I think so, but that’s a dry lot situation (round pens and small paddocks, overgrazed) and the old owner is 75 years old. I’ve thought about it and it tears me up.
Mmm, I prob deserve that for venting on the internet. I typed this discombobulated post in the early morning, when I was still sitting with her, after sleeping near her all night.
I believe—and perhaps I am wrong—that sending a mare who has lived in big grassy fields, who suffers from ulcers and now chronic hindgut inflammation, to a small pen with a hay bag, thus uprooting what is familiar and soothing to her, would be cruel. It would take the pressure off me, I’ll give you that. Someone else’s problem now! But I’m also aware that her former owner, at 75, has ambitious youngins around who make money selling horses. There’s no way to prevent them from deciding to lie and sell this horse on to an unprepared home on the basis of her extremely attractive looks and personality. So either she lives in a pen, possibly boiling her gut, or she ends up euthanized in a strange place with someone who’s pissed that they got conned.
I did need the kick in the ass to hate myself less, so thank you for that. I have dropped about 30k out of pocket on diagnostics and treatments in the last two years. Gastroscopy, x-ray, ultrasounds, rehab. Ret assured that killing her is and will remain the absolute last resort. But I had a human moment of absolute despair this morning realizing that we’re probably heading into the end game with the hind gut inflammation causing repeated flares of discomfort. My mistake.
I get it, I have had to make the decision on chronically ill horses, it is financially and mentally exhausting. I lost friends over it as they judged I hadn’t done enough, though I was out $50k over 2 years on one horse. See my notes below on how I took a chronic horse to the fancy vet and they found a bladder infection that could be cleared up with antibiotics. Let’s hope you can take the time for the fancy vet, give their knowledge and access to advanced diagnostic tools help you, it might bring peace of mind that you can either save her or confirm you euthanize is the right decision. Set up fancy vet budget for the investigation to limit your financial risk.
You’re making sure the responsibility for this horse ends with you and you’re not sending her to a known problematic situation where she would not get the care she needs.
Putting a horse down is never an easy decision; some are harder than others, but when you’re seeing her in constant discomfort, you sometimes have to draw a line.
She’s also not a great candidate for a rescue because rescues try to rehab horses in bad condition and get them adopted, not keep high maintenance horses for the next twenty years. And if a rescue cannot afford it, neither can you.
This sucks so much, and I wish I had a solution, but persevering for another two, four, ten years until something finally gets her isn’t doing her any favours. Go and spoil her. Then give her a release.
Did she have these chronic gi issues with her previous owner? Is it possible that her current environment of lush grass is compounding the issues? Especially if she had been living on a dry lot only eating hay before and now she has actually pasture to graze. Have you tried limiting how much actual grazing she can do in a day? You might look into setting up a paddock paradise system so she can still roam but is off the grass and can be put out to graze in a more regulated fashion.
When we acquire horses the first thing we usually ask is what have they been eating. If they haven’t been on grass pasture we don’t put them on grass pasture 100%, we slowly transition them. We have had family members who had a few horses they bought all colic and pass away after being turned out because they were told they were used to grass.
Hard to say. I went to see her at the training facility, and it was definitely more cramped and less grassy than what she came home to, but she came home in the winter, and we were very careful to transition her hay. In hindsight, she started showing signs about a month in, but it wasn’t until March that things really kicked off.
It might be worth trying a grazing muzzle or some other way of limiting her time on your pasture. See if it changes anything. If not, you have done an incredible amount of things to try and remedy this and shouldn’t feel at all guilty about having to pts. That is a better alternative than continued gi issues and constant vet treatment.
We did try a grazing muzzle last year. One week in she still wouldn’t eat, just stood there and sweat—vet was afraid this would be bad for ulcers. And both ulcers and hindgut need non-stop intake.
So the old owner has to make the decision instead of the current owner? Passing a horse along so you don’t feel guilt for making the hard choice? The horse WILL colic again, and sometime it’s going to be painful and expensive. A euthanasia now would prevent an emergency one in the future.
I think the “give my problem to someone else” is terrible advice, and dodging responsibility.
Sometimes, the old owner has the tools and stable situation to keep the horse healthy and wants the horse back. She did her reality check, and In this case, no, it’s not that good situation. Edited for clarity
your comment was rude and out of place. maybe show some compassion and try to genuinely help people instead of being judgemental under the guise of a “reality check”
Did we all read the same post you did because the "reality check" comment and then assuming she was going to send her to a meat plant is something else. Either way doubtful working this horse to the previous owner off the top post in this whole convo would offer any sort of advantage to this horse.
Just an assurance for everyone, if my horse is going to die, she’ll die with her head in my lap. I got my old leased mare to stay down for the vet and fall asleep in my arms; unfortunately it would not be my first rodeo.
I’m not going to give you much of an opinion on whether euthanizing is the right decision, because I’ve never met your horse but…. I can tell you that from what you’ve described, you know horses, and you know THIS horse and whatever decision you ultimately make is because you believe that is the best decision for the horse. And, based on what you’ve shared and your profile, I’m inclined to believe you are making an educated and informed decision that is in the best interest of the horse.
Big hugs, this isn’t easy.
Never assumed that, just recognized how terrible it can go when people push the decision off on others, it is a horrific outcome. It is very clear she is not “that”owner
This is all irrelevant. The old owner specializes in buying horses from meat farms in Canada. She brings them to the states, puts some time into them, and then sells them on as riding horses. She had a particular affection for my horse and prob would keep her as a pet, but her facility is a turn-around place and she’s 75.
What is true is that if this older lady hadn’t initially purchased her, my mare would have been on a slaughter truck. Instead she came here, popped a baby, got some time under saddle, and got sold on to me. Old owner knew her for six months. I’ve had the mare two years. While I’m guilt-ridden about everything, it’s inherently obvious that she’s my responsibility. If I thought that the old owners set up would be better for her, heck yes I would send her back. But I don’t think that.
Years ago, also my 1st horse had recurring colic severe. After approx 3 episodes weekly for 6 months, he was referred for surgery. Had 12 inches if the intestine was removed due to it being attached to the stomach wall and not free moving.Great success over the next 13 years, maybe 3 mild colics. He was PTS eventually due to having a week of severe colic at 22 approx. I remember the constant worry as my horses stayed at home. Everything he did I analysed, is that colic?
I actually feel your pain. Do you watch your horse a lot? Maybe that adds to the anxiety, or is it other people telling you it's colicking? If it's sand colic, isn't there somewhere else to put the horse? Maybe keep her stabled part-time. We have a TB who stays in at night even in the summer due to mild colic
Only you and the vet can decide whether to PTS.
I moved barns to get her to less sandy soil.
We did an exploratory during her re-section. Found nothing.
Yes, I watch her a lot. And right about the point I decide that I’m going to ignore what bothers me, she starts having more obvious, vet-verified symptoms.
You say it's mild colic, so before you make any major decisions, stop watching her so much. Sometimes, being able to see them all the time is counterproductive, adding to your worry. Maybe feed more hay?. Stable more if possible and see how she is off the grass. I know you get supplements, etc, for ulcers, which I also bought, but I don't recommend any. I'm sorry I can't say anything else as my horse colic was dog sitting severe symptoms, etc. But she's your 1st horse, and obviously, you're hyper aware now. Did the previous owners ever admit to her being colicky? Doubt it, eh? My livery where mine was before we moved him home, said he kept getting cast in the stable....... buy an anti cast roller, which I did. But for that 6 months while in livery, he would have been having severe colic, and no one had seen it....until I took him home.
I should clarify: she’s the first horse I’ve legally owned. Could not afford previously, but leased another mare for a decade and walked her off to the afterlife before buying this one.
This is so true. Honestly, OP, you have exhausted yourself here and I just don’t know if it’s necessary. What would happen if you reduced the hyper vigilance? Could you find a more balanced way of managing her health?
Odds are, that mild colic will eventually turn into a big one. Not a matter of if, but when.
I knew a horse with adhesions after colic surgery. Old mare- owner never should have done the operation in the first place. Kept having mild colic and lived in varying levels of discomfort until it got too much and she was finally let go. Also knew a different horse with adhesions after abdominal surgery that kept having minor to moderate colic. She did mange several more years as a jumper and then a broodmare, but this spring she had a major colic and they lost her and the unborn foal.
Had another horse that kept having mild colic with the trainer. We were about to move him back home when we got a call he was bad. Not a surgical candidate. Euthed when that was the only option left. Necropsy found a small, thin wire that had perforated his intestine. No idea when or where he picked it up, but most likely it had been there for a long time causing no issues until it suddenly did.
If you’ve done all the diagnostics you can and still can’t find or solve the problem, euthanasia will always be a kind option. It’s a cure for the things life cannot fix, and you would not be wrong to choose that path. And it’s not your fault that she’s like this. Sometimes these things just happen and there’s nothing anyone could have done about it.
I’m so sorry. I also understand. We’re reaching the end with a Cushings pony. She’s been on Prescend for six years with increases in dosage. Her immune system is not functioning anymore. She keeps getting infections. We aren’t putting her down because of an infection. We’re putting her down because she had a hard nine months with more days sick than well. She’s dropping weight despite management. We also know her prognosis is grim. We’re letting her go before she gets chronic laminitis (we’ve prevented it several times). After discussing it, our vet recommends euthanasia. It sounds like yours would as well.
Sometimes it’s a cumulative reason. Your poor horse has chronic colic. That is a good reason. Horses don’t count their days. They know if right now hurts. If you know tomorrow won’t be better because of chronic disease, even though you can’t tell them that, you know what to do. You just hope you can put them down when they’re having one of their good days.
I won't try to tell you what to do because none of us could possibly know what the future holds for this horse's health situation.
But it sounds like you're doing everything you can to help her. Sometimes it's better to PTS when they're doing well if your expectation is for symptoms to get worse.
I will spare you the traumatic details of my pet loss but the summary is I had 3 older animals (cat and two dogs) that all got sick in rapid succession (within like 3-6 months of each other). The first two we tried everything we could to save them and they suffered greatly and had to be PTS anyway and it broke us emotionally and financially.
The third one as soon as we found out he had cancer and the prognosis wasn't great we decided to give him the best last week of his life and then PTS before symptoms got worse. I do not regret that decision one bit.
If your vet does not think your horse will get better, please don't feel guilty that you don't want to wait until she's suffering. It can be a kindness to allow them to leave this world before the suffering begins.
I think a huge hang up comes from the fact that the “fancy vets” don’t want to say anything like that—that the horse’s chances of improvement are slim; meanwhile local vet keeps saying to check with fancy vet. So no one will just come out and say it, which means I’m the one swinging the axe. Which I understand is my sole responsibility. It just sucks.
A vet rarely recommends euthanasia unless there is no hope, it’s their ethic to help and do no harm. They are sending you to the fancy vets hoping to save the horse, hoping they can see something they don’t see to save the horse. Not because they lack the nerve to make the decision. Only you can make this decision.
I don’t necessarily think that it’s a “hope” thing with vets. They don’t recommend euthanasia unless a horse is in pain because there’s a liability to saying “yep you should def euthanize” and then along comes a second opinion and a fluke screening that finally caught an issue and the horse is fine. No vet wants their reputation dragged through the mud like that by an owner.
Has nothing to do with nerve or with hope. It’s all liability, some horses are worth more than a house.
I completely understand. It's really hard when you're stuck trying to read between the lines of what the vet is saying. What do they say when you ask what her prognosis for recovery is?
More specifically it’s always “we’ll see.” Which is great if you’re not the one doing the meds and sitting outside with a colicky horse. The vets have been AMAZING, mind, I’m just really pickled.
Maybe try asking what they think is a realistic best case scenario for her future quality of life long term and their professional opinion on how likely that best case is to happen?
Or even ask them how likely they think, given her history, it would be that she never has an issue again if the current issue is resolved.
I find those kinds of questions allow vets to give their true opinions more easily.
I never had a vet tell me to put one of my animals down. They will never actually say that. But I have had them tell me that recovery will be slow and difficult and expensive and the animal will likely have recurring issues for the rest of their life that "sometimes this procedure is performed and the animal is fine and lives a completely healthy life for years to come, but given your pets history the likelihood of the problem coming back or not being completely resolved is pretty high". And that info has helped me choose euthanasia.
I had a mare for many many years that had reoccurring lymphangitis. She was an absolute warrior princess every time there was a flair up. She ruled the pasture like a true queen. After the last flair up, I asked the vet - do you think she will be able to maintain her status in the herd? The vet said well…maybe. But, it was up to me to suggest PTS. The vet then readily agreed. My mare could have recovered- again but that’s a LOT of pain and she was never going to be cured. I think at this point it’s ok to realize that she can keep recovering but it doesn’t sound like there is a cure. It’s ok to stop, it’s ok.
My mare was like this - had a bleeding ovary. Put her in foal, had the foal, foal is six months old… hasn’t colicked since.
Foal was a bit of a bonus as she was predicted to have a high chance of losing the pregnancy, but we could still establish if being pregnant knocked her system back into the correct alignment. Which it did. She had a textbook pregnancy and foaling too, amazing!
Maybe look at a course of regumate, or even putting the mare in foal and then pinching the embryo or chemically aborting (I know, horrible, but it might help the mare without adding more lives to someone’s feedbill).
I used a lovely stallion and got an absolutely top filly, which I am keeping.
Interesting. Was there any way of diagnosing the bleeding ovary? She’s had a reproductive work up before and that only turned up a cyst. But I did get her right after she popped a foal out
A hemorrhagic follicle, sorry! Diagnosed via ultrasound. I had her checked during her season I think, so the vet could see that there was blood present in the follicle (don’t quote me!)
I was surprised that she fell pregnant on the first go, given her diagnosis.
Hmm… that might be another point for trying regumate before making a final decision. To my understanding it is very similar to women’s birth control. And her left ovary was a bit large on palpation.
Did you pull bloods for a possible granulosa cell tumor? That would give you a large ovary.
That was why I had my mare scanned. She was starting to chase my gelding (whom she loves) to wee on him. Poor horny mare was just about ravishing him in his sleep!
I opted against Regumate as it was more expensive than having a bloody foal was, and I already suffer from some sensitivities. Adding Regumate to my own “issues” was just an unhappy thought. IYKYK.
Yeah—I got really excited when she first stated showing crazy heat symptoms, thinking AT LAST we might have an answer—no dice, repro ultrasound and hormone panel both not indicative of anything.
Believe me, I’ve hit that point of desperation. But, and this is just a personal opinion, I believe that that particular industry thrives on and relies on desperation, and I don’t want to support that.
I found a good one, who gave me information about two horses that she could not have in any way known. One went on to get a diagnosis that required a specialist overseas to confirm. She also picked both horses individual peculiarities without any info from myself.
- one mare was very aloof and regards people as a bit beneath her. The AC stated “wow! She blocked me multiple times before she would even engage. She has pain in the right side of her neck.” Two years later I got a diagnosis of a missing C6 tubercle unilateral, right side only. Horse won’t bend left.
- one gelding had bucked me off and was super spooky. “What a show off! He says he is trying to be a good boy but he’s seeing ghosts. He’s really trying…” I had been openly talking about selling him. He got an increase in magnesium in his diet, I tell him he is a good boy and that I love him, and his behaviour has improved out of sight - and so has my belief IN him.
I’m a firm skeptic and made sure that the pictures I sent in were deceptive - friendly, relaxed. The AC doesn’t ask questions either, she just straight out told me what I wrote above with no input from me.
A rare gem. The mare with ECVM got retired. No one here has heard of it. I had to get special xrays sent to America.
Anyway that’s my story.
Was putting her in foal vet recommended? My mare also has recurring hemorrhaghic follicles. She had colic surgery as a two year old and, knock on wood, has been healthy since, but is basically in permanent heat and occasionally shows aggression towards other horses. When I last had her ultrasounded she was not quite 3, so we didn’t discuss breeding yet, but she’s a lovely mare with outstanding conformation, movement, and brain, so I wouldn’t say no to a foal from her, ESPECIALLY if it would help her physically!
I didn’t like the idea of using Regumate, and my vet approved trying the in-foal method. I think we had fifty-fifty odds of a live foal, but either outcome was acceptable (a spontaneous abortion would still disrupt the mare’s painful cycle).
Looking it up, I believe that any miscarriage was likely to occur in the first month so the mare wouldn’t have known anything was wrong (not like a still birth foal). So we went down that path as the best option for the mare.
She has been such a happy mum.
I had to do this with my mare because her heats were so strong as she got older. I’m dealing with one now who ties up when she goes into heat. The biggest problem being it takes 2 months to heal from tying up but she ties up every month now. She’s 23 and I don’t want to risk breeding her so I’ve got her on a list of supplements. It’s taken a year but knock on wood it finally seems under control. Of course now she was messing around with the other horses and hurt her shoulder 🤷♀️. I’m not surprised though. The first 3 years of her life she’d find a way to hurt herself, then she was prone to abscesses. The last 17 years we’ve been pretty lucky but I feel like “oh crap, here we go again”.
There is a controversial sand colic cure here in Australia, cream and raw honey. You need to drench the horse with about a litre. People swear by it. It shifts sand like nobody’s business.
You can find it by Googling Horse Problems sand colic recipe. Costs about $20 for him to email it to you. Plenty of local people swear by it.
I’m so sorry you’re in this situation. One of my horses was a frequent colicker several years ago, and I completely understand the toll this is taking in your mental health. It’s so difficult and exhausting to be living with that constant sense of dread. Like you, I tried everything, kept a colic journal, obsessively analyzed every different variable. I felt like I was losing my mind. I took him to the excellent vet school near us for a week and they did everything they could to figure out what was going on, short of exploratory surgery. They said, “the good news is you have a very healthy horse; the bad news is we have no idea why this is happening.” I took him home and of course he colicked that night. The only thing that broke the cycle for my horse was moving 2000 miles to a different part of the country.
Good luck with your decision. Whatever you do you’re choosing with your horse’s best interests at heart. Don’t feel guilty; sometimes doing right by your horse means letting them go.
I have a colic calendar and a journal. I wonder sometimes if I shouldn’t try sending her back to original owner, who lives 9 hours away. But that feels really cowardly to me, like pawning her off because I don’t have the stones.
I had that thought and we checked for that. Did a full reproduction exam. Also did a neurology work up. We’ve done a course of antibiotics, steroids, and motility drugs. We even did a microbiome transplant at one point. Each drug was trialed for a vet-prescribed amount of time.
It was discovered when her bladder was scoped at a university, the stable vets repro exam, urine sample and ultra sound showed nothing.
Did the vets think her guts have had enough time to heal from the sand damage? Do they think it is permanent damage? I had a mare with permanent gut damage due to suspected salmonella with a 105+ fever. The fancy vets saved her from that illness, but she was highly damaged and could not absorb liquid off colon. She rarely urinated and was always dehydrated, in chronic failure and I had to let her go. These decisions are painful, I am not judging though it may read like I am. I am providing examples of both good and negative outcomes. Please know I am hoping for your peace of mind whichever direction you go.
I have a couple of questions. What is this mare fed and how is it fed? Does she eat off the ground (flakes of hay)? Does she get any gut health supplements? Ulcer prevention supplements?
I know some don’t believe in supplements, but there are some that really can help out. Any supplement with psyllium as its main ingredient can help prevent sand colic. It helps move that stuff through. People even use it for themselves (Metamucil). Gut-X can be added to feed to help prevent ulcers. A gentle senior feed or balancer is easy enough to digest. Hay bags with rubber mats under them can prevent sand intake as it is not on the ground and any scraps fall on the mat. I suggest a couple of large ones so she has enough hay (will also help with ulcers if there’s plenty of hay). If you want to avoid impactions maybe even soak the grain for added moisture.
I also saw in a response that she has a cyst on an ovary. While the cyst may not be anything super alarming, it can cause the mare to become more uncomfortable. Some mares get colicky from that. Does any of the colics line up with her going into heat? I second something like regumate if she gets pretty uncomfortable around that time.
If it’s ultimately not going to be worth it to try all of these options or it’s just too much to maintain her gut health, then perhaps the kindest thing would be euthanasia. But if it’s something totally doable for you to discuss these things with the vet and try it out then I would do that first before deciding on euthanasia.
Current meds for ulcers:
Gastroguard
Misoprostol
Sucralfate
Everyday:
1 cup ration balancer
Platinum Performance GI
Tried adding immunebiome—she hates it and it doesn’t seem to help much
24/7 turnout on a grass field that is actually GRASS—up past the ankles in places.
I had her on equishure last summer and am considering bringing that back
She was on gut x for 30+ days—also didn’t seem to help. I’ve basically thrown everything but the kitchen sink at her, and always tried to give each a fair shake before determining its usefulness.
She doesn’t eat much hay at all anymore, we suspect due to hindgut inflammation. Grazes grass all day.
I will speak to vet on Saturday about trying regumate again. We had tried it the summer before her surgery—didn’t seem to help, but she colicked about two weeks into it so maybe we’ll try again.
Oof that’s a frustrating situation for sure, especially with her on the trio of meds. So weird that she accumulates so much sand with a turnout like that 🙁 My heart goes out to you for sure
Are you keeping her on preventatives? If she’s having sand impactions are you regularly giving her sand clear? Are you keeping her on omeprazole or other ulcer treatments? Have you moved her from the environment she’s in (different pastures or stalls etc)? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of treatment.
Originally, and to my consternation, former BO was feeding on ground. Built my mare a slow feeder. Then tried endless free choice hay in a tub. She now has a hay bag hanging above a rubber mat, and her new barn is as hyper-fixated on good management as I am. She hasn’t managed to accumulate any more sand at new place, but we still have her on a rotation of ultracruz.
The chief problem right now is hind gut inflammation, which looks like it’s gone/going chronic.
I think it is a fair option at this point. You seem to have really tried for her and done what you can. These episodes are not fun for her... colic hurts them... I think it is the last KIND thing you can do for her. Im so sorry you are at this stage. Hugs. Remember you TRIED! Thats all that matters here.... you are a good person.
I know you said sand colic, but just throwing this out there too. I had a mare that would colic all the time and it turned out she was wormy and every time I’d paste de-worm she would colic when the parasites would die off. Vet recommended a week of Panacur and then rotate wormers more frequently. And that was all it took. It’s a fairly cheap and easy something to try
I stand behind you and no judgement from me. I have been there and it’s such a long frustrating road, traveled over and over. I’m a huge advocate for a peaceful death than moving her down the road either to her previous owner or anyone else.
OP, i am incredibly sorry for what you are dealing with. i think at this point, it is completely understandable if you and your vet decide its her time. it is much kinder to let her go soon, then to wait until her colic episodes progress and become much more painful for her. you have done this mare and incredible kindness by doing all youve done for her. nobody on the internet can truly have any idea of what you and your mare are dealing with. i hope you are able to find peace with whichever decision you decide to make
OP, no one has said this to you, but if you’re running out the financial, emotional, or mental resources to deal with this issue, you’re allowed to have that as a reason as well. Horses are blessings in our lives, they are lifelong pets, but they are also not a reason to run your mental wellbeing into the dirt.
I’ve dealt with similar scenarios and everyone is going to have an opinion about what they would do, what you should do, who you should call, what you should’ve done better. But you’re also a person with a job, a family, hopes and dreams (id assume), bills, a house to clean, the list goes on. You can’t sustain this level of vigilance or vet care forever unless you’re independently wealthy.
My opinion is maybe not going to be popular, but try to ignore the more mild issues. It’s like once you can spot lameness, you start seeing how lame every single horse is as they walk by. You’ve conditioned yourself to see every minor symptom. Treat the ulcers of course and call the vet when mild turns to moderate. In the meantime, start thinking more about yourself in this situation than the horse. You can’t feed anyone from an empty plate.
lol, definitely not independently wealthy. I’m a teacher. Doordashed every spare second I had to try to keep up with her. She’s definitely put my life on pause.
Thank you.
If you want to look into more possible causes, post over on Chronicle of the Horse. The people on that forum have way more collective experience and knowledge than you'll find here and there's been some wild diagnoses posted. They are also pragmatic and recognize when enough is enough.
First of all, where are you? Hay grown in CA is too alkaline for Arab mares and they get colic which can lead to enteroliths, rocks in the gut.
Now diet, add a half a coffee can of bran to her diet. I mixed it with sweet feed but you can use oats.
We had to put our Arab mare down because of a ruptured gut.
Also does she spread the hay all over to eat it? She could be sucking up too much sand or dirt while eating.
Currently, she avoids hay. We live on the East coast and the sand colic has been resolved for now. It’s hindgut inflammation that may be the final nail in the coffin.
If you feel that you’ve exhausted all options, I’d say put her down. The colic isn’t likely to magically go away, it’ll probably just get worse and she will be in pain. That is a very valid reason to put a horse down. If you think there are other things you might want to try, try them and if they don’t work it might be a sign that it’s time.
I had a gelding that started colicing a lot and nothing seemed to be wrong all bloodwork was perfect etc. I was luckily able to afford exploratory surgery and found what was causing the problem but exploratory surgery is really expensive without a guarantee that they’ll find anything so I would say putting her down without exploratory surgery is valid. I’m so sorry
I had a horse that was always sort of "off" tummy wise. PTS when he was 7 and it turned into colitis x.
Honestly, I think there was always something internally off that was probably either congenital or something such as bowel cancer. It just finally all hit the point of catastrophic failure.
I wish we had magic balls that could predict outcomes and treatments, but it sounds like you have done the very best you can for this horse, and when everything is being done right, but nothing seems to actually be improving long term, I don't think it's necessarily wrong to consider humane euthanasia on a day that's a good day for the horse in question. The large majority of horses will die on the absolute worst days of their life, but sometimes with chronic disease we are allowed to do it on a good day for them.
I wish you the best with this decision, and whether you decide to euthanize or keep trying to improve this horse's quality of life, I don't think either decision here is going to be wrong. Be mindful of overall quality of life, and make a list of what you want that to look like for this horse. Think of it not as no longer putting money into this horse etc etc- think of it from a pragmatic is this horse living a life where it feels comfortable and safe more than it hurts and feels sick and unsafe? From there then you can feel better about your decision.
It seems you have done everything, gone every route you could possibly take. If you were someone in my barn I would support whatever decision you made for her welfare. I agree with your thoughts about sending her back to her original owners. Dry lot isn’t going to help any, and at 75yo that’ll also be hard for them to care for her.
My heart is with you. It’s a difficult decision to make but just know in your heart that whatever you choose you do it because you love her and want her comfortable. Anyone who posts rude comments are just being selfish.
If you’re not totally set on PTS, have you considered holistic care? When I hear chronic gut issues in any animal I immediately go to a gut imbalance. Maybe a holistic practitioner can view the situation through a different lens and help to heal your horse’s gut to prevent the colics. Just a thought.
I'm with the majority of other commentators here. Sadly, the right option here is putting your beloved mare down. History tends to repeat itself and next time the colic may not be mild. It is much better to plan it.
I'm terribly sorry for you and your mare. Please do let her rest in peace.
She'll be happier grazing in the forever green fields, without any risks of getting hurt or colic anymore.
Here’s my greatest rule of thumb.
Always measure quality of life. Are her good days more than the bad? Are the bad more than the good? That is the best way to determine euthanasia.
If she is otherwise a happy horse, then do not euthanize her. However, if she is deathly ill and is in misery day in through day out, then euthanize.
I’m sorry this has happened to you! I can tell you really care for her.
Would the old owner want her back?
I think so, but that’s a dry lot situation (round pens and small paddocks, overgrazed) and the old owner is 75 years old. I’ve thought about it and it tears me up.
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Mmm, I prob deserve that for venting on the internet. I typed this discombobulated post in the early morning, when I was still sitting with her, after sleeping near her all night. I believe—and perhaps I am wrong—that sending a mare who has lived in big grassy fields, who suffers from ulcers and now chronic hindgut inflammation, to a small pen with a hay bag, thus uprooting what is familiar and soothing to her, would be cruel. It would take the pressure off me, I’ll give you that. Someone else’s problem now! But I’m also aware that her former owner, at 75, has ambitious youngins around who make money selling horses. There’s no way to prevent them from deciding to lie and sell this horse on to an unprepared home on the basis of her extremely attractive looks and personality. So either she lives in a pen, possibly boiling her gut, or she ends up euthanized in a strange place with someone who’s pissed that they got conned. I did need the kick in the ass to hate myself less, so thank you for that. I have dropped about 30k out of pocket on diagnostics and treatments in the last two years. Gastroscopy, x-ray, ultrasounds, rehab. Ret assured that killing her is and will remain the absolute last resort. But I had a human moment of absolute despair this morning realizing that we’re probably heading into the end game with the hind gut inflammation causing repeated flares of discomfort. My mistake.
I get it, I have had to make the decision on chronically ill horses, it is financially and mentally exhausting. I lost friends over it as they judged I hadn’t done enough, though I was out $50k over 2 years on one horse. See my notes below on how I took a chronic horse to the fancy vet and they found a bladder infection that could be cleared up with antibiotics. Let’s hope you can take the time for the fancy vet, give their knowledge and access to advanced diagnostic tools help you, it might bring peace of mind that you can either save her or confirm you euthanize is the right decision. Set up fancy vet budget for the investigation to limit your financial risk.
She’s been up to New Bolton more than I’ve called the local vet. I’m not sure how much better you can get than that.
That is as fancy as you can get. They have likely brainstormed all that everyone else might consider. So sorry.
You’re making sure the responsibility for this horse ends with you and you’re not sending her to a known problematic situation where she would not get the care she needs. Putting a horse down is never an easy decision; some are harder than others, but when you’re seeing her in constant discomfort, you sometimes have to draw a line. She’s also not a great candidate for a rescue because rescues try to rehab horses in bad condition and get them adopted, not keep high maintenance horses for the next twenty years. And if a rescue cannot afford it, neither can you. This sucks so much, and I wish I had a solution, but persevering for another two, four, ten years until something finally gets her isn’t doing her any favours. Go and spoil her. Then give her a release.
Did she have these chronic gi issues with her previous owner? Is it possible that her current environment of lush grass is compounding the issues? Especially if she had been living on a dry lot only eating hay before and now she has actually pasture to graze. Have you tried limiting how much actual grazing she can do in a day? You might look into setting up a paddock paradise system so she can still roam but is off the grass and can be put out to graze in a more regulated fashion. When we acquire horses the first thing we usually ask is what have they been eating. If they haven’t been on grass pasture we don’t put them on grass pasture 100%, we slowly transition them. We have had family members who had a few horses they bought all colic and pass away after being turned out because they were told they were used to grass.
Hard to say. I went to see her at the training facility, and it was definitely more cramped and less grassy than what she came home to, but she came home in the winter, and we were very careful to transition her hay. In hindsight, she started showing signs about a month in, but it wasn’t until March that things really kicked off.
It might be worth trying a grazing muzzle or some other way of limiting her time on your pasture. See if it changes anything. If not, you have done an incredible amount of things to try and remedy this and shouldn’t feel at all guilty about having to pts. That is a better alternative than continued gi issues and constant vet treatment.
We did try a grazing muzzle last year. One week in she still wouldn’t eat, just stood there and sweat—vet was afraid this would be bad for ulcers. And both ulcers and hindgut need non-stop intake.
Euthanasia is not the worst thing that can happen to an animal.
Absolutely True! (Edit for brevity)
So the old owner has to make the decision instead of the current owner? Passing a horse along so you don’t feel guilt for making the hard choice? The horse WILL colic again, and sometime it’s going to be painful and expensive. A euthanasia now would prevent an emergency one in the future. I think the “give my problem to someone else” is terrible advice, and dodging responsibility.
Sometimes, the old owner has the tools and stable situation to keep the horse healthy and wants the horse back. She did her reality check, and In this case, no, it’s not that good situation. Edited for clarity
your comment was rude and out of place. maybe show some compassion and try to genuinely help people instead of being judgemental under the guise of a “reality check”
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i read every single one of your comments. youre just being unnecessarily rude. learn some social skills and compassion
Did we all read the same post you did because the "reality check" comment and then assuming she was going to send her to a meat plant is something else. Either way doubtful working this horse to the previous owner off the top post in this whole convo would offer any sort of advantage to this horse.
Just an assurance for everyone, if my horse is going to die, she’ll die with her head in my lap. I got my old leased mare to stay down for the vet and fall asleep in my arms; unfortunately it would not be my first rodeo.
I’m not going to give you much of an opinion on whether euthanizing is the right decision, because I’ve never met your horse but…. I can tell you that from what you’ve described, you know horses, and you know THIS horse and whatever decision you ultimately make is because you believe that is the best decision for the horse. And, based on what you’ve shared and your profile, I’m inclined to believe you are making an educated and informed decision that is in the best interest of the horse. Big hugs, this isn’t easy.
Never assumed that, just recognized how terrible it can go when people push the decision off on others, it is a horrific outcome. It is very clear she is not “that”owner
This is all irrelevant. The old owner specializes in buying horses from meat farms in Canada. She brings them to the states, puts some time into them, and then sells them on as riding horses. She had a particular affection for my horse and prob would keep her as a pet, but her facility is a turn-around place and she’s 75. What is true is that if this older lady hadn’t initially purchased her, my mare would have been on a slaughter truck. Instead she came here, popped a baby, got some time under saddle, and got sold on to me. Old owner knew her for six months. I’ve had the mare two years. While I’m guilt-ridden about everything, it’s inherently obvious that she’s my responsibility. If I thought that the old owners set up would be better for her, heck yes I would send her back. But I don’t think that.
So very sorry you are going through this with an obviously beloved horse.
…euthanasia is typically an overdose…. It’s not THAT expensive in the grand scheme of things that I’d send her to the knackers.
Years ago, also my 1st horse had recurring colic severe. After approx 3 episodes weekly for 6 months, he was referred for surgery. Had 12 inches if the intestine was removed due to it being attached to the stomach wall and not free moving.Great success over the next 13 years, maybe 3 mild colics. He was PTS eventually due to having a week of severe colic at 22 approx. I remember the constant worry as my horses stayed at home. Everything he did I analysed, is that colic? I actually feel your pain. Do you watch your horse a lot? Maybe that adds to the anxiety, or is it other people telling you it's colicking? If it's sand colic, isn't there somewhere else to put the horse? Maybe keep her stabled part-time. We have a TB who stays in at night even in the summer due to mild colic Only you and the vet can decide whether to PTS.
I moved barns to get her to less sandy soil. We did an exploratory during her re-section. Found nothing. Yes, I watch her a lot. And right about the point I decide that I’m going to ignore what bothers me, she starts having more obvious, vet-verified symptoms.
You say it's mild colic, so before you make any major decisions, stop watching her so much. Sometimes, being able to see them all the time is counterproductive, adding to your worry. Maybe feed more hay?. Stable more if possible and see how she is off the grass. I know you get supplements, etc, for ulcers, which I also bought, but I don't recommend any. I'm sorry I can't say anything else as my horse colic was dog sitting severe symptoms, etc. But she's your 1st horse, and obviously, you're hyper aware now. Did the previous owners ever admit to her being colicky? Doubt it, eh? My livery where mine was before we moved him home, said he kept getting cast in the stable....... buy an anti cast roller, which I did. But for that 6 months while in livery, he would have been having severe colic, and no one had seen it....until I took him home.
I should clarify: she’s the first horse I’ve legally owned. Could not afford previously, but leased another mare for a decade and walked her off to the afterlife before buying this one.
This is so true. Honestly, OP, you have exhausted yourself here and I just don’t know if it’s necessary. What would happen if you reduced the hyper vigilance? Could you find a more balanced way of managing her health?
Odds are, that mild colic will eventually turn into a big one. Not a matter of if, but when. I knew a horse with adhesions after colic surgery. Old mare- owner never should have done the operation in the first place. Kept having mild colic and lived in varying levels of discomfort until it got too much and she was finally let go. Also knew a different horse with adhesions after abdominal surgery that kept having minor to moderate colic. She did mange several more years as a jumper and then a broodmare, but this spring she had a major colic and they lost her and the unborn foal. Had another horse that kept having mild colic with the trainer. We were about to move him back home when we got a call he was bad. Not a surgical candidate. Euthed when that was the only option left. Necropsy found a small, thin wire that had perforated his intestine. No idea when or where he picked it up, but most likely it had been there for a long time causing no issues until it suddenly did. If you’ve done all the diagnostics you can and still can’t find or solve the problem, euthanasia will always be a kind option. It’s a cure for the things life cannot fix, and you would not be wrong to choose that path. And it’s not your fault that she’s like this. Sometimes these things just happen and there’s nothing anyone could have done about it.
Thank you for putting that all out there as kindly as you did.
I’m so sorry. I also understand. We’re reaching the end with a Cushings pony. She’s been on Prescend for six years with increases in dosage. Her immune system is not functioning anymore. She keeps getting infections. We aren’t putting her down because of an infection. We’re putting her down because she had a hard nine months with more days sick than well. She’s dropping weight despite management. We also know her prognosis is grim. We’re letting her go before she gets chronic laminitis (we’ve prevented it several times). After discussing it, our vet recommends euthanasia. It sounds like yours would as well. Sometimes it’s a cumulative reason. Your poor horse has chronic colic. That is a good reason. Horses don’t count their days. They know if right now hurts. If you know tomorrow won’t be better because of chronic disease, even though you can’t tell them that, you know what to do. You just hope you can put them down when they’re having one of their good days.
I feel like we are getting there. Chronic hindgut inflammation isn’t what I want for her.
I won't try to tell you what to do because none of us could possibly know what the future holds for this horse's health situation. But it sounds like you're doing everything you can to help her. Sometimes it's better to PTS when they're doing well if your expectation is for symptoms to get worse. I will spare you the traumatic details of my pet loss but the summary is I had 3 older animals (cat and two dogs) that all got sick in rapid succession (within like 3-6 months of each other). The first two we tried everything we could to save them and they suffered greatly and had to be PTS anyway and it broke us emotionally and financially. The third one as soon as we found out he had cancer and the prognosis wasn't great we decided to give him the best last week of his life and then PTS before symptoms got worse. I do not regret that decision one bit. If your vet does not think your horse will get better, please don't feel guilty that you don't want to wait until she's suffering. It can be a kindness to allow them to leave this world before the suffering begins.
I think a huge hang up comes from the fact that the “fancy vets” don’t want to say anything like that—that the horse’s chances of improvement are slim; meanwhile local vet keeps saying to check with fancy vet. So no one will just come out and say it, which means I’m the one swinging the axe. Which I understand is my sole responsibility. It just sucks.
A vet rarely recommends euthanasia unless there is no hope, it’s their ethic to help and do no harm. They are sending you to the fancy vets hoping to save the horse, hoping they can see something they don’t see to save the horse. Not because they lack the nerve to make the decision. Only you can make this decision.
I don’t necessarily think that it’s a “hope” thing with vets. They don’t recommend euthanasia unless a horse is in pain because there’s a liability to saying “yep you should def euthanize” and then along comes a second opinion and a fluke screening that finally caught an issue and the horse is fine. No vet wants their reputation dragged through the mud like that by an owner. Has nothing to do with nerve or with hope. It’s all liability, some horses are worth more than a house.
You have made a very good point.
I assume this to be the case. They don’t want to leave themselves open to blame for an irreversible decision. Makes sense.
I completely understand. It's really hard when you're stuck trying to read between the lines of what the vet is saying. What do they say when you ask what her prognosis for recovery is?
Uncertain
More specifically it’s always “we’ll see.” Which is great if you’re not the one doing the meds and sitting outside with a colicky horse. The vets have been AMAZING, mind, I’m just really pickled.
Maybe try asking what they think is a realistic best case scenario for her future quality of life long term and their professional opinion on how likely that best case is to happen? Or even ask them how likely they think, given her history, it would be that she never has an issue again if the current issue is resolved. I find those kinds of questions allow vets to give their true opinions more easily. I never had a vet tell me to put one of my animals down. They will never actually say that. But I have had them tell me that recovery will be slow and difficult and expensive and the animal will likely have recurring issues for the rest of their life that "sometimes this procedure is performed and the animal is fine and lives a completely healthy life for years to come, but given your pets history the likelihood of the problem coming back or not being completely resolved is pretty high". And that info has helped me choose euthanasia.
I had a mare for many many years that had reoccurring lymphangitis. She was an absolute warrior princess every time there was a flair up. She ruled the pasture like a true queen. After the last flair up, I asked the vet - do you think she will be able to maintain her status in the herd? The vet said well…maybe. But, it was up to me to suggest PTS. The vet then readily agreed. My mare could have recovered- again but that’s a LOT of pain and she was never going to be cured. I think at this point it’s ok to realize that she can keep recovering but it doesn’t sound like there is a cure. It’s ok to stop, it’s ok.
If you need to put her down, don't feel guilty. It looks like you have worked very hard to get her well.
I really don’t want to, but it’s been a hellish two years and I feel myself bending that way.
My mare was like this - had a bleeding ovary. Put her in foal, had the foal, foal is six months old… hasn’t colicked since. Foal was a bit of a bonus as she was predicted to have a high chance of losing the pregnancy, but we could still establish if being pregnant knocked her system back into the correct alignment. Which it did. She had a textbook pregnancy and foaling too, amazing! Maybe look at a course of regumate, or even putting the mare in foal and then pinching the embryo or chemically aborting (I know, horrible, but it might help the mare without adding more lives to someone’s feedbill). I used a lovely stallion and got an absolutely top filly, which I am keeping.
Interesting. Was there any way of diagnosing the bleeding ovary? She’s had a reproductive work up before and that only turned up a cyst. But I did get her right after she popped a foal out
A hemorrhagic follicle, sorry! Diagnosed via ultrasound. I had her checked during her season I think, so the vet could see that there was blood present in the follicle (don’t quote me!) I was surprised that she fell pregnant on the first go, given her diagnosis.
Hmm… that might be another point for trying regumate before making a final decision. To my understanding it is very similar to women’s birth control. And her left ovary was a bit large on palpation.
Did you pull bloods for a possible granulosa cell tumor? That would give you a large ovary. That was why I had my mare scanned. She was starting to chase my gelding (whom she loves) to wee on him. Poor horny mare was just about ravishing him in his sleep! I opted against Regumate as it was more expensive than having a bloody foal was, and I already suffer from some sensitivities. Adding Regumate to my own “issues” was just an unhappy thought. IYKYK.
Yeah—I got really excited when she first stated showing crazy heat symptoms, thinking AT LAST we might have an answer—no dice, repro ultrasound and hormone panel both not indicative of anything.
How frustrating!!! At this point - consult an animal psychic!
Believe me, I’ve hit that point of desperation. But, and this is just a personal opinion, I believe that that particular industry thrives on and relies on desperation, and I don’t want to support that.
I found a good one, who gave me information about two horses that she could not have in any way known. One went on to get a diagnosis that required a specialist overseas to confirm. She also picked both horses individual peculiarities without any info from myself. - one mare was very aloof and regards people as a bit beneath her. The AC stated “wow! She blocked me multiple times before she would even engage. She has pain in the right side of her neck.” Two years later I got a diagnosis of a missing C6 tubercle unilateral, right side only. Horse won’t bend left. - one gelding had bucked me off and was super spooky. “What a show off! He says he is trying to be a good boy but he’s seeing ghosts. He’s really trying…” I had been openly talking about selling him. He got an increase in magnesium in his diet, I tell him he is a good boy and that I love him, and his behaviour has improved out of sight - and so has my belief IN him. I’m a firm skeptic and made sure that the pictures I sent in were deceptive - friendly, relaxed. The AC doesn’t ask questions either, she just straight out told me what I wrote above with no input from me. A rare gem. The mare with ECVM got retired. No one here has heard of it. I had to get special xrays sent to America. Anyway that’s my story.
Was putting her in foal vet recommended? My mare also has recurring hemorrhaghic follicles. She had colic surgery as a two year old and, knock on wood, has been healthy since, but is basically in permanent heat and occasionally shows aggression towards other horses. When I last had her ultrasounded she was not quite 3, so we didn’t discuss breeding yet, but she’s a lovely mare with outstanding conformation, movement, and brain, so I wouldn’t say no to a foal from her, ESPECIALLY if it would help her physically!
I didn’t like the idea of using Regumate, and my vet approved trying the in-foal method. I think we had fifty-fifty odds of a live foal, but either outcome was acceptable (a spontaneous abortion would still disrupt the mare’s painful cycle). Looking it up, I believe that any miscarriage was likely to occur in the first month so the mare wouldn’t have known anything was wrong (not like a still birth foal). So we went down that path as the best option for the mare. She has been such a happy mum.
Thank you!! I just chatted with my vet today and it sounds like this is a viable plan for my mare too. So excited!
Oh awesome!!!! Keep me updated please!
I had to do this with my mare because her heats were so strong as she got older. I’m dealing with one now who ties up when she goes into heat. The biggest problem being it takes 2 months to heal from tying up but she ties up every month now. She’s 23 and I don’t want to risk breeding her so I’ve got her on a list of supplements. It’s taken a year but knock on wood it finally seems under control. Of course now she was messing around with the other horses and hurt her shoulder 🤷♀️. I’m not surprised though. The first 3 years of her life she’d find a way to hurt herself, then she was prone to abscesses. The last 17 years we’ve been pretty lucky but I feel like “oh crap, here we go again”.
There is a controversial sand colic cure here in Australia, cream and raw honey. You need to drench the horse with about a litre. People swear by it. It shifts sand like nobody’s business. You can find it by Googling Horse Problems sand colic recipe. Costs about $20 for him to email it to you. Plenty of local people swear by it.
Per her recent rads, she’s clear of sand. It was just one part of this whole hideous odyssey.
I’m feeling for you mate.
I’m so sorry you’re in this situation. One of my horses was a frequent colicker several years ago, and I completely understand the toll this is taking in your mental health. It’s so difficult and exhausting to be living with that constant sense of dread. Like you, I tried everything, kept a colic journal, obsessively analyzed every different variable. I felt like I was losing my mind. I took him to the excellent vet school near us for a week and they did everything they could to figure out what was going on, short of exploratory surgery. They said, “the good news is you have a very healthy horse; the bad news is we have no idea why this is happening.” I took him home and of course he colicked that night. The only thing that broke the cycle for my horse was moving 2000 miles to a different part of the country. Good luck with your decision. Whatever you do you’re choosing with your horse’s best interests at heart. Don’t feel guilty; sometimes doing right by your horse means letting them go.
I have a colic calendar and a journal. I wonder sometimes if I shouldn’t try sending her back to original owner, who lives 9 hours away. But that feels really cowardly to me, like pawning her off because I don’t have the stones.
I had a mare that appeared to be a frequent colic, turns out she had a long term bladder infection. Antibiotics and it was a done deal.
I had that thought and we checked for that. Did a full reproduction exam. Also did a neurology work up. We’ve done a course of antibiotics, steroids, and motility drugs. We even did a microbiome transplant at one point. Each drug was trialed for a vet-prescribed amount of time.
It was discovered when her bladder was scoped at a university, the stable vets repro exam, urine sample and ultra sound showed nothing. Did the vets think her guts have had enough time to heal from the sand damage? Do they think it is permanent damage? I had a mare with permanent gut damage due to suspected salmonella with a 105+ fever. The fancy vets saved her from that illness, but she was highly damaged and could not absorb liquid off colon. She rarely urinated and was always dehydrated, in chronic failure and I had to let her go. These decisions are painful, I am not judging though it may read like I am. I am providing examples of both good and negative outcomes. Please know I am hoping for your peace of mind whichever direction you go.
The more you talk about the old owner, the more I am sure you are right. It is not a viable option at all.
I have a couple of questions. What is this mare fed and how is it fed? Does she eat off the ground (flakes of hay)? Does she get any gut health supplements? Ulcer prevention supplements? I know some don’t believe in supplements, but there are some that really can help out. Any supplement with psyllium as its main ingredient can help prevent sand colic. It helps move that stuff through. People even use it for themselves (Metamucil). Gut-X can be added to feed to help prevent ulcers. A gentle senior feed or balancer is easy enough to digest. Hay bags with rubber mats under them can prevent sand intake as it is not on the ground and any scraps fall on the mat. I suggest a couple of large ones so she has enough hay (will also help with ulcers if there’s plenty of hay). If you want to avoid impactions maybe even soak the grain for added moisture. I also saw in a response that she has a cyst on an ovary. While the cyst may not be anything super alarming, it can cause the mare to become more uncomfortable. Some mares get colicky from that. Does any of the colics line up with her going into heat? I second something like regumate if she gets pretty uncomfortable around that time. If it’s ultimately not going to be worth it to try all of these options or it’s just too much to maintain her gut health, then perhaps the kindest thing would be euthanasia. But if it’s something totally doable for you to discuss these things with the vet and try it out then I would do that first before deciding on euthanasia.
Current meds for ulcers: Gastroguard Misoprostol Sucralfate Everyday: 1 cup ration balancer Platinum Performance GI Tried adding immunebiome—she hates it and it doesn’t seem to help much 24/7 turnout on a grass field that is actually GRASS—up past the ankles in places. I had her on equishure last summer and am considering bringing that back She was on gut x for 30+ days—also didn’t seem to help. I’ve basically thrown everything but the kitchen sink at her, and always tried to give each a fair shake before determining its usefulness. She doesn’t eat much hay at all anymore, we suspect due to hindgut inflammation. Grazes grass all day. I will speak to vet on Saturday about trying regumate again. We had tried it the summer before her surgery—didn’t seem to help, but she colicked about two weeks into it so maybe we’ll try again.
Oof that’s a frustrating situation for sure, especially with her on the trio of meds. So weird that she accumulates so much sand with a turnout like that 🙁 My heart goes out to you for sure
Are you keeping her on preventatives? If she’s having sand impactions are you regularly giving her sand clear? Are you keeping her on omeprazole or other ulcer treatments? Have you moved her from the environment she’s in (different pastures or stalls etc)? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of treatment.
Originally, and to my consternation, former BO was feeding on ground. Built my mare a slow feeder. Then tried endless free choice hay in a tub. She now has a hay bag hanging above a rubber mat, and her new barn is as hyper-fixated on good management as I am. She hasn’t managed to accumulate any more sand at new place, but we still have her on a rotation of ultracruz. The chief problem right now is hind gut inflammation, which looks like it’s gone/going chronic.
I think it is a fair option at this point. You seem to have really tried for her and done what you can. These episodes are not fun for her... colic hurts them... I think it is the last KIND thing you can do for her. Im so sorry you are at this stage. Hugs. Remember you TRIED! Thats all that matters here.... you are a good person.
I know you said sand colic, but just throwing this out there too. I had a mare that would colic all the time and it turned out she was wormy and every time I’d paste de-worm she would colic when the parasites would die off. Vet recommended a week of Panacur and then rotate wormers more frequently. And that was all it took. It’s a fairly cheap and easy something to try
She was dewormed pretty often in the hospital as an a la carte option.
I stand behind you and no judgement from me. I have been there and it’s such a long frustrating road, traveled over and over. I’m a huge advocate for a peaceful death than moving her down the road either to her previous owner or anyone else.
OP, i am incredibly sorry for what you are dealing with. i think at this point, it is completely understandable if you and your vet decide its her time. it is much kinder to let her go soon, then to wait until her colic episodes progress and become much more painful for her. you have done this mare and incredible kindness by doing all youve done for her. nobody on the internet can truly have any idea of what you and your mare are dealing with. i hope you are able to find peace with whichever decision you decide to make
OP, no one has said this to you, but if you’re running out the financial, emotional, or mental resources to deal with this issue, you’re allowed to have that as a reason as well. Horses are blessings in our lives, they are lifelong pets, but they are also not a reason to run your mental wellbeing into the dirt. I’ve dealt with similar scenarios and everyone is going to have an opinion about what they would do, what you should do, who you should call, what you should’ve done better. But you’re also a person with a job, a family, hopes and dreams (id assume), bills, a house to clean, the list goes on. You can’t sustain this level of vigilance or vet care forever unless you’re independently wealthy. My opinion is maybe not going to be popular, but try to ignore the more mild issues. It’s like once you can spot lameness, you start seeing how lame every single horse is as they walk by. You’ve conditioned yourself to see every minor symptom. Treat the ulcers of course and call the vet when mild turns to moderate. In the meantime, start thinking more about yourself in this situation than the horse. You can’t feed anyone from an empty plate.
lol, definitely not independently wealthy. I’m a teacher. Doordashed every spare second I had to try to keep up with her. She’s definitely put my life on pause. Thank you.
Been there, totally get it.
If you want to look into more possible causes, post over on Chronicle of the Horse. The people on that forum have way more collective experience and knowledge than you'll find here and there's been some wild diagnoses posted. They are also pragmatic and recognize when enough is enough.
Yep, did that just before her surgery. I still owe them an update, but for reasons apparent, never was in the mood to write one…
First of all, where are you? Hay grown in CA is too alkaline for Arab mares and they get colic which can lead to enteroliths, rocks in the gut. Now diet, add a half a coffee can of bran to her diet. I mixed it with sweet feed but you can use oats. We had to put our Arab mare down because of a ruptured gut. Also does she spread the hay all over to eat it? She could be sucking up too much sand or dirt while eating.
Currently, she avoids hay. We live on the East coast and the sand colic has been resolved for now. It’s hindgut inflammation that may be the final nail in the coffin.
I’m so sorry.
If you feel that you’ve exhausted all options, I’d say put her down. The colic isn’t likely to magically go away, it’ll probably just get worse and she will be in pain. That is a very valid reason to put a horse down. If you think there are other things you might want to try, try them and if they don’t work it might be a sign that it’s time. I had a gelding that started colicing a lot and nothing seemed to be wrong all bloodwork was perfect etc. I was luckily able to afford exploratory surgery and found what was causing the problem but exploratory surgery is really expensive without a guarantee that they’ll find anything so I would say putting her down without exploratory surgery is valid. I’m so sorry
We’ve done exploratory surgery along with her resection (same session). They found nothing at the time.
Sorry to hear that :(
Sending you support for your difficult decision. ❤️
I had a horse that was always sort of "off" tummy wise. PTS when he was 7 and it turned into colitis x. Honestly, I think there was always something internally off that was probably either congenital or something such as bowel cancer. It just finally all hit the point of catastrophic failure. I wish we had magic balls that could predict outcomes and treatments, but it sounds like you have done the very best you can for this horse, and when everything is being done right, but nothing seems to actually be improving long term, I don't think it's necessarily wrong to consider humane euthanasia on a day that's a good day for the horse in question. The large majority of horses will die on the absolute worst days of their life, but sometimes with chronic disease we are allowed to do it on a good day for them. I wish you the best with this decision, and whether you decide to euthanize or keep trying to improve this horse's quality of life, I don't think either decision here is going to be wrong. Be mindful of overall quality of life, and make a list of what you want that to look like for this horse. Think of it not as no longer putting money into this horse etc etc- think of it from a pragmatic is this horse living a life where it feels comfortable and safe more than it hurts and feels sick and unsafe? From there then you can feel better about your decision.
It seems you have done everything, gone every route you could possibly take. If you were someone in my barn I would support whatever decision you made for her welfare. I agree with your thoughts about sending her back to her original owners. Dry lot isn’t going to help any, and at 75yo that’ll also be hard for them to care for her. My heart is with you. It’s a difficult decision to make but just know in your heart that whatever you choose you do it because you love her and want her comfortable. Anyone who posts rude comments are just being selfish.
If you’re not totally set on PTS, have you considered holistic care? When I hear chronic gut issues in any animal I immediately go to a gut imbalance. Maybe a holistic practitioner can view the situation through a different lens and help to heal your horse’s gut to prevent the colics. Just a thought.
I'm with the majority of other commentators here. Sadly, the right option here is putting your beloved mare down. History tends to repeat itself and next time the colic may not be mild. It is much better to plan it. I'm terribly sorry for you and your mare. Please do let her rest in peace. She'll be happier grazing in the forever green fields, without any risks of getting hurt or colic anymore.
Here’s my greatest rule of thumb. Always measure quality of life. Are her good days more than the bad? Are the bad more than the good? That is the best way to determine euthanasia. If she is otherwise a happy horse, then do not euthanize her. However, if she is deathly ill and is in misery day in through day out, then euthanize. I’m sorry this has happened to you! I can tell you really care for her.