Alison Goulding

Well. This is the post I hoped I would never write. Harvey horse has been put down.

 

His feet did not get better (there were complications with his abscesses and he began to show a pulse in all four feet so there may have been something else lurking) and he began to be aggressive with the other geldings in his field, we think possibly as some kind of defence mechanism.

 

I organised a separate field for him but he was distressed when the horses nearby weren't out and I decided that enough was enough. I never cared if I got to ride Harvey, as long as he had a happy life with his chums in the field, but this was no longer the case and I felt he had become increasingly stressed in his box and spooky to lead which he had never been before.

Beautiful Harvey horse

 

I hope at some point I'm going to feel like he had a nice time with me, albeit far too short, but at the moment it just feels like a disaster. When you love your horse it's a massive contradiction to then end their life with a phone call and my predominant feeling at the moment is sheer guilt. The saving grace is that I feel lucky to have a horse who was such a gentlemen about life, despite what he'd been through. 

I really miss him and I'm finding myself reluctant to spend time at the yard but again I hope in time this will change. Cady is a massive comfort and continues to be her lovely, cheeky self. 

I suppose if there's something to learn from this it's that we have to enjoy them while they're here (and while we are). If my writing is a bit sparse for a while then please accept my apologies.