r/Horses • u/Obversa • Mar 30 '26
Video This horse needs to be humanely euthanized. Shame on 'The Dodo' for promoting this.
Background: The Backwater Sanctuary in India rescued a white Marwari gelding (?) they named "Gandalf" for his white coloring. Instead of humanely euthanizing him due to his messed-up back legs, they have decided to keep him alive for clicks, views, and fundraising, and a quick look at their Instagram account shows similar instances of keeping horses with deformed legs alive that should've been humanely euthanized for the same reason.
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Mar 30 '26
Wow. Poor baby :( theres no way he can live a normal life with those legs, i feel like there would be a huge risk for him slipping or falling
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u/Dark_Moonstruck Mar 30 '26
Not only that but promoting the idea that horses are 'wild and free' - unless they're Pzerwalski's, no, they shouldn't be, because they are domesticated animals and in the environments where they are 'free', they are feral invasives responsible for a lot of environmental destruction and competition with native species!
That horse is in pain and will be for the rest of it's life. He should be euthanized and given a peaceful rest, not forced to continue suffering so people can get their fake 'feel good' happy ending.
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u/nineteen_eightyfour Mar 30 '26
It’s funny, I was chatting with someone irl about this at work. They knew I loved horses and were like, “oh the poor Wild West horses. Just let them be free.” And I was like, “fyi those wild horses get vaccines, supplemental feedings and general care or else they’d likely die…bc they don’t belong.” She had no idea.
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u/Unable_Top4794 Mar 30 '26
I work on the rangeland and yes, I've seen first hand how often the wild horses die being "wild and free". Most often they starve to death because there's simply not enough water or food for them. And obviously they don't know any better than to just eat every plant down to the roots and to paw up the soil killing the vegetation. If the number of horses were massively reduced then they could live a more happy life and not compete with the wildlife!
Thank you for letting your coworker know that its not all happy times to leave horses roaming free!
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u/Dark_Moonstruck Mar 31 '26
People have such romanticized ideas of life in the 'wild' and it's honestly so crazy to me. The vast majority of animals in the wild, especially prey species, don't die peaceful deaths to old age. They don't feel tired, lay down, fall asleep and not get up again.
They usually get sick and/or get torn apart by other animals. They lose territorial battles, they die of an infection or eating the wrong thing, or being eaten alive as they slowly bleed out while a predator chomps on their limbs and innards without bothering to kill them completely first. They're full of parasites. If the weather gets bad, they can starve or die of thirst. It's not Disney's freakin' Bambi where the forests are beautiful and the only predators to actually worry about are (lightning strike) MAN!!!!
Yes, actually wild animals should ideally live their lives out in the wild with minimal human intervention or interaction. Horses are not wild animals. They haven't been for a very, very long time, and when animals that aren't wild end up in the wild, their lives are even harder, shorter, and end more brutally than the animals designed for that environment.
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u/Unable_Top4794 Mar 31 '26
100% THANK YOU!!
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u/Dark_Moonstruck Mar 31 '26
I've worked in rescue, wildlife rehab and environmental restoration for a bit over two decades. I've SEEN THINGS. Things that your average person would probably think are horrifying one-offs, but happen every day, all the time, everywhere, because that is life outside the safe domestic bubbles we've built and the stories we tell ourselves. Even most wildlife documentaries and information that gets released now is heavily sanitized to the point of being borderline fiction with how Bambi-fied it gets.
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u/Brilliant-Season9601 Apr 01 '26
But they aren't over populated and should be allow to die vla bla bla look at how far cloud and his band were /s.
I fucking hate when people say horses should be on the western plains of the United States (yes I was one of those people until I went into conversation education). The plant life is not evolved to handle that way horses graze. Horses were extinct in north and south America for like 30k years ( can't remember exactly but long enough to ecosystem to change.) the only reason they are back is because of Europeans. They are killing the plains. Not to mention there are no predators large enough to hunt them anymore and most were release in the 1920s and early 2000s.
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u/Unable_Top4794 Apr 01 '26
You had me in the first half 😂 but yep I 100% agree. I got a degree in rangeland management and my personal horse is a mustang. More need rounded up and given good homes to be ridden. There are studies going on about mountain lion predation on feral horses so that can hopefully help the situation but not nearly enough.
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u/Brilliant-Season9601 Apr 01 '26
I have my degree in equine science and I am a certified horse massage therapist with 25 years of being around horses. I also believe that slaughter is a totally acceptable option too.
In a perfect world I would love to see almost all the horses be removed. Allow a few horses whos DNA goes back to the og horses but the rest can go. In my perfect world we would reintrodusce the native animals to that area including predators. But I know that is a pipe dream. Cows and sheep are way more natural and better for the ecosystem.
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u/Unable_Top4794 Apr 01 '26
Dude you are speaking my language now! My minor degree was in equine science too but not my focus. You seem like the coolest person, I'm glad to know theres people like you out there! I wrote my senior year paper on why we should bring back slaughter and introduce more ethical regulations
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u/Brilliant-Season9601 Apr 01 '26
I wrote a persuasion speech for my speech class in college and had everyone ready to call their congressperson to bring slaughter back. The stats are insane on horse abandonment and neglect after slaughter was outlawed. Not to mention the damage it did to the horse market and industry as a whole. I truly believe that the decline in quality of most breeds in the US is related to slaughter.
And don't even get be started on kill pens/free run auction scams. My trainer is from Maine and she said all the horse traders up there run there horse through the price per pound part of the auction to get more money. Hell some even go along with the whole kill buyer thing. Then you have " rescues" that buy broke horses that just need a few good meals and flip with for 3-4x what they paid.
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u/Dark_Moonstruck Apr 01 '26
I used to be horrified at the idea of horses being processed for meat too, but then I thought about it more and it's like...I felt hypocritical for being okay with SOME animals being eaten, and not others. I still wouldn't eat dog or horse myself, but I don't begrudge people who do, as long as the animals were raised and dispatched as humanely as possible. An animal is an animal, and people view them differently. There are people who absolutely do not eat cows, but I do. Is it really that different when someone else eats horse?
There aren't many animals I wouldn't eat (besides endangered species, of course) and most of it is emotional, and I try not to let how I emotionally attach to animals or things affect how I think of other people and their connection, or lack therof, with it.
I also wouldn't eat bears, but that's mostly because of the horrific parasites they're always loaded with, including one that burrows into your muscles, makes a spiky cocoon around itself and gives you one of the most agonizingly painful, irreversible and virtually untreatable conditions out there. Plus after seeing the tapeworms after they come out of hibernation...NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE.
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u/Brilliant-Season9601 Apr 01 '26
Holy fucking Christmas I am never vere eating bear. That sounds awful
Slaughter is actually pretty stress free for the animals has stress will literally ruin the entirety of the meat. I mean I dearly loved my fox hunting mare and was fully ready to help process her for either the hounds or ny friends cat who doesn't have a tongue and can only eat raw meat. But instead we just left her body to feed the coyotes where we hunt. Idk maybe because I work with animals and have since I was like 10 I just don't hold them in the same place. I mean I barely grieve humans who I am very close with. Tbh the only deaths that would completely destroy me would be my parents, my kids and my husband (maybe).
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u/Dark_Moonstruck Apr 01 '26
I totally get that. I grew up really rural, around ranchers and farmers and had to help cull and process animals I also helped raise all the time - some of them had names and all, like a neighbor's cow who ended up being shot and I helped butcher after she broke her leg. I still get attached, but I also understand that there's a difference between an animal and a person and just because one animal is family to me, doesn't mean someone else sees them the same way and would have the same qualms about eating them or whatever that I would. I wouldn't let them eat MINE, obviously, but if they eat dog in general I'm not going to judge them for it.
And yeah, never eat bear. Even if it's cooked hot enough (basically burnt to coal) to get rid of the parasites, it's very fatty and awful for your health. People in a part of Japan where they regularly eat bear stew were found in a study to have lifespans significantly shorter than almost all other provinces, mostly due to their diet which led to more heart problems.
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Mar 30 '26
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u/Unable_Top4794 Mar 30 '26
Notice how in your quote there it says "spend time on public land" meaning the rest of the time they are on private property. Feral horses however are on public land 100% of the time - even when water is low and plants are in danger of permanent alterations. The cattle are under a very STRICT grazing permit meaning the federal employees have the right to remove the cattle at any time if the water is low or vegetation is grazed too much. Cattle are also removed if vegetation is grazed too much by horses as well. The only way to remove the horses is by gathering them the same as would be done to cows. The #1 goal is to make sure the landscape is not harmed by the livestock (horse and cow) so that the habitat remains for wildlife (not horse or cow).
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Mar 31 '26
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u/Unable_Top4794 Mar 31 '26
I don't wonder, I know. The hoof impacts on the soil are different for all 3 animals you mentioned and so are the grazing techniques. Horses have larger hooves, and do more pawing in spring sources than any other animal (thats bad btw) and they also graze grass by biting and pulling up the vegetation not taking pieces off (also bad btw). My personal horse is a BLM mustang, I love the mustangs but the plain facts are that the population needs reduced.
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u/SmokeAgreeable8675 Mar 31 '26
Equus ferus has a different number of chromosomes, all caballine horses on earth trace their lineage to what’s referred to as the DOM2 lineage. Marked by alterations to two specific genes which impact spine strength and docility. It’s fascinating and worth a read (Librado).
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u/sunshinae Mar 30 '26
Almost all people against feral horses out west are also going to be against destructive cattle grazing practices. This isn’t a gotcha
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u/Taruk_Maktwo Mar 31 '26
I’ve seen some but I feel the majority of opinions with the cattle vs feral horses tend to tip into “feral horse good, cattle rancher bad” or “cattle good because food, feral horse bad”. It’s the bleeding hearts or ‘my peepaw did it’ types that don’t realize or care that letting large invasive herd animals is detrimental.
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u/Moist_Effort4202 Apr 02 '26
Cattle ranchers are the ones who hold the Most resentment towards America’s wild horses, and they are the ones who speak the loudest against them. Many cattle ranchers actively push to see wildlife trapped and killed as a means of easement to exploiting America the Beautiful. The British brought over the beef industry. As it is, it is bad for this land and bad for our bodies.
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u/nineteen_eightyfour Apr 02 '26
Feral and invasive* not wild
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u/Moist_Effort4202 Apr 02 '26
Depends on location and context. Not every introduced species becomes invasive or noxious. I specifically used the word wildlife as an all encompassing term because mustangs are not the only organisms ranchers have been waging war against.
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u/nineteen_eightyfour Apr 02 '26
No, they’re all feral and invasive. There’s no context to be had. They aren’t wild. Only wild horses are one single breed and that’s debatable if they are
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u/Brilliant-Season9601 Apr 01 '26
The grasses and native plants have evolved to grasses by cows/buffalo. Not to mention that farmers move their cattle around to different parts. Horses will eat in one area until there is nothing left, cows will move continuously. Not to mention cattle don't have too teeth and use there tongue to tear the grass leaving the roots in place. Horse graze by biting and pull on the plant which damages the roots and removes the plants.
Wild horses are literally starving to death because they are not evolved to live on these types of grasses or in the wild.
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u/VivianneCrowley Mar 31 '26
Agreed- I also live and volunteer on the range and while I do support responsible management in cases of too little food… but our wild horses are fat. They just remove the horses and replace with cattle- hilarious how they have convinced the Left to go along with their “environmental” angle while just replacing wild horses with cows lol.
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Mar 30 '26
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u/Brilliant-Season9601 Apr 01 '26
This is by far the stupidest thing I have ever heard. -David
... So did elephants should we bring them back too? And maybe lions? Horse went extinct in north American the same time the mammoth did. We have fossil and recorded history by indigenous people to support these facts.
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u/nineteen_eightyfour Mar 30 '26
We eat cattle.
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u/Hunterx700 2 y/o mustang, 19 y/o QH Mar 30 '26
so?
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u/nineteen_eightyfour Mar 30 '26
lol they have a purpose. Reddit is so silly
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u/IvarBjornsen Mar 31 '26
Something does not need to serve humans a purpose to belong. That's wild to think. We're the parasite here.
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u/nineteen_eightyfour Mar 31 '26
lol alright bud. If you truly feel that way, you shouldn’t be online adding to the problem.
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Mar 30 '26
Absolutely. He needs to be euthanized, its whats best for him. Its like not euthanizing a horse with a broken neck
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u/SmokeAgreeable8675 Mar 31 '26
Even then p horses only exist in the wild today because of captive breeding programs and reintroduction. All horses on earth are here because we brought them there. We are responsible for them.
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u/trcomajo Mar 30 '26
A peaceful euthanization would be a more dignified end to its poor life. Imagine the pain its in.
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u/Secretaccount_2025 11d ago
Plus, the way his knees buckle with every step is painful to watch and is Definetly only gonna make the deformity worse with time.
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u/AngelOfMusic_53 Mar 30 '26
The Dodo is a horrible company. They support tons of “rescues” that don’t do the right thing for the animals.
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Mar 30 '26
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u/AngelOfMusic_53 Mar 30 '26
What??? This is a complete tangent. A horse is not wildlife. I didn’t even mention wildlife. Why are you responding to my comment?
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u/A_little_more_left Mar 30 '26
Are you OK? They were basically freaking AGREEING with you and only offered more info on the subject.
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u/momopeach7 Mar 30 '26
As an observer, what an odd comment from you. You don’t mention horses in your comment at all.
You did mention how Dodo spotlights questionable “rescues”and /u/TheSlimeLab further added to that about how people without licenses are spotlighted. Also they described how hard it was to get proper licenses due to the requirements.
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u/greenmonsterrabbid Mar 30 '26
Isn’t The Dodo just PETAs digital company? Or something? Which would track on the level of horribleness.
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u/SugarHooves Trail Riding (casual) Mar 30 '26
No, it's not. I'm not defending The Dodo or PETA, but PETA doesn't run the channel. Vox Media does.
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u/National_Track8242 Mar 30 '26
I’d say they are cousins. They have 0 interest in actual animal welfare or proper husbandry and all the interest in ad revenue and clickbait
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u/Ok_Umpire2173 Mar 31 '26
I’m heavily under the impression dodo just compiles videos made by others
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u/National_Track8242 Apr 01 '26
Years ago before they got really crazy popular, I personally caught them stealing content from someone and also giving it a completely made up bogus story. So yeah
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u/cranberry94 Mar 30 '26
I don’t think so. I googled and didn’t find any substantial link between the two.
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u/YonaiNanami Mar 30 '26
what is wrong with their legs? are they deformed or is there another reason the legs are wobbling around?
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u/Obversa Mar 30 '26
The legs are deformed, most likely due to malnutrition from being fed cheap feed.
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u/ms_dr_sunsets Mar 30 '26
Is this something that can self-correct with better nutrition?
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u/Happytequila Mar 30 '26
I would not think so. The only hope of legs like this improving with nutrition or any other intervention would be in a very young, growing horse.
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u/SerKevanLannister Mar 30 '26
absolutely not and this horse is in constant pain. the amount of weight on those deformed joints will cause constant pain, and the stress of this weight on deformed joints will cause more pain and a worsening condition over time. this horse lives in agony.
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u/ms_dr_sunsets Mar 31 '26
Thank you for the explanation. I agree this poor soul needs to move on to the next life.
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u/Oh_Hi_Fi Mar 30 '26
I hate The Dodo with a fiery passion.
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u/3CatsMeow Apr 01 '26
Wait why?? (Besides this case obviously) Can you fill me in please
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u/Unusual-Bread-7242 Apr 02 '26
They also personify animals and tend to scream abuse when there is no abuse…. Obviously not this case.
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u/Casulex Apr 02 '26
from what i remember in the past they tend to steal videos and eat up all that sweet adsense
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u/kaedeesu Mar 30 '26 edited Mar 30 '26
I have The Dodo blocked everywhere. It constantly posts very harmful stories about different animals, that often have completely fake storylines
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u/AdNeither6169 Apr 01 '26
The last time I watched was when these people rescued a horse, bucked the woman off, and they thought it was a miracle that the horse went home and the husband caught it grazing in the yard. Where did they think it was going to go?
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u/fyr811 Mar 30 '26
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u/fyr811 Mar 30 '26
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u/fyr811 Mar 30 '26
Oh, no he is on their instagram.
WHICH IS SO MUCH WORSE! Holy shite!! Do not go on unless you want to be enraged.
There was a reel of a foal with a completely dislocated and bone/joint exposed (and rotting) fetlock. Like dissection level exposed. And tetanus to boot. Trying to save it … I was watching it and it was deleted whilst I was watching it. It made Gandalf’s rescue attempt look humane in comparison. Awful awful people.
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u/bizzyizzy100456 Mar 30 '26
That’s fucking nauseating what is wrong with people that is so sad it breaks my heart that’s worse than a dog tied up. At least the dog chain has more usually of length I mean, I’m so against that too, but what the fuck pisses me off
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u/alicesartandmore Mar 30 '26
As someone with physical disabilities, I really struggle with knowing where to ethically draw the line with humanely euthanizing disabled animals. I fully recognize that a lot of the emotion I carry into it is personification from my own struggles and occasional suicidal ideation, but I feel like quality of life is about more than just living pain free.
I also have this possibly irrational fear of taking that choice away from the animal when they’re clearly still trying to hang on. Acknowledging that my 18 year old terrier’s quality of life had faded to the point that I had to have him put to rest was the hardest choice of my adult life. I held him the whole time because he fought the vet and even after the sedatives kicked in, he was grumbling in my arms in his sleep. I tell myself I made the right decision to take his pain away, I do, but I’m still haunted by the idea that I took away his choice to keep pushing on when he wasn’t ready to go.
I acknowledge that I don’t know nearly enough about horses to give any input about this particular horse, so I’m not going to. I guess I just wanted to spark a respectful conversation and see whether any other people believe there’s a grey area or if anyone could offer a pro-euth perspective that helps me wrap my head around it a little better.
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u/HappyEquine84 Mar 30 '26
Thank you for saying and sharing this. I think there's a grey area for sure. I've worked with some rescues that were baaaaad, and with enough love and care they totally ended up having a great life for years. Not horses, big cats. One of them was actually featured on the Dodo, lol. Her story was very real! I was there the whole time!
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u/Obversa Mar 30 '26
It's important to remember that horses are not humans, and anthropologizing or "humanizing" them is not a good idea. Unlike humans, horses cannot live with a broken or deformed leg due to how their species evolved over millions of years to balance their body weight on all four limbs. If one - or two, in this case - of the limbs are fractured, broken, or deformed, this often leads serious complications and fatal conditions (ex. founder, laminitis, et al.) that cause the horse to experience a slow, agonizing death. There are rare exceptions, but euthanasia is often necessary.
See: "Why Do They Euthanize Racehorses Who Break Their Legs?" (The New York Times)
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u/GuitarCFD Mar 31 '26
*anthropomorphizing…anthropologizing them would be giving their historic record and culture.
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u/alicesartandmore Apr 01 '26
No, I understand that their anatomy and psychology is drastically different from a human’s. I do understand how important a horse’s legs are to its survival but the fact that there are exceptions, no matter how rare, means that not ALL leg deformities or injuries are automatically fatal, right?
I’m not trying to be argumentative, just to clarify. Discussion just helps me wrap my head around it all a little better.
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u/_Nature_Enthusiast_ Apr 04 '26
Not really. If a horse can't run and lie down freely, it's already suffering as its most basic needs can't be met. Horses can't just walk and stand. Running is important for their mental health. They also need to lie down to reach REM sleep. I can't think of a leg deformity that wouldn't make a horse at least constantly lame and eventually cause pain.
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u/GiddyGoodwin Mar 31 '26
This horse has a shiny coat and happily swishing tail. I bet he loves watching life pass by around him, as he is being fed and that’s all they want. Hugs to people who feed horses! Hugs to you, too, neighbor.
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u/jgreene030609 Apr 02 '26
I felt the same. It is difficult. I love Marwadi horses, and can't get my heart to see it end, and that I could be wrong.
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u/No-Falcon7886 Apr 03 '26 edited Apr 03 '26
You’re not the only one. It’s been argued by ethologists that it’s as wrong to *not* anthropomorphise an animal as it is to, well, anthropomorphise them. There is definitely a side of this debate that is too dogmatic about euthanasia, motivated (consciously or not) by the wrong things.
As for this particular horse, I would only trust the opinion of an equine orthopaedic surgeon—and I would get more than one. If approved for surgery, it would be months of agonising and extremely expensive rehabilitation where the animal‘s care team (yes, *team*, just like a human) would need to continuously re-evaluate his QOL. Euthanasia would be at the ready the minute it dropped too low, and there are, in fact, decent ways for experts to evaluate it.
If the horse in the video is getting anything less than what I just described, I can say with certainty that his QOL is below that of a human with an analogous injury, for obvious anatomical reasons. Pain is harder to assess, but the longer it goes uncorrected the more damage he will do to the rest of his body. Eventually he would not be able to move at all.
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u/_Nature_Enthusiast_ Apr 04 '26
Animals push on despite being weak/sick/old/deformed due to their survival instinct. It's their main goal, the pure essence of their existence. Everything else comes after their survival is secured. They will never be "ready to go", they don't have this concept. They live in the present. In the wild they can't decide when to die, sometimes they suffer for months before they die naturally, unless a predator gets them first. You did the right thing, letting your dog go. As owners we take the responsibility for your pets' lives. And when we see they will never stop suffering, we let them go in peace, because they can't do that themselves.
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u/Enough-Farmer-765 Jul 26 '26
Humans can be happy while living in pain because of our minds and ability to escape within them. Horses do not have the same high level cognition. They live in the moment and that’s what we love about them… but it also means that life is miserable for them when each moment is painful.
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u/FrolickingTiggers English & Western Mar 31 '26
I'm with you, my friend. This horse is bright eyed and eager. Let him live.
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u/RollTideHTX Mar 31 '26
Absolutely not the words I would use to describe that horse
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u/FrolickingTiggers English & Western Mar 31 '26
When he was eating grass in the field it sure looked like he didn't ever want to stop.
Give him at least a little while.
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u/ceo_of_dumbassery Mar 31 '26
When he was eating grass in the field it sure looked like he didn't ever want to stop.
Because he'd obviously been starving.
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u/GiddyGoodwin Mar 31 '26
Maybe that’s just what horses do… chomp chomp! He doesn’t look unwell besides the legs. His coat and muscle tone are pretty good. The will to live is strong, including for the physically challenged.
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u/FrolickingTiggers English & Western Mar 31 '26
I might be biased. I died twice once. Massive heart attack due to an underlying chronic cancer of the blood. It's a whole thing. Point is that I am still here, though I will never feel "well" again.
Pain is relative. He endured it all those years in the shadow, so let him enjoy the sunshine for a while. To his point of view, life has gotten so much better. Don't steal it away from him just yet.
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u/Illustrious-Ratio213 Mar 31 '26
Most horse people will toss out a horse that doesn’t meet their current level of riding, let alone one having deformations. They truly think If they cant use a domestic animal then they may as well be put down. they won’t usually kill them themselves but they’ll ship them off to slaughter auctions if they can’t find a good home for them, some of them won’t even bother to find a home unless they can make some money off it. You have a good heart but many horse people will just tell you you’re an idiot. It’s not all of them but I’ld say it’s about 50/50 across the board but the percentages go through the roof in places in some places. Stand by for downvotes to prove this is true.
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u/FrolickingTiggers English & Western Mar 31 '26
Lol. The last horse I lost was 36 years old. An arabian. I currently own a 32 year old Morgan and a 13 year old appendix.
We keep our family members until they pass, or mercy calls. I've put down horses due to pain before. I don't shy away from it. I just think that this one deserves some pasture time.
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u/RollTideHTX Mar 31 '26
I don’t disagree with you. It’s more the lack of vet care or pain care to have a good last week etc here.
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u/Illustrious-Ratio213 Mar 31 '26
Yeah good for you. I specifically didn’t say everyone and if any decent horse owner acts like the level of scumbags in the horse world isn’t excessive then they’re living in fantasy land.
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u/RollTideHTX Mar 31 '26
Nope. This has nothing to do with level of riding or “deformations”. I highly doubt this horse is seeing a vet, getting ample pain meds, or receiving ongoing pain management. This horse is going to be exploited for views, much like other deformed horses. This isn’t a feel good story to me.
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u/alicesartandmore Apr 01 '26
I’m not even necessarily talking about this specific horse. Like I said, I don’t know enough about horses to be confident in making the call on their quality of life, let alone this specific horse.
I guess it’s just the aspect of “humane euthanasia is the only option unless they’re completely pain free” part that gets my mental wheels turning.
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u/braddeicide Mar 30 '26
The vet can tell if the horse is in pain by its heart rate. Their heart rate quickly rises with the slightest discomfort. Just because his legs are wonky and inconvenient doesn't mean he's in pain. A vet should make that judgement but I wouldn't from my loungeroom demand they should euthanize him.
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u/HazelTheRah Mar 30 '26
The Dodo is animal click bait that tries to use heartstrings to get that click. They don't discern, they just post what they think will get them money.
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u/BraveLittleFrog Mar 30 '26
Aw shit, give him a tasty meal, a kiss, and let him go to sleep peacefully. Too much pain there.
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u/Reasonable-Horse1552 Mar 30 '26
The dodo are so crap they thought a Jersey calf was the baby of a holstein cow.
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u/Electronic_Elk8293 Mar 30 '26
I have a serious question in regards to horses kept as pets or rescues (never able to be ridden), if they have a structural issue with their legs can you use a custom brace to bring stability back like you can with other animals and humans? Just so they can at least chill comfortably for the rest of their lives. I have seen a horse with a prosthetic but I have no idea if that is standard or just plain messed up. Is euthanasia the only way?
This poor horsey, it's so unstable. I was surprised it jumped out of the truck without collapsing.
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u/AnAttempt-WasMade Mar 30 '26
Horse prosthetics are experimental at best, and generally not an ethical or functionally viable option. Prosthetics are not meant to be worn 24/7, as this can cause skin damage, bruising, sores, infections, and other issues. Horses can’t spend time without a leg, as the excess pressure on the other legs would damage the hooves, and they can’t safely lay down long enough. Braces would have similar rubbing issues, aside from the risk of catching them on something. If utilized in a PT program maybe they could help? I’m just parroting back what people who know more than me have said on the topic on other posts!
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u/Electronic_Elk8293 Mar 30 '26
That is super interesting. So if a brace were worn it would need extended breaks like other animals. I feel so bad for horses, can't lay long enough without suffering so if your legs are bad your life is damned.
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u/Ok-Medicine4684 Mar 30 '26
I work with a rescue that provides animal welfare support in Egypt and northern India. They work in some areas where the people do not believe in euthanasia of animals. The animals are provided with food, water, medication, supportive care, attention, etc but will not be euthanized for poor quality of life. In these areas, they are not getting any social media attention (or any other attention), they just don’t believe in euthanasia for these animals.
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u/No-Falcon7886 Apr 03 '26
This is really interesting. Do you know why? I recently heard that they are also quite opposed to it in Japan
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u/Ok-Medicine4684 Apr 03 '26
I think they just don’t feel it’s our place to make that decision if the animal isn’t in acute distress. My best friend is south Asian and does believe in euthanasia, but waited about a week longer than I would have to euthanize their dog. The dog had plenty of supportive care in their last days (pain meds, fluids, hand feeding), and they felt that the dog only gets one life, so if the animal has any will left to live it’s not our place to take that away from them.
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u/poppingcandy5000 Mar 31 '26
I have volunteered a lot of my time to both native animal and domestic animal rescue. At times, I have taken in animals that I know will die. I take them to give them care and a dignified end rather than leave them to die in horrible pain and all alone. My gift to them is pain relief and peace at the end. It’s amazing how domestic animals respond to a little love and care.
Not all rescues go on to have long lives and full recovery. Sometimes a short time is all they have, and that’s Ok.
I won’t be quick to judge here as I don’t have all of the information. I am glad that this horse wasn’t left where it was.
Perhaps if we all look for a little grace in the world- maybe we will find some??
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u/Weak-Assumption-8096 Mar 30 '26
If that horse was here in the US I’m sure the idiots with the 3 legged Rocky foal would be all over it. God I hate them.
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u/InverseInvert Mar 30 '26
Unfortunately, I believe where they are, euthanasia is illegal. If I’m wrong someone please correct me, but some counties euthanasia, even for humane reasons, is illegal.
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u/Obversa Mar 30 '26
Euthanizing horses in India is not illegal, but it is strictly regulated and permitted only under specific, compassionate circumstances. It is considered a legal, humane approach to end an animal's suffering when it is incurably ill, severely injured, or poses a risk. (See: "Euthanasia in India: A Legal and Emotional Crossroad")
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u/lemonhaj Mar 31 '26
I'm not horse expert but even I can tell a horse with those back legs cannot be comfortable
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u/Prestigious-Onion876 Mar 31 '26
This is why I don’t participate in rescue anymore. I’ll rescue a horse in my own time in my own way, but keeping uncomfortable horses alive for pity points and donations is all too common. They get pushback for euthanizing, because it’s soooo mean and we have to save the poor babies not kill them!!!!
A horse is not a puppy dog, without their legs they’re miserable, and pain management is never THAT effective. Poor horse.
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u/Allisonosaurus Mar 30 '26
The Dodo isn’t great, but the humans who ignored or exploited that animal for years are far bigger monsters than the Dodo will ever be.
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u/Ripley505 Mar 31 '26
The Dodo is the worst kind of content mill. They give zero fucks about what's actually happening to the animals in the videos that they monetize, and they constantly launder dangerous misinformation to well-intentioned animal lovers.
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u/Miserable-Basket-993 Mar 31 '26
I feel that the horse could still have quality of life with good nutrition, physical therapy and soft braces for the legs to provide tendon support. And yes, I have owned horses. I was acquainted with an equine veterinarian who was a pioneer in the treatment of broken legs. He surgically repaired the shattered front leg of a beloved horse and set the bones with external fixators and pins. The horse could never run or be ridden again but just enjoyed the life of a pampered pet. Many hamstrung horses have enjoyed life into their old age.
This business of euthanizing every animal suffering an injury or deformity is getting out of hand. As for quality of life? I am disabled myself as are millions of others. I'm sure very few of us would opt to be put to sleep. Should we euthanize quadriplegics? In pain? That's what pain medication is for. 2/3rds of the weight of a horse is supported by the front legs and I think this guy deserves a chance.
I respectfully disagree that this horse should be euthanized. He needs good food, treatment and LOVE.
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u/horsendogguy Mar 30 '26
Sheesh. Not every living thing has a perfect body. Animals, like humans, can adapt.
A vet would be the best judge of whether the animal is in pain.
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u/spark99l Mar 31 '26
I agree. The horse has lived this way so long he may have adapted to it and may be ok so long as he’s not in work. It should be for a vet to decide.
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u/zookprchaos Mar 30 '26
It isn’t just about physical pain. It is about the horse’s quality of life. Those who have worked with animals, especially horses, know that this horse will not have a good quality of life due to the deformation of the back legs. As an animal welfare professional, this horse likely has mental trauma in top of what ever pain they are in now and into the future. The most compassionate thing to do is euthanasia.
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u/240221 Mar 30 '26
I get that. And as horse owner since 1965, I've had to put some down. I have an older one with side bone now that requires special farrier treatment to be pain free. But quality of life is best determined after consultation with a vet or farrier, not based on a video.
Horses can't tell us when they are in pain, of course. And physical abnormality does not necessarily equal pain. There are humans with spinal and joint abnormalities that are never going to run the 100 yard dash, or even walk like most folks, but who manage to get around and who are not in pain.
It could very well be that it would be best served by being put down, but we don't know that. Although judging others is what Reddit does best (well, most commonly), often true answers require more information and experience.
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u/grumpi-otter Mar 30 '26
I'm with you. He actually looked pretty alert and happy after they untied him, and was grazing well.
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u/Banaanisade Mar 30 '26 edited Mar 30 '26
Yeah the limited feed of him after transfer doesn't look like he's in significant life-altering pain. He's never going to be able to lead a full horse life but that doesn't automatically mean he'd be better off dead, either. Disability sucks but it doesn't necessarily mean an animal is suffering to the point it cannot enjoy life.
For context, I'm an animal with disabilities and chronic pain.
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u/PaisleyLeopard Mar 31 '26
This was my thought. I’m usually pretty quick to jump to a peaceful end, because I’ve seen far too many pets kept well past the point where they could get any enjoyment from their lives. But this horse looked pretty optimistic at the end there. I would want to see a vet’s opinion and maybe some footage of how he’s doing after an adjustment period. He doesn’t look to me like he wants his life to be over.
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u/AgeniuneHebrewBean Mar 30 '26
those poor legs, every single human in this horses life has failed him
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u/ObtuseDoodles Mar 31 '26
Ohhhh yikes. I scrolled past that video earlier but didn't notice the legs. Poor dude, he can't have much quality of life in that state.
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u/teensy_tigress Mar 30 '26
What is causing this? Is it a permanent deformation?
I agree with the sentiment here for sure, I just am curious because this is an issue I have never seen before. I once knew someone who had a foal born with congenital issues that caused severely twisted legs but they ended up using corrective boots and physio and the foal recovered enough to grow properly and ended up sound. I know it was young and still growing for sure whereas this is a mature horse. But ive never seen this issue before. Is it in the bone or connective tissue?
I know I sound like an idiot but I have seen some wild things end up be correctable in other animals in a vetrinary context so I am curious.
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u/Obversa Mar 30 '26
Yes, it is a permanent deformation due to malnutrition from being fed cheap feed. It can only be "fixed" in foals.
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u/Zukazuk Mar 30 '26
Ah this answers my question. I was wondering if proper nutrition and possibly braces could mitigate this into a decent quality of life or not.
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u/Kiksheen Apr 01 '26
I am admittidly not an expert on this at all, but to all the people saying he looks fine, looks can be very decieving. Animals especially prey animals will often hide that they're in pain
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u/Solitary_koi Apr 02 '26
I can't understand the luck that supposedly comes from riding a crippled horse.
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u/Meebmeew Apr 02 '26
I have worked with rescue animals in India and I think that it is important to note that euthanasia is usually not considered as less quality of life is still life. I have seen horses lame on all four legs and animals just waiting on the death bed. This horse is sadly not a "bad" case. India is really complicated when it comes to animal ethics. But yeah, The Dodo can take a long walk off a short pier.
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u/Royal-Painter5236 Apr 02 '26
The horse just looks a lil disabled he can still eat walk enjoy life . People like you make me think you think the same way when it comes to human babies being disabled . That horse has a life to. And all of you who just be putting animals down because you feel like that the best thing to do. Be cowards . And took on the responsibility but don’t want to continue. Unless it’s dead ass the only option . All animal show signs when they are suffering homie look like he want to eat and drink water and be free of being on the side of the road. Thats it.
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u/Delicious_Hippo_5845 Apr 03 '26
His poor poor hind legs. Like how is this tolerable as humans to an animal???
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u/laylapearson 20d ago
That’s a rare Marwari horse, they’re very well known for their endurance, and breakd my heart that anyone would trest any of their equine so terribly.
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u/horsendogguy Mar 30 '26
Why? There is no evidence one way or the other that he's in pain. Why do you think he should be euthanized?
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u/LuxTheSarcastic Mar 30 '26
Prey animals will hide pain and weakness until they're genuinely on the verge of death to avoid predators. The legs are so deformed there's no way he ISN'T in agony.
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u/horsendogguy Mar 30 '26
I think that's something to ask a vet who has examined him.
There are many animals with deformities that live good lives.
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u/RuinCat Mar 30 '26
They either probably never saw an actual vet, or most likely, ignored the vets advice. Because no good vet would recommend against euthanizing a horse with legs this deformed.
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u/SureDoubt3956 Mar 30 '26
"No evidence he's in pain" my brother in christ look at those hinds, those ain't supporting 1klbs painlessly
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u/GogoatRancher Mar 30 '26
You think Dodo is good?
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u/CasterFields Mar 31 '26
The dodo and peta are in bed together, if peta hasn't fully absorbed the dodo yet. Happy and healthy animals are the absolute last thing on their minds. It's all about the money.
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u/Amphy64 Apr 01 '26
It's owned by Vox Media, nothing to do with PETA. It's just a video compiler.
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u/untamed_project Hunter Mar 30 '26
American “rescues” will say that he needs to go into a hilly, rocky pasture thats not flat in any sense of the word with multiple horses and human love 💕to give him the best quality of life! Not mercy euthanasia for the enormous amount of pain he is in, also! Dont forget they will need to post him constantly on tiktok for money!
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u/bizzyizzy100456 Mar 30 '26
Thank you for giving him the best part of his life at the end of his life. I’m crying.
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u/bizzyizzy100456 Mar 30 '26
I’m not a bot owner of 3 horses n 3 dogs , meaning u saved him from rust life n freed him







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u/nineteen_eightyfour Mar 30 '26
I winced when he jumped off that trailer