Our veterinarian in Arkansas carried a .22 rifle to euthanize horses. We had a mare colic and he put her down with one well placed shot.
I asked about his choice and he stated, in his opinion, that it was less traumatic for the animal and that the size of the gun was not nearly as important as was the placement of the shot.
Barry Cole, Kansas
To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [RC] guns to euthanize--OT a bit Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:26:41 -0400 From: desertrydr1@xxxxxxx
Last Friday night I had a horrible experience where two stray dogs came onto my property and chased horses, chickens, cats and finally, my beautiful little 6 month old kitten, Simba. He was best friends with my dog, and never really understood that not all dogs are freindly. They managed to maul him severely, broke his back, probably punctured a lung, and obviously other injuries. I had no way to put him down, and finally, after an hour, he died. I had to wait for the sheriff to come pick up the dogs, so I couldn't leave. I called everyone I knew looking for a gun to take care of my sweet little Simba.
A week or so before that, a friend lost her foundation broodmare to colic. It was pretty obvious to her before the vet came that it was serious, and it might have been easier to put the mare down herself. All this tragedy got me to thinking, maybe I need a gun for such emergencies. If I had had one, I could have saved the sheriff a trip too, because those dogs would have met a quick and merciful end instead of being impounded.
So the question is, is a .22 pistol big enough to kill a horse? Or do I need something bigger? I really hate guns, hate the thought of having one around. But I NEVER want to be in a situation again where an animal needs to be put out of it's suffering and not have the means to do so. I am just sick that I had no way to lovingly put Simba out of his suffering, and I don't know if I could live with myself if it happened again to one of my animals.
If not a gun, what other suggestions do you all have for euthanizing an animal?
jeri
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