What to do.....

[ckeeling]

Not sure what to do next and wondering if anyone has any advice...

Basically I bought my first horse 2yrs ago and he has turned out to have Navicular. He had a neurectomy earlier this yr so he can be used as a hack when on Danilon or as a companion. He is in no pain and I have ridden him a lot over the summer and he loves it! He loves going out in his paddock too and is generally fit, well and happy.
Because of his diagnosis meaning I no longer had a horse to school/jump etc I bought a 2nd horse. Unfortunately I am struggling with 2 horses and a FT job both money wise and time wise.
I need to make the horrible decision of letting one go and seeing as I cannot use Aflie for anything except hacking/fun rides etc and for the money and time I spend I cannot warrant it.

Does anybody know of any sites I could maybe place an ad - not the usual horsemart but something specific - for him where people may be looking for a companion or a happy hacker? Or has anyone else been in a horrible situation of having to let a horse go? If I can't find him a nice home where I can also stay in touch then I might be faced with an even worse decision :(

[OwnedbyChanter]

I don't know about adverts and I don't know where you live but Bransby home of rest in Lincoln (they have a website) could be an idea. I don't know what they charge but I got my horse from there but more importantly the place is amazing. It is in the country and they horses are kept in big herds the place is clean and lovely.

Might be worth a phone call.

[Yann]

If both horses are fit and rideable, why not look for a sharer or a loaner instead? Selling is an irreversible step, you have no control over what happens to them afterwards, and I'd personally think long and hard before putting a navicular horse in that position. You hear so many stories and there are so many unscrupulous people out there. The charities are overwhelmed at the moment with so many people struggling in the recession, surely there's a better option?

[bluntcrayon]

Have you considered looking for a sharer? There will be people who would be happy just to ride Alfie out on hacks a few times a week, and help care for him. The going rate seems to be about £15-25 a week, not sure if this would be enough to help with your costs but it's worth considering as he's still your horse and you get the final say over his care and ultimately his wellbeing.

[diplomaticandtactful]

You simply won't get a charity to take them in at the moment, a leading uk charity told me this week when i enquired:-

"We are unable to accept non ridden companions or equines with permanent conditions such as arthritis, laminitis, navicular and ringbone under our rehabilitation scheme".

However they did go on to say

"If they are healthy happy youngsters, then we would have to decline them"

Which makes you wonder what they would take in even if they had space.

I would try to get a sharer and to be honest if I have to part with one, then I would part with the sound one, as it has a better chance of a decent life.

If you sell the one with navicular, there is every chance you will sell him cheap, someone will bute him to the eyeballs and sell him as completely sound and make a huge profit on him, with no concern for what happens to him after that once they have the £50s in their pocket. There are very very nice folks like that out there who are totally plausible - i have seen a horse that was sold for non lateral work only (ex dressage horse) and they sold him as fully sound to an inexperienced person who wanted a dressage schoolmaster (horse was completely lame within 3 weeks and his ex owners were horrified about what had happened to him as he had been sold for peanuts given his issues).

If you can't find a truly guaranteed home for a horse with navicular, it would be kinder to have him pts as he is such a risk to sell on.

Please don't be upset with me but this is the harsh reality of the current climate and the prospects for unsound horses.

We have a local sale tomorrow, about 150 of them entered, it is winter cull time, i imagine a high percentage of them will go for live export for meat unless they have a highish reserve on them, in which case they will probably not sell.

[ckeeling]

Thanks for all your replies. It is such a horrible situation to be in and I really can't imagine life without him but I can barely afford to keep both of them going, if I sell the sound one on like you say, diplomaticandtactful, then I am left with a horse that I can only hack out which will leave me with the weekends only because of the lack of light through the winter.
I know that may sound selfish but we spend a lot of money and time on these animals and I want to school and jump and hunt too!

Maybe I'll put an advert out for a sharer first and see if anyone comes back. Otherwise I will have to look for a companion home or hacking home for him but I guess I would need to be vigilant on vetting them and request they stay in touch.

It's so difficult, especially being on the doorstep of winter :(

[Sofi P]

If you dont need the money from sale why not look for a loan companion or hacking home? It's not fail safe of course because there is no stopping some con people but it might help you keep a closer eye on where he ends up. Of course it also means they could send him back at short notice too...

You might as well at least look for a sharer or sale home first, then consider other options if it doesnt work out.

[JustJas]

I would investigate the loan/share route... it has worked for me over the years.

[diplomaticandtactful]

you could also ring round all the charities yourself and see if anyone will take him for loan/rehoming or put him on project horse as a companion/light hack. put up notices in all the tack shops, feed stores, pet stores.

i know what you mean about the cost of keeping them and not being able to use them. my cob mare was retired aged 9 (bought as a 6yo) and i made the decision to keep her whatever, even if it meant no riding as she couldn't be safely loaned out, too risky. she is now 20. i do have another horse on loan who is rideable and i am lucky i can afford to keep them.

at one point, my cob and a tb racehorse i had (light of my life) were signed over to a charity for rehoming as we hit the wall financially and i was so down and worried and could see no way forward, thought we would lose everything, house, pets the lot - my cob then got kicked and broke her splint bone, needed box rest, so she came back home as by then i had seen sense. but i never took my beloved boy back, much as i wanted to, she and he didn't get on, and i thought it was better for him to have a new start. have regretted it ever since, and he died three years later, found dead in field. he was quite the most beautiful horse i have ever seen in my life, 17hh of perfection though not the soundest fellow - my vet cringed when i brought him home from the races as a 'free horse' as he was so knackered and so stiff.

it's a vile decision to make.

[Trewsers]

Agree with lots of the replies, particularly about being careful selling him on - you get some honest buyers out there and some bloomin awful ones. Also, if the new owners don't want to keep in touch, you can't make them! Sorry to sound negative, but I'd agree with the others about seeing if you can find a sharer / loaner? Also, sounds to me like the sound horse would be better sold on - it would have more chance of getting a decent home. Just my opinion - don't want to offend.

[eventerbabe]

You could try the loaning route. I was offered an ex-riding school mare when looking for a horse a few years ago. She had various issues meaning she was only suitable as a light hack and her owner had wisely avoided the classifieds and only advertised her through word of mouth to people she had personally vetted and knew. I wouldn't advertise such a horse to the general market, you never know who will take him and it is not uncommon for companion loans to be buted up and sold on as riding horses without the owners knowledge. That just doesn't bear thinking about.