Yesterday did not end well for me. I grew up on a farm and witnessed or participated in the slaughter or euthanization of many animals. I am a hunter. As a police officer I was from time to time called upon to put down a hopelessly injured animal. I have been present when men died of violent deaths. In recent years, somehow I have become the official funeral director of numerous farm animals, probably because we had the machinery and provided hay for so many in our hay business. I have buried numerous horses, goats, pigs, dogs, and two cattle egrets.

But yesterday I responded to an elderly neighbor who for two days begged me to put down her 35 year old palomino horse. The horse could not get up and could not walk. She could not afford a vet, and my tractor was out of town but I finally agreed to put the horse out of its misery. She got the county to agree to bury the horse.

You would think that I would be insulated from the necessity by now, but putting that horse down yesterday affected me in a profound way. Perhaps it is from coming into close contact with my own mortality. I get solace only from the fact that it was quick and without malice. Rest easy sweet horse.

The world is a better place because of you.

I believe your feelings speak to your character.

I'm sorry you had to go through that. You must have a gentle soul and that is NOT a fault. We need more like you.

When a horse is that age and in that condition, there are no other options left. When I first started owning horses fifty five years ago, euthanization was five or ten dollars. Now it is somewhere around two hundred dollars. I have always been able to afford the veterinarian but I really don't believe, properly done with a firearm,it makes any difference in pain or discomfort to the animal. You certainly did the right thing and the quality of life for that horse at that time could not have been very good. It is in a better place. Bless you!

Good for you for helping the horse and its owner. I know thats is extremely tough to see and do.

Sorry to hear you had to do this but you did the right and humane thing to end the suffering. You are a good neighbor.

Sorry this is taking a toll on you. You did the right thing, but you know that already. Maybe this one does have a deeper meaning for you in many ways. Try and use that for a positive in your life

Take solace in the fact that you did the right thing, at the right time and in the right way.
For both horse and owner.

I’m sorry that you had to Deal with this. I don’t know what to say, as I’m crappy on the keyboard when things are serious.
I just hope you know that while it was a sad thing to do, the horse needed to go.
God Bless you brother.

I feel ya Hayes.

I saw plenty of dead or drowned people when I was in the CG, and I’ve lost count of how many people I’ve respomded to as dead body calls when I was a cop. I’ve seen many murder victims, and been present when other victims succumbed to gunshots and car crashes....

I’ve put down over a hundred animals involved in wrecks, easily over a hundred...

I’ve been a hunter since I was little, but having to put my dog down after it had been hit by a car crushed me.

I’m so sorry for how you are feeling. I was once called by another officer to see if I could help her with her horse...and yeah I put it down, so I get it.

Just know it will be with you for a while, but know that you did something good for someone else, and that’s good.

Again I’m sorry.

Putting an animal down, or even burying one that has passed always seems harder than it ought to be. Know that you helped both the neighbor and her horse.

I feel your pain. It’s one of the hardest things to deal with in life..death. Makes you appreciate every day. Thanks for helping her out.

That's a hard task, thank you for stepping up to the plate.

I’m sorry. It was very kind of you to help your neighbor.

I'm sorry you had to go through that experience and appreciate that you shared it with us. That's a terrible situation all around.

A few months ago the topic of putting pets down was being discussed, and one of our more astute members wrote "In the name of love, sometimes we must do cruel things." That fact of life really resonated with me. Hopefully in the near future you'll have some comfort knowing it was the right thing to do with no better options available.

Your neighbors and community are very blessed to have you there to help. Thanks

When I was working as a Firefighter and was around death and all that entails. I become hardened to it and saw bodies as little more than wax manikins...And of course I rationalized death in it's many forms as normal which it is. But there came a time when I could no longer compartmentalize my feelings especially for the innocent. I never got used to the innocent being taken. So I can only imagine becoming the designated Angel of death for our animal friends. A vet would be more suitable for a the incident in question to me. Because of your obvious reluctance to do it in the first place. Sometimes it's the smallest added weight to the mind that swings the closed closet door to open and there you are dealing with a whole bunch of suppressed feelings. Talking with others that understood my feelings about the taking of the innocent was my solace at the time. Good luck and God's Peace to you in your very difficult job.