I had a 33 year old paint until sunday when i found him in the pasture and he couldnt get up, i got him up eventually and he goes cantering as fast as he could (hes to old to go faster than a canter) to the front pen and he couldnt get up again, he made funny noises and would stretch his neck up weird and he keep rolling on his back from side to side until he couldnt, we called the vet and by the time he go there he would get about half way up (his front legs up all the way) And try to stand up and hed fall and hit his head so hard and we had to keep him down because he was hurting himself and he was in so much pain we had him sedated and then put down, i thought it was just old age, but we we went to bury him on monday, when they lifted him up blood ran out his mouth, was this internal bleeding did that kill him? What happened to him? He been fine, een the day before up and happy, he was on a mush diet because of no back teeth, and full pasture all day ( but he usually jus sucked on gras and spit it out bours later) and the place i board himat puts bute in his food for his arthritis and he looked much happier and ran more after that, but hed eat all his food and he was loosing weight so fast, hed act fine but he was so skinny no matter what we did, i brough my tub of weigh gain i had left over from this summer igave him and it helped him then, there was no loading dose just said two cups or up to four depending on weight and exercise or if you just wanted your horse to have a healthy coat or actually gain weight, i put three in to start and planned on putting 2 in each morning after but he died the next night, he was getting expensive purina feed too and he got so skinny, what happened to my old guy? He was just fine and then suddenly he was thrashing around on the ground :( please help
Update:So theres no way the bute or Weight gain did it is there? I feel so bad and i worrythat might have caused it :( also could twin have done this? I moved him somewhere else to board him and his friend because my grandparents didnt like my mustang spooking their cows and they leave twine on the bales, their horses just pick it out and have never had a problem and i didnt notice him eating any, the bale was in a barred thing about and he ate what fell into the tray below. Also he had full access to a harvested corn field to eat anythin left behind but there hasnt been anything out here they will eat for a few months. Would that change anything? (also im really sorry for bad typing, my phones got a bad keyboard) thank you
Also id have the vet tell me but we already buried him :( no one bothered to check we all knew it was over when we saw him, and the vet said theres nothing to do but put him down now :(
Answers & Comments
Verified answer
It was probably colic. Colic is the number one killer of horses.
Older horses are more prone to colic because of their teeth. The teeth stop growing when the horse reaches about twenty five and as you know at 33 the old boy did not have any grinding teeth left.
This means the chance of digestive upset is a lot greater since the food is not ground as fine. It is tough to tell if he was actually swallowing any of the grass he tried to eat. On top of that the gut has had 33 years of abuse and scaring from internal parasites.
If he was loosing weight and had a long coat he could also have had Cushing's Disease. It is really nasty and can come on fairly fast. Cushings is often accompanied by abscesses within the body because it compromises their immune system per my vet (I had a Cushings pony)
The breaking of an abscess could explain the sudden onset of symptoms and the blood but without an necropsy you can not know for sure.
At 33 years he was really getting on in years so do not feel too bad. According to Wiki "the modern domestic horse has a life expectancy of 25 to 30 years..." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horse#Lifespan_and_l...
It sounds like you gave the old boy great care and a good life.
I think your horse just died of old age.
Colic is a very likely explanation, and he may have had a head injury from the fall, but the bottom line is he was really, really old. Stop beating yourself up about it (IT WAS NOT YOUR FAULT), and be proud you lept him alive and well to such a grand old age.
You did the best you knew how in his senior years. They are very tough to keep weight on. Do not blame yourself. Elderly horses must pass on some time. You have to think about what he meant to you when he was alive and start talking about the good memories when you can do so without crying. It really helps heal your grief. The other thing to keep in mind is that you were able to get the vet out in order to cut short any further pain. I have seen people allow a horse to suffer when we knew it was not going to make it and hold off calling the vet until the next day. You and your family did the right thing and were able to bury him also. Thirty three is a good lifespan for a horse. Love who he was and what he was to you.
That's the best thing for you. You may always get misty eyed when you think of him. That's ok. You will have him in your memories forever.
I didn't bother reading that novel.
But I did see the part where you mentioned he went down and thrashed.
He was 33. It was time for him to go.
Sorry, but these things happen.
First off, I'm so so sooo sorry to hear that! Losing a pet can be just as hard as losing a human buddy. :(
But like others have said, it sounds like he had colic or twisted gut.
Bless you.
I agree with others--colic. Few teeth means he may have swallowed something he should not have, and rolled to try to correct the pain, which only made it worse. Colic is the number one killer of horses, or so I have heard.
That's all just a guess. Old age brings several problems, and it's sometimes a toss-up as to which of several competing conditions gets you first. Will my heart give out? My grandfather had his first heart attack when he was two thirds my age. Will my kidneys fail? Will I lose my balance and fall from a horse or down the stairs?
I own several old horses, and it's kind of fun to go running down the driveway with a geriatric pony in hand, we two old geezers trotting along. Right now I'm planning for me and my horses to live forever, or die in the attempt.
My guess is boredom. Either that or old age.
Could have been lots of things only the vet would be able to tell you, but 33 is pretty old for a horse.
I'm very sorry to hear about your horse. I can't tell you why he died but I wanted to let you know that it isn't unusual for fluids (blood and other body fluids) to leak from the mouth and back end of an animal that has died. My daughter works at a pet cemetery and she said it's something they see a lot, and that it isn't necessarily related to the cause of death.
I hope you find the answers you're looking for. Talk to the vet again, he should be to give you an educated opinion at least.
sounds like colic.