horse advice needed

[winglessflight]

Hey, I was hoping you guys could offer me some advice, sorry for the very long post.

I have a 25 year old horse that I have had since I was in 8th grade. I was lucky enough to be able to take her to college with me, but am now faced with the decision of what to do with her while in vet school. She is in pretty good health, and looks 10 years younger than she is, with the exception of being partially blind from cataracts (which around me she acts like nothing is different) and now has developed a cough in the past year (possible early heaves).

I am from CT, so have no in state vet school. CT just made a contract with Iowa, which i received, so I would get $20,000 off of tuition my first year, and probably all four, although its not voted in yet. I also liked the school, so my horse aside its a great option. While I would love to trailer her out there with me, and would be willing to if neede, I don't think its in her best interest because its about an 18 hour drive, and the climate is a bit different (colder in the winter, hotter in the summer). My favorite school, which may not be an option since I am not accepted yet, is Florida, which climatewise would not be fair to bring her with me.

So I am left with a few options. I got into Tufts, so I could go there so I would be near my horse, although it would be MUCH more expensive, and was not my favorite school. I also got into Penn, which is a shorter trailer ride than Iowa or Florida, but it would be very costly, and I still wouldn't be able to have her very near me. I could go to Iowa, bring her with me, or go too Iowa or Florida if i get in, and leave her in the northeast. As of right now, I don't know anyone that needs a companion horse, and wouldn't trust a random ad for someone seeking one, because who knows what would happen to her. There are a few retirement places in NY on the internet, which I would be willing to pay for, but again, who knows the quality of care that she would receive. So basically, I don't know what I should do, and I am nervous to accept a school without knowing what I am doing with her.

So basically, I am looking for any advice/suggestions, or if anyone had any experience with a retirement place. I have great schools to choose from, so am very lucky in that respect, I just want to do whats in my horses best interest as well. I don't like the feeling of leaving an animal behind, and want to make sure when I graduate I would be able to get her back/at least visit her if she did find a place she could spend the rest of her life.

Thanks, sorry for the really long post.

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[SillyFilly]

I know a girl who has her horse here - http://www.lastchancefarm.net/ - and says nice things about it! It's in PA.

 

[Ruffian]

I left my horse at a full care boarding facility in Ohio, and my mom goes to the barn almost every day to look after him. This worked best for me because vet school is very time consuming and wouldn't leave much to see my horse anyways. Another option would be to look for houses around vet school with some land where you can keep your horse on the property. That way, it would not be a hassle to see her.
Please be leary of "retirement" ranches for horses. Several years ago, a man in Ohio was arrested for telling people that their horses were going to a retirement ranch where little kids would take care of them when in actuality he was selling them for slaughter. Just wanted you to be aware that scams do exist.
Good luck in deciding what to do!

 

[OSJ]

I'm in a similar situation myself. I have a 24 year old mare and a 12 year old gelding. I brought both horses to college with me, but that was only 5 hours away. I always hated going home on breaks and either staying up at school alone and or going home to see my family and leaving my horses up there. We just built a barn at my house, the horses actually just moved in last week. I'll be going to vet school in the fall and all of the schools I have been accepted to are pretty far away so I'm going to leave them at home for right now and my parents will take care of them. I am a little nervous because my parents are only horses people through me and my gelding had colic surgery last fall so I'm always nervous about him getting sick again. My mare is healthy and looks alot younger than she is, but it still worries me that she is older. I'm most likely going to have a friend board her horse here in exchange for helping my parents out and spending time with my two. I'm honestly thinking I will go home for a weekend every 4-6 weeks just to check on my horses. It would be such a long drive to take them to school with me and I know I would not want to go home and leave them at school over breaks, so unless I end up wanting to stay at school over summers/breaks I think they will be staying at home.
If you plan on moving to school and staying there over summers/breaks, etc then I would think 1 long trailer ride would be okay. If you think you will want to go home often, I think it would be better to pay someone to take care of her and spend time with her and then you go home and visit her as often as possible.

Good luck, I know how hard it is. I feel bad leaving mine, but I'd feel bad taking them too.

 

[Angelo84]

I don't know of any specific ones to point you towards but maybe a therapy horse program? I don't know what their requirements are but if she is quiet and sound at a walk that might work?

 

[lailanni]

I don't know of any specific ones to point you towards but maybe a therapy horse program? I don't know what their requirements are but if she is quiet and sound at a walk that might work?

I've helped out with therapeutic horse riding, the group did take in 'retired' horses and treated them very well. I'm not sure who paid the cost of boarding, but I do know they took great care of them and they got lots of love and attention.

 

[hoodle]

I've helped out with therapeutic horse riding, the group did take in 'retired' horses and treated them very well. I'm not sure who paid the cost of boarding, but I do know they took great care of them and they got lots of love and attention.

I second this! I worked at a great therapeutic riding program in WA state, and all their old retiree horses seemed happy and were routinely doted-upon by everyone.

 

[NittanyKitty]

This retirement facility is literally three miles from my house, and they do a fantastic job! The people there are amazing, the property is beautiful, and they have a great reputation: http://www.ryerss.com/

 

[westpoloplayer]

My thoughts:

Whether or not I would move her would depend on her. What is her temperment like? How is she in the trailer? Has she been moved much in the past (for shows, clinics, trail riding, etc)? In my experience, moving is a stressful thing for horses and can exacerbate ulcers, COPD, make them prone to stress colic and respiratory ailments. I don't know if osteoarthritis is an issue for your girl but all that bracing in the trailer would be an added stress for an aged horse. I would also worry with the vision loss that she may have a difficult time adjusting to a new environment.

I think with regards to vet school, you should pick the best option for YOU and then decide if that will work for her. I wouldn't rule Florida out climate-wise. It can get hot but a lot of places adjust their mangement for that (turnout at night, fans during day, etc).

If you decide to haul her with you, I think you can take her as far as Iowa without a problem but I would limit the number of hours you haul per day and have frequent rest/water breaks. Check out www.horsemotel.com . It is a great resource for horse friendly stopovers and quite popular among the show set. I used it when hauling my 2 horses from the Pacific coast to Colorado last year (approx 20 hr drive). Stayed at a beautiful B&B in Idaho with stalls for the horses and a great guest bedroom in the lady's house. Not only did I get a homecooked breakfast in the morning but I met a bunch of the other overnighters and compared notes on best routes for trailers, etc.

Good luck with whatever you decide. I've heard good things regarding some the of retirement facilities on the East coast so that could be a good option too.

 

[winglessflight]

thanks for the advice.

I had thought of therapeutic riding places, but one I had in mind shut down, and the other only takes new horses under the age of 20. My other concern is she has developed allergies that lead to a cough. It started last winter, lasted until October, had stopped, and just these past few weeks has come back, so unfortunately I am thinking the beginning of heaves. She can go for days without a bad episode, although the dust tends to trigger it. For that reason, going to a new region of the country would be great, as the allergens would be different, although depending on the damage, the trailer ride and adjustment to a new climate could be tough.

As for her temperament, since her eye changes, I can't see a difference (she is used to me), but other people at the barn says she gets a bit nervous in new situations. Despite this however, she always behaves herself, and you can let her loose and she wouldn't go anywhere.

In the past when I have trailered her, she gets nervous and poops a lot (haha), but besides that she does well, and isn't so nervous that she works herself up into a bad frame of mind. I have only trailered her 6 times in the past 8 years, and for no more than 1 1/2 hours.

I think she can definitely make the trip, I just worry that the stress could rock the boat. Despite the cough and blindness, she is in great shape and no one can believe how old she is. Her muscle tone and attitude is amazing for her age, especially considering that while I can ride her, with school and the cough I don't do too much with her. She even still flirts with the boys (the barn owner calls her a hussy ). I don't want to bring her out there and have the stress be so much that she starts a downward spiral.

Thanks for the link westpoloplayer. I don't own a trailer, so would have to pay a shipping company to take her, but its good to be able to see where I can stop with her.

Also, thanks for the two retirement links, I will definitely look into them. It's good to know something has a good reputation, because anyone can call themselves a retirement place.

Its a tough choice, especially since being able to visit her was what got me through the tough times in college.

 

[CurrySpice]

If you're debating about donating to a theraputic riding barn, I would wholeheartedly recommend www.thorncroft.org. I've been there for 8 years as working student, volunteer, coaching a drill team, etc. and it's a wondeful place. If your horse is nice enough and you want him back, you should certainly be able to negotiate a bit with them. The care is fantastic and I would be willing to check in and give you updates if you want. Make sure before you drop him off though, that you tell them if you want him back because they turn over horses every so often.

If you want a retirement farm, I would second Ryerss. Thorncroft sends a lot
of horses there after they're no longer suitable for the farm, and I've heard rave reviews about it.