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We had something very sad happen here early this year. It's about a horse we'll call Nicholas. He was a big, beautiful dark
bay. His owner was a very kind woman who bought him even though he was mildly lame because she thought she could help him.
She'd been boarding Nicholas with us about two years when she died of cancer.
The woman's widowed husband moved out of state, but for the next six years, he continued to support Nicholas; he wanted
the horse cared for as his wife would have.
Last fall, Nicholas' lameness, thought to be due to arthritis in both front feet, started getting noticeably worse. Nothing
the veterinarians prescribed or did helped.
I would periodically email the husband to keep him updated. In January, when I didn't get a reply, I assumed the husband
was traveling as he did sometimes and would get back to me when he got home. Instead, I discovered I'd been writing to a dead
man. He had passed away suddenly, which I learned when a grown daughter from his first marriage contacted us. She wanted
to know what arrangements her father had for Nicholas; she also said her father hadn't left a recent will nor provisions
for the horse.
Unrealistic expectations
The daughter, not a horse person, wanted to know if we could find someone to take Nicholas and, if not, she wanted to place
him at a sanctuary or rescue.
I explained that it was highly unlikely we'd find someone to take and support a 20-year-old, severely lame horse. I also
explained Nicholas' vulnerability; that if he got into the wrong hands, a lame horse, and especially one "in good flesh,"
could very well end up with the more than 100,000 American horses being transported for a brutal slaughter in Canada or Mexico,
which is without question a fate worse than death.
I explained that most horse rescues and sanctuaries are already overburdened and that even if a place could be found,
there was a good chance that Nicholas, a horse that could no longer defend himself, would end up in a field with a lot of
other horses or that he just wouldn't get the individualized care that he needed. I offered to find a smaller, less expensive
farm where I could check on him and also brought up the unpleasant topic of euthanasia, a reasonable option considering Nicholas'
deteriorating quality of life, his vulnerability and his loss of owners.
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Ultimately, a veterinarian at a local
horse hospital who examined Nicholas, the daughter and we decided that euthanasia was the kindest option.
This
episode underscores the importance of having a plan for your horse if you die.
Leaving a horse to relatives,
even a healthy, sound horse, may not be the best solution, especially if they aren't horse people and even if they can
provide for the horse. They may not know enough to tell if the horse is getting proper care. And it's too easy for someone
to come along and tell naive relatives that they'll give the horse a home, only to take the horse to auction where it
could be bought by a kill buyer or end up in a bad home.
So, if you haven't already, make provisions for
your horse. It might be a will or a trust (there are attorneys who specialize in animal trusts), executed by a horse-wise
person with integrity. If your horse is healthy and sound, you might leave your horse to a trusted person who would like
to have the horse as his or her own, or one who would find the horse a new home with the standard of care you'd want.
If you can't afford a private attorney, you can get a will that includes provisions for an animal trust from
LegalZoom.com for about $70; LegalZoom.com also has a document called a "Pet Protection Agreement" that's recognized
in many states. Other other online legal services probably have similar services. Just do it!
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