| Whether your horse is your pet, best friend, working | | | | well-placed kick, or the time you were nearly killed on |
| horse, show horse, or money maker it is quite probable | | | | the road because said animal decided it was time to |
| when the time comes you will have to make the | | | | run away with you regardless of the traffic situation. |
| decision to end that precious life. It is never easy but is | | | | I have had many horses over the years. I have never |
| part and parcel of being a horse owner. Due to the | | | | been without horses for the past 50 years. Over the |
| horse's size you are usually not afforded much time to | | | | years with all of these horses I had only 4 die of |
| "think on it" and prepare yourself for the | | | | natural causes and of their own accord. My long-time |
| consequences of your decision. | | | | friend, a tri-colored Pinto saddle horse, decided at age |
| Sometimes the decision is a foregone conclusion in | | | | 32 that it was his time and laid down and died. One of |
| that the animal has a broken bone that cannot be | | | | my Standardbred colts, which I had not sold gave in on |
| mended or is very aged and death is to be expected | | | | his own to a fatal heart attack. Two Standardbred |
| at any time. Whatever the circumstances of the | | | | babies died due to intestinal problems while in the |
| situation the fact remains that often we are not | | | | process of being treated with the hope of recovery. |
| prepared for the inevitable need to make the very final | | | | My point is that as a horse owner you have to be |
| decision. | | | | prepared in case you have to make that final fatal |
| How does one cope? Often we think of all of the | | | | decision. Enough of negativity. It is my opinion that |
| good things about our four-legged friend and all of the | | | | without our animals life would be extremely dull and |
| good times that we have shared. Not to sound | | | | unfulfilled. We learn so much from them as long as we |
| negative sometimes it helps if we actually think of | | | | keep an open mind and remember to treat them as |
| some of the "not so good things" about the animal, | | | | we want to be treated, that is, with love and respect. |
| such as, the time you were the recipient of a | | | | |