[MyBabyTex]

IMO horses can not recover from a broken leg. Its sad, but its the way it is. In the wild, they would die. They just cant survive. You can not plausibly keep a horse still long enough for the bone to heal. I would not want my horse going through that anyways. Sometimes you just have to let go.

[EqUeStRiAn]

Ide put the horse down, its really not fair to make them suffer through recovery, especially when you don't know if they will ever get well enough in the future.

[RickB.]

Apart from the time and money involved, it depends on the bone that has been broken. A complete fracture of the cannon bone is reason enough to euthanise.

Fractures of the long or short pastern bones may or may not be able to be repaired/healed, but unless the horse is a valuable breeding animal, it is usually not worthwhile to try. That said, I have seen horses recover from severe broken bones in the pastern. They are not truely sound, but are not in pain either. It has to do with the bones fusing and causing a limited range of motion.

Fractures of the coffin bone are , in and of themselves, initially, no reason to euthanize. they can be successfully healed and most horses return to a normal state of soundness. Often, their job description has to change, but they can remain useful and contributing given a different job to do.

Fractures of the splint bone(s) , once they heal are of no real concern,

Fractures of the bones of the knee may heal quite well but usually cause the horse to have some impairment of movement, and can easily become arthritic.

Fractures of the bones of the hock often heal quite well with no impairment of movement. Again, arthritis is always a concern, and if the problem is in the lower joint of the hock, once the area fuses, there is usually no further problem.

Problems in the knees and hocks often arise if there are bone chips present. These can be surgically removed and most horses recover nicely.

Fractures of the upper leg bones almost always result in euthanasia.

I have seen horses recover from pelvic fractures, but it is a long slow process and depending on the horse, may be less than complete.

Rick

[jeda_horse]

Originally Posted by Paintlover

I would put them down. I don't have the money or facilities to keep them

Same here... I wouldnt want to of course but some things you cant help....

[Top Dun]

Actually They CAN survive in the wild with a broken leg. There is a stallion living today that is living proof of this. He stands in Wyoming and was gathered off the range as a two or three year old with a healed broken leg. His leg is severely deformed but he has no difficulty getting around.
The horse is a Spanish Mustang appaloosa named Bright Chief

Originally Posted by MyBabyTex

IMO horses can not recover from a broken leg. Its sad, but its the way it is. In the wild, they would die. They just cant survive. You can not plausibly keep a horse still long enough for the bone to heal. I would not want my horse going through that anyways. Sometimes you just have to let go.

[Blistering Winds]

It depends on where the break is, what kind of facilities you have, and the FUNDS you have, and various other things.

For example, we had a horse at the horse center who broke his hock. Shattered it. Vet said he couldn't do anything to it and the school had 2 options. Turn him out for a year, or put him down. So they turned him out. Brought him back up a year later, horse was SOUND as can be! The hock fused together, and he was fine! For the first few months, he hobbled along, but eventually he got it together and was able to get around without problems.

A cannon break would be different. You can pin it together.

Lower bones at joints, depends on if it is a front or back leg.....as weight distribution is different, and how much movement you can restrict.

Then you have twist breaks, which the bones usually NEVER look right.

etc.

there are so many scenarios, depends on financially what you are able to do, what you are able to allow NATURE to do, and what the vet is most comfortable doing.

When my mare was hit by a car, we didn't do x-rays, but we knew her hock was shattered, her femur was busted, and her hips probably were busted up pretty good. Rough Estimation to fix her was $10,000 + and she had to be hauled to Texas A&M, 2.5 hours without a horse trailer away. AND, she MIGHT be sound when all was said and done. I chose to let her go. Looking in her eyes, I knew I made the right decision. She seemed content with it, if she realized what we were doing.

[julie&chico]

If my horse broke anything and had the chance for recovery even though a "show life" or even a "ridden life" would no longer be, I would still get him/her saved. I would make the time money anything I could do to save the life of my horse/pony. Just because the limb is broken doesn't mean the mind and spirit is.

JC

[Top Dun]

http://www.shadowyndranch.com/Chief.html

Chief's left front leg was broken as a foal. Since he was range born and kept, the injury was not seen until it was too late to splint. As bad as it looks, though, it does not keep this plucky fellow from enjoying life, even galloping and cavorting around in his corral. It certainly doesn't affect his love life! This years-old injury is a further testimony to the toughness of this wonderful breed and this very special stallion.

[Appylvr]

Wow! thank you everyone for all the answers! I wanted to know just in case I ever came across the situation, myself. HOPEFULLY NEVER!!! With my friends two horses I felt they should have put them down right away and I feel that if it did ever happen to one of mine, I think the only option would have to be putting them down. I don't think I would have the money and I would hate to have to keep a horse locked up for so long. It's not good for their mind. My NSH mare was SO depressed when she foundered and I had to lock her into her stall for 5 months. I thought she was going to give up, but then she suddenly started to get better.

I hate the feeling though, it's like giving up on them.

[Super_Trooper]

It would depend on the situation, the break, the funds...like other have said. Not all breaks are the same...and I would obvioulsy do what was best for my horse and if it was fixable with LOTS of cash invloved, then I would proabably take that route..if it was going to be painful and not a good prognoses, then I would put my horse down.