He said owners are postponing vaccinations and dental work, which could lead, respectively, to cases of the deadly West Nile virus or abnormalities in the mouth that prevent proper chewing.
Pownall said they are selling their horses for cents on the dollar, giving them away and euthanizing older or injured animals earlier than planned.
They are moving out of their homes and into their horse trailers, deferring taxes and equipment fees and cashing out their retirement plans. They are turning off the barn lights.
“This is happening now – right now,” said Dr. Pownall, a founding partner at Ontario’s McKee-Pownall Equine Services of Campbellville.
“We’re right at the point where, best-case scenario, a lot of horses are going to go hungry, and worst-case scenario they’re sold on auction for meat or euthanized. ... It’s not neglect. It’s ‘We don’t have money.’"
