After three days of colic, the horse’s pain finally is subdued by various drugs and the anesthetic gas. The ventilator now is breathing for the horse, which has been placed on his back and a large incision made in his abdomen to allow for discovery of the problem-approximately 20 feet of strangulated and dead small intestine. The horse is extremely sick from the release of toxins from the leaking bowel and is doing poorly under anesthesia. The horse’s blood pressure is falling despite aggressive treatment, and the blood oxygen concentration is low. The prognosis for this horse is guarded due to the degree of inflammation within the abdomen and the difficulty in maintaining the vital parameters while under anesthesia. The surgeon leaves the table to make a phone call.

The surgeon explains the situation to the owner, offering the option of continuing in the face of a guarded prognosis and an estimated cost of $10,000 or more with a chance the horse might die from complications, or stop now and “put the horse to sleep” (euthanasia). In this particular case, the horse was euthanized while under anesthesia.

This case illustrates two factors of reality that often come into play when making the decision to euthanize a horse: 1) the lack of ability to offer a good prognosis due to some of the limits of large animal medicine and surgery at this point, and 2) financial concerns.

The process of euthanasia generally is accepted as a method to eliminate pain and suffering in animals, but still is a very controversial act to many groups of people or individual cultures. This article is not going to discuss the debate over the ethical and moral boundaries regarding the subject of euthanasia, nor do I want to enter the animal welfare or animal rights issues. Everyone has a right to his or her opinion and the right to make legal decisions that he or she  feels are the right ones. My goal here is to reflect on some of my experiences, stimulate some thought regarding the matter, and offer some information so that you as a horse owner can make a decision that is right for you if the situation occurs