Why do horses that break their legs need to be euthinized?
Why cant they fix the broken bone like you do with any other animal? Is it because the time and effort needed to rehab the horse is not worth it? I would think you could repair the fracture then use a larger version of the brace with a wheel that is used with dogs that break their legs. You keep the horse in the pen where it does not have room to run and you take it out daily with the attachment to rehab the leg. You could even use a swimming pool to help rehab the horse because the water would make the horse lighter which would allow it to use its leg for rehab. So, whats the deal, why do they have to euthinize the horse?
When a horse lays down for an extended period of time, why does this cause stress on their internal organs?
Sometimes they can. It depends on the severity of the break. For instance, Eight Belles broke both her front legs, and the bones had broken through the skin. Horses need to stand and move to survive, and she couldn't stand on her own, much less move. Euthanizing her was in her best interest.
Horses don't have very good blood flow to their legs, which makes it easier for infection to set in.
Many times horses come out of surgery thrashing about like they're running, which can cause even more damage. In the case of Ruffian, she not only injured the broken leg further, she also broke the other foreleg.
Recovery for a horse isn't as easy as it is for dogs. Horses can't lay down for extended periods of time, or else their organs won't function properly. That's why they have the sling, so the horse can remain standing while keeping the weight off that leg. However, putting more weight on the good legs can have its own repercussions, like laminitis. In Barbaro's case, his recovery looked very well after he broke his right hind leg. Two months after the break, he developed laminitis in his left hind, and although that started healing, laminitis also hit both front legs.
In most cases, euthanasia is best for the horse.
*Their bodies weren't designed for them to lay down for long periods of time. When a horse lays down, pressure gets put on the lungs, heart, kidneys, all the organs. Too much pressure can cause irreversible damage.
Pepper Rehab - kicking hind legs
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£11.89
