Why are injured racehorses put down?

RATM

Was just wondering about this. You often hear of racehorses breaking a leg on a jump and afterwards they get put down. I can never understand it but I'm sure there is a reason.

In theory if the stud was offered money for a injured horse (over what the horse is worth to sell to an abattoir) would they sell it ? i.e. is it possible to buy a former racehorse and get them back to health ?

Someone said to me that broken legs in horses don't heal and this is the main reason. I found that hard to believe as it doesn't seem to be the case with other animals but maybe horses have a different and more delicate bone structure ?

irisheddie85

A broken leg in a horse can be fixed but it is a long expensive process as the house can't put any weight on the Leg while it is healing so need to be suspended. And it is unlikely the horse will be suitable for any strenuous exercise after healing so unless it is a beloved pet or worth using as a stud animal it would be completely uneconomical for the owner

Victor

Horses carry most of their weight on their front legs and it seems that it is these that are broken most often - in a jump, it is the front legs that land first. It is impractical to heal them.

Aru

Broken legs in horses can be healed but it depends on the break and the areas involved. Many racehorses have had broken legs cared for.Its a long recovery and an expensive process but some do return to full fitness and race again post op.

However surgery in horses is very risky,partly due to their size...as they lie on their backs/sides on the surgery table for extended lengths of time they can get serious muscle and nerve damage. Then there is the fact they can do a lot of damage as they go down before surgery in a knock down box...all horses have to be knocked down using drugs pre-surgery but a couple of hundred kilos of horse is difficult to control as it falls. There are also is hugh potential issues with horses trying to rise after surgery...broken legs/damaging a newly repaired leg in the recovery room is a constant risk.Its not safe to have people in with a flailing horse and the vet hospitals have special padded down box's and a rope system to try and steady them as they rise but its still very risky as they are not fully aware of their feet placement etc.....Ruffian another famous racehorse from the us survived her broken leg repair but broke another leg in recovery

Horses do not cope well with having their substantial weight helt unevenly over 3 legs and so in later recovery there is a risk of stress laminitis....google Barbaro a famous american racehorse and you will see his story.Broke leg.. was fixed and was doing well but the pressure on the other hooves brought on laminitis(laminitis is where the attachments between the hoof wall and internal bones of the hoof begin to loosen and allow the bone to move...extremely painful) He died of the laminitis he got in recovery.

Sometimes with a severe break its a kinder thing to let them go.

RATM

Thanks for the replies, that explains it for me.

FoxyVixen

Ditto on what Aru said above. Couldn't have put it better myself.

Just wanted to add that horses who require suspension to keep their weight off the leg can suffer from serious stress problems. It's not natural to stay in the same position like that for long periods and with very little to do they can become bored/stressed very easily. One day the horse could be fine, the next act out and injure itself. Other horses may be slightly drugged to alleviate the stress but this isn't very healthy for the animal either.

Then there's building the muscle back up again after its healed. So many complications can arise throughout this process too. Should the horse go down at an awkward angle, the leg can snap again.

Taking all that into consideration, it can be an extremely painful, stressful and lengthy process for the horse to endure. Generally considered more humane to put the animal down.

Stinicker

There used to be a larger market for horse meat before too, that was huge contributor to the slaughter of horses too.

byhookorbycrook

Not just racehorses- any horses. They don't cope well with box rest for that length and it can be very distressing for them .

NewStart!

actually the horse is better off being put down. Horses aren't like humans they have no concept of "tomorrow". When horse break legs its often there front one. Which usually needs to be plated. this requires surgery for which the anesthetic and coming around is more likely to kill the animal than the original injury. When horses come round after the anesthetic they often break another leg and have to be put down anyways. Then the recovery period while the bone knits is huge the animal needs to be kept suspended and sedated so that they dont move and compromise the healing. Keeping a 800kg horse thats used to being exercised every day locked inside, sedated and held up by harnesses in my opinion is much more cruel than letting it be put down.