure lots of people will have brillient views and opinions on this look forward to reading them my self
i think you have to assess your horse, is she/he fit and sound, is aurthritus or stiffness present do they enjoy the work load and the age ?
my oldest william 28, had cushings,, ringbone aurthritus etc .... he was on msm supliment and could only walk out on the roads but by walking him out kept his joints loose ( was a hunt master horse and my poor old man was hammered to death with a previous owner at some point).... but on very soft ground while out hacking if he felt up for a trot or canter i'd let him take my lead and i'd let him stop when he felt he needed to.
yet i know of horses and ponies on riding schools which do 3/4 hours of schooling @ weekends who are well into their late 30's and one in his 40's
try easing off hte work load and see how the horse responds, if they start pratting about like a 5yr old with too much energy then i'd take that as a sign that the horse isnt ready to slow down yet lol....
im sure lots of people will have brillient views and opinions on this look forward to reading them my self
the difficulty is that the horse doesn't always know what is best for it in terms of arthritis and capability. often they want to belt around but will suffer for it the next day, or for several days to come, and then it's a tough balance between restricting them to the point where theyr'e frustrated and miserable, and them being in pain.
you've got to try it out, and see if the horse copes mentally with light or no work - many horses don't take well to retirement and become very bored and unhappy.
i would personally think very carefully about retiring a previously active horse, as it is a big lifestyle change. i would lean towards PTS over a long period of retirement, or trying retiring for a short time and seeing how the horse coped. not because i'm not willing to support a 'useless' horse, but because a horse who has worked all its life does'nt understand why suddenly it's not out doing things any more, and i'd rather my horse went while happy and active than became depressed. i've seen horses be utterly miserable in retirement and i know the owners have in several cases wished they'd not done it.
a few of our riding school ponies spent their last years still officially in work, but actually doing a half hour plod once a week - that was enough to keep them feeling wanted and loved, and not too much for them physically. after years of routine, it can be bewildering and upsetting to see all their friends coming in and then being left behind.
you've got to try it out, and see if the horse copes mentally with light or no work - many horses don't take well to retirement and become very bored and unhappy.
i would personally think very carefully about retiring a previously active horse, as it is a big lifestyle change. i would lean towards PTS over a long period of retirement, or trying retiring for a short time and seeing how the horse coped. not because i'm not willing to support a 'useless' horse, but because a horse who has worked all its life does'nt understand why suddenly it's not out doing things any more, and i'd rather my horse went while happy and active than became depressed. i've seen horses be utterly miserable in retirement and i know the owners have in several cases wished they'd not done it.
a few of our riding school ponies spent their last years still officially in work, but actually doing a half hour plod once a week - that was enough to keep them feeling wanted and loved, and not too much for them physically. after years of routine, it can be bewildering and upsetting to see all their friends coming in and then being left behind.
poohsmate
Active Member
have actually had two reasons in the past Pooh was old and he had done enough
and kaiser i had to retire because of an injury that was never going to be 100% again.
and kaiser i had to retire because of an injury that was never going to be 100% again.
This to me seems like a sensible option. The saga of Bryony continues and as much as she hates to be tacked up she does appear to love her work. She's only a youngin and I would expect her to be around for another 15 years - health permitting. I just hate to see her resting her legs so much in obvious discomfort after exercise but equally the thought of retiring such a fiesty fun loving pony doesn't seem like a real option. At the risk of sounding like a really awful owner I have a list of things to look at as recommended by an Osteopath - a very good one. But in all honesty, most of it will not be covered by her insurance and even if I get all these things done...it's masking the real issue, that she has arthritis.
J
Julz
Guest
Ok...my horse is 14, has advanced osteo-arthritis, is on bute daily, and other supplements, but he's not going to be retired....fair goes he'll probably never see a show ring again, but at the same time he can do light hacking, otherwise, he will stiffen up to the point that bute wont be enough, and he'll then probably need PTS.. At the moment he's happy enough to go out for a walk, and hope to get him trotting soon...
Do you think he should be "retired" from all activites or kept in light work?
also, retirement isn't often a good option for arthritic horses. gentle exercise keeps them from stiffening up too badly, so if all work is stopped they get worse and worse a lot faster.
i think with bryony's case, once you've reached the end of the things the osteo gave you to look at, you've got a few choices.
-bute her up and carry on with the work she enjoys, knowing that it will shorten the time she is around for but she will be happy. also you may miss minor knocks and strains - bute won't mask a serious lameness, but might do a smaller one.
-see how she is mentally on lighter work, find out where her physical comfort levels are and see how she copes. she may be fine, she may not.
-try retirement and see how she does mentally. if she hates it, you may need to think about giving her a really fun three months (random timescale picked out of a hat) on a bute and doing the work she really really enjoys, then saying goodbye while she is full of beans.
i think with bryony's case, once you've reached the end of the things the osteo gave you to look at, you've got a few choices.
-bute her up and carry on with the work she enjoys, knowing that it will shorten the time she is around for but she will be happy. also you may miss minor knocks and strains - bute won't mask a serious lameness, but might do a smaller one.
-see how she is mentally on lighter work, find out where her physical comfort levels are and see how she copes. she may be fine, she may not.
-try retirement and see how she does mentally. if she hates it, you may need to think about giving her a really fun three months (random timescale picked out of a hat) on a bute and doing the work she really really enjoys, then saying goodbye while she is full of beans.
I think you are completly right, but my horse tries to rip my arm off everytime I tack her up....see my dilemma?? I think she has got alot stiffer since I've stopped working her but she must be in pain when I work her. The other issue is obviously, I did not buy a horse to be a light hack. As mean as that sounds.
I don't think I am going to go down the route of all these tests, the poor girlie needs enough sedation for a small elephant to have things done and I can't watch her be prodded and poked anymore, she's had enough of it in the last 18 months to last her a lifetime.
I really am greatful to you for being honest and straight to the point but god seeing THAT written has made me all sniffly.
J
Julz
Guest
Have you had her back/teeth checked? I think she may be trying to tell you something here, and it may not be the arthritis that is bothering her, but something else..
It doesnt sound too mean, it sounds like you want to do more than plodding round the countryside at a steady pace... which ofcourse, is acceptable... providing the horse you have is capable of doing so...which she isnt..
do you have her on bute or danilon?
Have you talked to your vet about the possible options? They may suggest buting her up. I feed my horse half a sachet of danilon per day along with cortaflex and it was keeping her ticking over. Of course we have a whole load of other issues so I can't comment on how she would be work-wise and of course being on box-rest isn't doing her joints any good at all.
Options as I see it: bute her up to keep her comfy and keep going as you are or try and see how she copes with a lighter workload. If she does better doing less work then you are either going to have to change your riding aims to suit her or you find her another home, as hard as it will be.
Options as I see it: bute her up to keep her comfy and keep going as you are or try and see how she copes with a lighter workload. If she does better doing less work then you are either going to have to change your riding aims to suit her or you find her another home, as hard as it will be.
I retired Brandy because he developed severe COPD and his lungs couldn't cope with much else other than walk and a bit of trot. He was miserable last summer when he had every test under the sun done - put him out on a break for 6 months after this and brought him back in to be ridden in May of this year, but he was no happier. His breathing was still giving him trouble (when trotting any longer than 10 minutes, and I won't even talk about canter), so I retired him. Best thing I ever did for him, he's much happier now.
Have you had her back/teeth checked? I think she may be trying to tell you something here, and it may not be the arthritis that is bothering her, but something else..
It doesnt sound too mean, it sounds like you want to do more than plodding round the countryside at a steady pace... which ofcourse, is acceptable... providing the horse you have is capable of doing so...which she isnt..
do you have her on bute or danilon?
I have taken a deep breath before replying to this one and those who know me will have taken cover at the top comment about getting her back checked etc. Probably thinking I would yell at you for suggesting the very obvious and ofcourse very sensible....thankfully someone already asked me not to so I had a chance to compose myself before I replied.
Please feel free to go back through my profile and read up on Bry...it's riviting stuff, I can assure you that my horse has had everything checked. If you were in pain when ridden, you'd be crabby when the saddle came out aswell, regardless if it fit or not and at this point in time Kissing Spine is a possibility aswell as an ulcer.
She was ridden on bute for a week, a highish dose, under saddle she was very erh spunky but ofcourse the tacking up issue did not change, which I would not expect it to after just one week.
I am hoping to receive some new suppliment from America this week called Cetyl M which is meant to be very good. I am hoping this relieve some of her pain.
I have a 23 year old pony on a share type thing, and the only time I would think about not riding her anymore would be if she stopped being so enthusiastic about being ridden. She absoloutely loves going out for hacks and jumping, so if she stopped enjoying I would probably pack it in then. So far though she is showing no sign of wanting to stop
I have 3 horses.
One who is retired at 8 years old due to an injury that means that he will only be sound to ride if you bute him up. Something i am just not prepared to do. He is happy to live out 24/7 with the others ,sleeping and playing.
One who is semi retired due to a shiver in his hind leg and some OA in the same leg. Good days he is fab and bad days he is stiff and unhappy to work. SO i don't work him on his bad days and have fun on his good ones
and one who is sound and keeps me on my toes.
I have taken a very long time to form my herd and they are all happy working or not working. I spend just as much time with the retired one as with the 5yo. He just gets his work in a mental form rather than a physical form.
Retired horses are not just "chuck it in the feild and forget about it" with good managment and time you can keep them happy even if thier bodies have let them down some what.
One who is retired at 8 years old due to an injury that means that he will only be sound to ride if you bute him up. Something i am just not prepared to do. He is happy to live out 24/7 with the others ,sleeping and playing.
One who is semi retired due to a shiver in his hind leg and some OA in the same leg. Good days he is fab and bad days he is stiff and unhappy to work. SO i don't work him on his bad days and have fun on his good ones
and one who is sound and keeps me on my toes.
I have taken a very long time to form my herd and they are all happy working or not working. I spend just as much time with the retired one as with the 5yo. He just gets his work in a mental form rather than a physical form.
Retired horses are not just "chuck it in the feild and forget about it" with good managment and time you can keep them happy even if thier bodies have let them down some what.
It's really a personal decision based on what you think is best for your horse
Storm was retired at 9 years old. Two vets thought I should still continue on with them, and maybe they were right. But it didn't matter, because I knew he'd never be 100% sound, and no one could guarantee that riding him wasnt' causing more issues. Now he's thrilled to death to just be out playing with the babies. I still tear up occasionally, because he really was my dreamhorse, but I know that he's happier.
You need to think what's best. If I had a horse with a major attitude problem that couldn't seemingly be fixed, I'd retire him. If he was lame, and it had been ongoing, I'd retire him. But really, only you know your girl. Decide what you think is the best option and stick to it!
Storm was retired at 9 years old. Two vets thought I should still continue on with them, and maybe they were right. But it didn't matter, because I knew he'd never be 100% sound, and no one could guarantee that riding him wasnt' causing more issues. Now he's thrilled to death to just be out playing with the babies. I still tear up occasionally, because he really was my dreamhorse, but I know that he's happier.
You need to think what's best. If I had a horse with a major attitude problem that couldn't seemingly be fixed, I'd retire him. If he was lame, and it had been ongoing, I'd retire him. But really, only you know your girl. Decide what you think is the best option and stick to it!
M
missyL
Guest
i think retirement is up to the horse, some horses will carry on for ages, others will tell you when they want to stop. my old pony carried on for ages in his old age and then one day he just stood there, he was ready to stop then and i respected that. if you just listen to what your horse is trying to tell you then you know whats best, and if you know your horse wel you will know the difference between an off day and when they are ready to retire
J
Julz
Guest
Bobbin - Thanks for replying after a deep breath! I know it looks like im stating the obvious, but it's unreal the amount of people who are oblivious to getting backs/teeth checked - hey, i was one of them, until someone pointed out that horses get sore backs too and not just from being overweight, but anything they could do in the feild, just by rolling and tweaking a muscle, or the tack not fitting properly... Now I am aware of the things that Seamus does, and that it could be anything not just that he's having an off day... I will go have a looky at your profile and see whats been happening, and also hope the stuff makes a difference to your horse....
Have you tried things like Accupuncture? Sorry, if i've just put my foot in my mouth again!!
Have you tried things like Accupuncture? Sorry, if i've just put my foot in my mouth again!!
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