Still, his show ring career wasn’t over. From there, we transitioned to a successful second career in dressage. After several good years, it was time to let this career go, too. By then in his early 30s but still not content to be fully retired, his final job was as a leadline mount for my then-young daughter. His full retirement, when it finally came a few years later, was something I felt we were both happy and comfortable with.

On the other hand, my half-Arabian mare, Sally, was an example of a difficult early retirement. A highly versatile horse, just one of her many talents was her performance in the hunter ring.

However, despite my best efforts, she has never truly been a healthy horse. Some of her health conditions we have been able to name and treat. Though these issues may have limited her, they never took her completely out of the game.

Other conditions have been mysterious and less well-managed due to their undefined nature; her treatments have been a roller coaster of successes and failures. Numerous tests have led to dead ends leading to more significant restrictions.

Though still in her early 20s, her most recent job change has been from a semi-retired trail horse to pasture-sound companion horse. By outward appearances, she looks amazing, but she is unable to tolerate a rider.

Soundness and Injuries

With so many possible retirement scenarios, what is considered an average age for retirement? What is considered an early retirement?

The decision to retire a horse is based on several different factors, according to Jud Easterwood, DVM, of Easterwood Equine Hospital in Calera, Ala.

“Most of these factors are health or soundness related,” he says. “I don’t think there is an average age. We have some horses that are able to perform well into their 20s. Other horses have had significant injuries that lead to chronic lameness or issues with pain. These horses have to retire much earlier.”

Easterwood says that he considers “early” retirement one that occurs before the age of 20. In his experience, these unfortunate early retirement scenarios are usually centered around tendon or suspensory ligament injuries. He says they can also be brought on by conditions such as arthritis or ringbone.

“Any serious injury could result in these conditions that a horse can’t overcome to get back into high-level performance work,” he says.

Metabolic & Back Problems

Sometimes, conditions such as PPID and the insulin resistance that sometimes accompanies it can necessitate early retirement, especially when it leads to other conditions, such as chronic laminitis and potentially founder. Easterwood says that while these issues are typically seen in horses over the age of 20, they do occasionally occur in younger horses, too.

Over the years, because imaging has improved, he notes that horses being diagnosed with back problems have also become much more common. Rather than undiagnosed pain, he says we are now able to pinpoint kissing spines and neck arthritis.

“These may not stand out to you like leg lameness, but they create an overall sour behavior or back soreness,” says Easterwood. Depending on their severity, these may also require retirement.

Signs That It’s Time to Retire

What are the signs that your horse may be ready to retire?

“Any sort of chronic lameness or pain issues would be the No. 1 condition that leads to retirement,” says Easterwood. “No. 2 is when the horse doesn’t enjoy his job anymore and has become sour.”

He also lists conditions such as liver disease; inflammatory bowel disease that leads to chronic diarrhea and weight loss; neurological diseases that cause ataxia, such as EPM or (less commonly) West Nile virus; or any condition that is difficult to treat and that leads to performance problems.

Semi or Full Retirement?

Regardless of age, when you decide to retire your horse, you’ll need to consider partial or full retirement. Easterwood says that he likes to use the words “serviceably sound” with owners considering partial retirement for their horses.

“You may have a horse that is not 100 percent sound and is no longer suitable for show jumping, barrel racing, or other types of intense performance sports,” he says. “But [semi-retirement is an option] if the horse is still able to get around fine and enjoy doing activities such as trail riding, flat work, ground work, or being ridden in lessons.”

He says some horses can do these things well and maintain a good exercise regimen, even though they are stepping back from their previous high-intensity careers.

However, there is one important caveat that Easterwood advises for owners considering semi-retirement. If you’re considering having a child take over the ride on your horse, he advises having the horse evaluated by a veterinarian to determine whether there are any issues the horse may have with tripping and falling in order to prevent potentially devastating accidents.

Whether or not semi or full retirement is a happy occasion for your horse depends on several factors.

Easterwood’s first recommendation for keeping retirees engaged is to exercise as tolerated. Keeping horses stabled or pastured near high-activity areas can also help keep retirees engaged, while stall or pasture toys can provide further enrichment.

Prolonging Soundness

While retirement may be inevitable for most horses, there are some steps you can take to extend your horse’s working career. Easterwood says that good veterinary care is a staple to keeping horses sound and happy in their job.

“It doesn’t have to be frequent,” he says. “I recommend annual to biannual X-rays and lameness evaluations to make sure you are keeping up with any changes to previous injuries and to make sure that nothing new has developed.”

If conditions such as arthritis, degenerative joint disease, or joint injuries exist, he recommends the use of prescription intramuscular injections for their treatment. He says that veterinarians also sometimes use intra-articular injections to relieve pain and keep horses comfortable.

Even if your horse is free of any condition requiring injections, Easterwood says that oral supplements can work to reduce wear and tear. He also says that therapies such as chiropractic adjustments, massage, acupuncture, and PEMF treatments can augment traditional veterinary care to the benefit of your horse.

Easterwood also advises screening for metabolic diseases as the horse ages, but also if your horse exhibits any signs any signs that warrant it.

Though no guarantee, the above steps, along with maintaining a good diet and exercise plan—as well as updated vaccinations, deworming, and dental care—can go a long way toward ensuring that your horse enjoys a long career.

By and large, the decision to retire your horse can be one of the more difficult decisions that horse owners face. By watching for indications and taking the appropriate steps, you can rest assured that you are making the best decisions for your horse’s future.

This article about when to retire your horse appeared in the October 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post When Is It Time to Retire Your Horse? appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Nikki Wahl Seto & Gold Style and Tucker, Louisville, KY

Nikki Wahl Seto currently has two retired horses in her care.

“Gold Style is an off-track Thoroughbred that I was leasing from my trainer; my husband purchased him for me as my engagement gift,” says Wahl Seto. “He around 7 when I started riding him.

“Tucker is an OTTB that Jessica Woodall successfully brought along through the FEI 3* level in eventing. I started leasing him in 2010 when he was around 17 or 18.”

What did your horses do before they were retired?

“Gold Style and I chased some hunter circuit titles, combined tests and eventually USEA-recognized horse trials through Novice level,” says Wahl Seto. “When an old bone chip limited his jumping, we switched to dressage and enjoyed some time at competing in USDF shows. He wasn’t built for it, but we put in some good tests and got our only USEF recorded points. Once we were done showing, we trail rode quite a bit and even went out fox hunting once.

“After Jess Woodall retired Tucker from upper-level eventing, we competed at Beginner Novice, but qualified for the American Eventing Championships in 2011,” Wahl Seto continues. “Five days before leaving for the show, he unfortunately injured his suspensory and our fairytale journey was over. But along the way, I jumped my first Training level cross-country jumps at the Kentucky Horse Park, and actually rode my first and only canter pirouette. What a horse!”

When and why did you decide to retire your horses?

Both horses retired from riding around the same time, though I hopped on them now and then after my daughter was born in 2012. I could feel their bodies were just not up to it with all the combined injuries that racing and showing had brought.

How are they kept in their retirement?

First I boarded them both at a retirement farm close to home called Providence Farm, an amazing facility run by my good friend Kathy Krantz.

In 2017 I decided I needed to step away from my corporate job and focus on my daughter, and needed to cut back on boarding costs (we also own a mare my daughter and I share for riding and showing).

I asked my folks about bringing the boys to their small farm where I had my first horses. They’ve been home under my daily care for a year now, and I see them more now because of it. There are a couple of other horses I kept through retirement buried there, and this will be Tucker and Gold Style’s final resting place as well. I hate to think about that, but for now at 21 and 26 they are pasture sound and enjoying life bossing around ponies, a donkey, goats and chickens!

Matthias Schwarz/Elena Flyer & Sandy Shoes, San Juan Capistrano, Calif.

Elena Flyer is the proud caretaker of Sandy Shoes, her trainer Matthias Schwarz’s retired eventer. Sandy Shoes is a 22-year-old Thoroughbred of royal breeding, by champion Theatrical (IRE) out of an Alydar mare. He raced twice but did not hit the board in either start.

What did your horse do before he was retired?

“At the end of 2001, he was on his way to being slaughtered as a result from injuries he sustained while racing,” says Matthias, who is originally from Germany. “A friend called me and said he had a horse that he rescued. He gave Sandy Shoes some time to recover out in pasture and thought he might be of interest to me. After checking him out, I brought him home to my barn and began a long process of rehabilitation and training.” Matthias specializes in eventing and thought the horse might have what it takes to go far in the sport.

“In the years since, I have trained and competed Sandy Shoes in exactly 50 three-day events and horse trials from 2002 until 2014,” says Matthias. Sandy Shoes excelled through the levels, going from Novice to FEI one-star within his first year.

“In 2005, he competed at the two-star level, and by 2007, he was competing at the FEI three-star Word Cup level of competition.”

How is your horse kept in retirement?

In March 2014, Sandy Shoes retired from active competition sound and healthy. His final competition was an FEI two-star division at Galway Downs, where they took home a fourth-place ribbon.

Since then, Sandy Shoes has continued to enjoy life at Rancho Sierra Vista Equestrian Center in San Juan Capistrano with his caretaker Elena, who rides him in quadrille training and performances, dressage lessons and trail rides, as well as daily walks and grooming sessions.

“He gets lots of turn outs and loves to roll,” says Elena. “He deserves to be spoiled. He has a really soft side to him now; he loves little kids. He reminds me a lot of Matthias. Very serious. Very focused. Hard working. Doesn’t put up with nonsense. Yet he can be gentle and sweet when least expected!”

Karen Bjorn & Sully, Scottsdale, Ariz.

“It was the year 2000, and I finally felt that I was at a point in my life with a stable career where I could afford to buy a horse of my own,” says Karen. “My trainer had some former clients who were selling a 9-year-old off-track Thoroughbred named Sully.”

Sully had been retired from the track long enough to start some lower-level dressage training, and Karen planned to do some low-level eventing.

“I had some fear issues from an old riding injury,” says Karen. “Sully had not jumped before, but with my trainer’s guidance, we started him and he was bold and brave. He gave me the confidence to do much more than I originally intended.”

“We evented at Training level [3’3”] for several years, and he was talented enough to go higher, but I was too much a weenie!” she says.

When did you retire him, and how did you know it was time?

When Sully was 19, he began refusing jumps for the first time in his life.

“I realized that he may have a little age-related arthritis, so we stopped jumping those heights,” says Karen. “He loved having a job, so I kept riding and schooling for my own education. When he was 22, he developed Cushing’s disease, but was still sound and rideable for the work that I wanted to do. Then he started to have trouble sweating, and the heat of the Phoenix summer was a little tough on him. By 26, and still sound, I decided he deserved a nice retirement.

“I found a small, private barn near my house where he has a stall with a large run, gets turnout for 12 hours with buddies, and the owners treat him like he is their own. It’s not the cheapest retirement in the world, but it’s the best situation for him. He’s 28 now, and is king of the barn there! They all love him.”

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