Conference noted::equitation

    don't know...
    
    i guess if it's the best for the horse i would kill/let it kill....
    
    but i don't know of anybody who caries the necessary "equipment"
    
    anyway if the horse has to suffer too much and it doesn't look like
    
    it can be healed again the horse should be killed. 

    It may sound cruel but I  believe the best policy would be to wait
    until a vet arrives, unless you are very confident in your own vetinary
    skills.  Many times injuries look much worse than they actually are. 
    If you were to carry something like Rompun and gave it you may mask
    some symptoms that are important to know about.  In addition to the
    fact that it takes some skill to give an I.V. injection especially to a
    horse who is thrashing.  In any case I would not suggest that you carry
    a handgun for any reason since doing so could get you in lots of
    trouble regardless of how humanitarian the reason.  In Massachusetts
    for example, you would get a mandatory sentence of one year in prison. 
    No questions asked, no parole, no suspended sentence, etc.  The judge
    has no role except to determine guilt which is pretty easy to do when
    you are standing there with a smoking gun and a dead horse.  Other
    states may have similar laws.  By the way if you were to euthanize a
    horse it would take about 100cc of HydroCloride per animal.  Thats lots
    of material to carry around for two horses (you could be arrested for
    possessing the injection apparatus without a prescription also).
    
    It would be best to carry the number of a competent vet when traveling
    locally, and drive "defensively".
    
    Bob
    

    My pony was hit by a car and had to be destroyed by the Police before
    the MSPCA/Vet could get to our house.  The Police Dept. was not
    thrilled with having to destroy the horse, especially with the close
    proximity to the house.
    
    There is a book out titled "How to Be Your Own Veterinarian (Sometimes)
    with a whole chapter dedicated to euthanasia.  They even have a
    diagram on how to correctly destroy your animal with a gun.  Of
    course the circumstances are for riding in the wilderness or hunting
    miles and miles away.                    
    
    In Mass.  you have to have a permit to carry a gun, I don't know
    the specifics on how you can use it.
    
    
    Something I would rather not think about.
    
    kj

    Another thing to consider is that if your horse is in the care of
    someone else, the vet may require the OWNERS permission to put the 
    horse down, not just the caretaker's. For this reason we have 
    written up documents which allow the people who board our horses
    'power of attorney' to authorize and supervise any medical treatment
    they deem necessary, including euthanasia. 

    The reason we did this is because we heard of someone whose barn
    burned and most of the animals were severely injured. The person 
    taking care of the animals did not have legal authority to have 
    the injured animals euthanized, and so for some of the horses 
    they had to wait nearly 24 hours before the legal owners could 
    be located to authorize the treatment.

    At a previous barn, a horse was sold to someone who was extremely
    inexperienced. Well, the owner (without riding lessons or riding in the
    ring first) went out on trail. The horse spooked, the rider fell off,
    and the horse ran back to the barn. Unfortunately, the horse had to
    cross Rt 122 in Grafton (Mass.) where the speeds are between 40 - 60
    mph.
    The horse was hit by a car. Needless to say the car was demolished and
    the horse - well, you can imagine. Sadly to say, the horse was not
    killed by the accident (it would have been a blessing). Instead it was
    still alive when it was dragged from under the car - both front legs 
    broken. 
    When the policeman arrived, he refused to shoot the horse. So the
    stable owner took the policeman's gun and shot, what used to be his
    horse, the horse. Louie didn't get into any trouble (at least that I
    know of) from using the policeman's gun.
    
    It's difficult to say what you would do when you see an animal in pain.
    Especially your baby. I don't know what I would do if Jasper was 
    injured where I knew there was no hope. I was at the accident and it
    was very evident that this horse had to be put down.
    
    One thing someone mentioned is keeping a having crowbar in the truck.
    It may sound horrible I don't know if I could hit my horse, but at
    least the horse would be out of pain.
    
    				Cindy
    
    

    If you hit your horse with the crowbar, the horse would only be out of
    pain if you hit the right spot with enough force.  Otherwise you would
    just be adding to the pain.  I doubt very much that any of us has
    experience in slaughterhouse techniques.  And from what I understand,
    experienced slaughterers don't necessarily kill them with the first blow.
    
    Mary 

    In case of such an accident, I think I would prefer to wait for a vet.
    
    I witnessed two horses collide last fall (really horrible) and we all
    though the people were fools to try to save them.  This was a real
    pitiful situation, and I was in tears to think someone would subject
    their horse to the additional tramua of being moved. 
    
    Neither horse suffered as much as we originally thought, and both have 
    recovered nicely (although they'll never do the serious competing anymore).
    

    
    A trainer I used to ride with carries a handgun in his briefcase.  He
    does have a license for it.  He does have to check it when he flies to
    horse shows, however. 
    
    It is real disturbing to think of having to use it.  However, I was a
    witness to a wreck in which some horses were killed outright, and
    others where broken up really badly and ended up being destroyed.  The
    policeman on the scene refused to shoot one horse which was alive
    but was gutted.  He died on his own after thrashing around for 15
    minutes.  It would have been far kinder to shoot him.

    I believe that a responsible horse owner should be ready to put his own
    horse down if you are in one of the situations where the horse is
    obviously badly hurt and suffering.  A gun is probably the best way to
    do it.  This is a good example where states like the state of
    Massachusetts have really interferred with the rights of the law
    abiding citizen.  I live in New Hampshire and am glad to have guns for
    such emergencies, even though I hope I will not be in such situations.
    
    Although 3 years ago, my husband decided to put our 20 yr old horse
    down himself.  The horse had foundered and was in a lot of pain and
    also had a number of other old age problems (such that he would have
    refoundered in the future).  In coordinating the backhoe and the vet,
    the backhoe got the hole dug long before the vet was supposed to come,
    so my husband decided to do it himself.  He read one of my vet books
    several times to know exactly where to shoot, and luckily put the horse
    down with one shot.  Also luckily, I was in work.
    
    These are not happy things to think about, but they are things that any
    horse owner should consider, especially if you have your own barn.
    
    Diana