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~~ TAKE RESPONSIBILITY! ~~ |
| One really big issue that we come up against time after time, is the subject of what happens when an owner's horse gets old, unrideable and are past their prime. Ideally, the horse will continue to live a good life, secure and content, getting plenty of tlc, regularly attended by the farrier and dentist, and have a suitable field and stable companions to enjoy in their twilight years. Indeed, this is what happens in many, many cases and it is no less than these animals derserve. Whatever their main purpose was in their active life, be it breeding, competition work, hunting or as a loved and cherished hack, their retirement years can stretch out for a decade or more; a fact that not all owners appreciate when they are in the throes of buying a young horse. Unfortunately, not all horses and ponies can expect a decent retirement from their owners. We list below some of the reasons people regularly cite to EHPPS, and indeed the other equine welfare centres, when trying to offload a horse or pony to a welfare organisation such as ours: |
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| If
you were to ask any Horse Welfare organisation, one or more of the above
statements are heard practically every day. If we even took in a
tenth of these horses, we would be unable to operate for very long.
All of our resources would be spent on looking after horses and ponies
that are not fosterable, and the many new cases of abuse and neglect would
remain beyond our protection. The bottom line here is that when
people buy a horse or pony, they should really give a lot of thought about
what they will do when the animal inevitably becomes aged.
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| An
elderly horse can require more work and expense than a younger, fitter
animal. If the owner's main purpose of having a horse is to ride it,
how will they take to this responsibility once they can no longer ride?
We get our share of requests to act as a retirement home from people in
these situations, and we have to tell them that we are unable to help as
this is not our purpose or the reason we set up EHPPS.
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| There
are a few retirement homes in the UK, some of which are very well run and
some which are not. However, they do not operate as a charity and it
is not cheap to retire a horse in such a home, particularly so if the
owner wants the animal looked after PROPERLY! If it is cheap -
it is questionable if proper and adequate care is actually provided.
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| Worrying,
some owners go down the route of offloading their old horses to a third
party, maybe in answer to an advert in the equine press or suchlike,
possibly even fooling themselves that their animal will end up as a loved
and cherished companion in a good home, but how can they be sure?
The thought of these elderly animals being shipped from pillar to post
makes our blood run cold. Who knows where they end up? Doing
this to an elderly horse or pony is unspeakably heartless and
irresponsible. One of the reasons that many folk choose to loan or
share a horse rather than buy is for this very reason and one that is
completely understandable.
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| If you are thinking of making that life-changing purchase, please think very carefully first. Life sometimes changes in ways we don't always plan for or expect. |
