Just wondering..what do people do with a horse or cow that dies?

Question

I mean...theyre not small, like a parakeet, or a goldfish....do they dig a giant hole in the yard?....how can they get the body in it?...I know, seems like a dumb question, but I'm from a city, not a farm.

Answer 1

A lot of carcasses are sent to the rendering plants to be turned into meat and glue- and in the case of a cow, into leather. Some people can't stand this when it comes to horses, though- mainly because they are usually very emotionally attached to the animal. When this happens, horses are either buried outright on the farm where they lived, or, if the owners are wealthy enough and can afford to do this, they are creamated and then the ashes are buried or scattered somewhere. Most horses that die of disease or are euthanized for other reasons CAN'T be used for food, because of the drugs that were given to euthanize the animal, or because the disease the horse was suffering from is or was contagious, either to people or other animals. I have been through the experience of home burial of a beloved horse a few times- it is one of the most heart breaking things that any horseperson ever faces. If this option is chosen, then the hole that is dug for the grave needs to be at LEAST 6 feet deep, with 8 to 10 being preferable for a large horse. The hole must be completely backfilled and the site leveled off after burial, and the area must be checked again after hard rains and backfilled as needed. It is common practice to have cemetaries for famous horses on some of the larger breeding farms in places like Kentucky and Maryland- and the graves in those cemetaries have headstones and markers. When a horse is buried at one of those farms, the carcass is moved to the grave with a backhoe or truck. The same is true for the rendering plants- usually, such places will have their own trucks which they will send to the farm to pick up the dead animal. Some charge a fee for this service, others include it in their overall fees for the rendering. Hopefully, this answers your question ( and no, I don't think it's dumb- I was a city person durning most of my early childhood) and helps you understand a little better what horse people sometimes face when they lose a horse.

Answer 2

Here in Canada there are specific laws stating what you must do if you choose to dispose of a large animal's remains on your property. The laws state in great detail how and where you may bury, burn or compost your animal. Yes, that's right, composing is an option used but you have to know exactly how to do it to get enough heat to destroy all the bacteria, and I have no idea of the process. Your local District Agriculturalist could easily provide that information. In many places it is not legal to leave the carcass out in the bush for scavanges to eat, that is an option that should be checked legally before anyone does it! Some people feel it would be very inhumane to do something like that to a family pet, others fell that is just part of the circle of life and will assist other species of animals.
Rendering trucks used to come and pick up dead stock here, they would charge a small fee but with the increase in prices of fuel and such they aren't very common in my area now. And leaving a large dead animal around for a week or two until the truck arrives does pose a few problems, especially if it isn't the winter time! Gross!
Pet cemetaries do not exist in my area and therefore would not be an option for me, besides they are very expensive. There are also places that will cremate large animals, but once again there isn't one within hours from my home.
Your local vet would also be a great source of information on this topic as it is a problem he has to deal with on a regular basis.

Answer 3

If you have plenty land and zoning permits you may be able to dig a large hole and bury your loved one but in many cases that is not an option. Many locations worry about contaminating the water supply, etc. There are pet cemeteries, which will take horses, but the cost is high -- around $1000. Another option is sending the carcass to a rendering plant....most horse lovers aren't too fond of this option. Lastly, there are wild game facilities which will take the body and use it for the continuation of the circle of life. At least some good might come from the loss.

Answer 4

Depending on the laws in your area, there are pretty strict regulations on disposing of large carcusses. If your land is large enough, some places will let you bury the animal so long as it is far away from any water source to avoid contaminations. There are some facilities that do animal funeral services that have cemitoriums large enough to handle an animal the size of a horse.

Lastly, many deal with the carcusses by having a rendering company take it. These companies will use the bodies for making products like fertalizer and for a fee, will pick the animal up after it dies.

Answer 5

For horses, we hire a backhoe to dig a really big hole. They're pets, we have the same attachment to ours one would with any other pet.

Don't have cows...I'd probably call the "dead wagon" to take it to the rendering plant. Any large animal vet can get you a local number of a hauler.

Some of the Amish near us don't do anything, they just have an area out in the woods where they drag the body. Toss some lime on. P-U.

Answer 6

Most people if they have a farm and not just a horse living in their back yard, will use a tractor to dig a hole for the horse and bury it. Also, some people will send it to be burned, and keep the ashes.

Answer 7

You ought to deliver the animals to whichever brother believes they're valued at probably the most. That way you deliver the pony to the center brother who believes that horse is valued at 260 gold cash, and also you deliver the cow to the youngest brother who believes it's valued at a hundred and seventy gold cash. Then you ought to distribute one of the crucial gold cash in order that the brothers have an same proportion. Right now the center brother has some thing he believes to be valued at 260 gold cash, so you do not deliver him any further cash but. The youngest brother has some thing that he believes is valued at a hundred and seventy gold cash, so that you deliver him ninety gold cash to make his complete same to the center brother's 260. The eldest brother has not anything, so that you deliver him 260 gold cash so that he's regardless of the two different brothers. Then you have got a hundred and fifty gold cash left. You distribute the ones similarly (50 to each and every brother). So that is what each and every brother has: Eldest: 310 gold cash Middle: Horse and 50 gold cash Youngest: Cow and one hundred forty gold cash This leaves each and every brother believing his proportion is both larger than or same to his different brothers. The eldest brother has 310 gold cash. He thinks the center brother's horse is handiest valued at 250 cash and the youngest brother's cow is handiest valued at a hundred and fifty cash. So he thinks the importance of the center brother's proportion is three hundred, and the youngest brother's proportion is 290. He believes he obtained the nice deal. The center brother has a horse and 50 gold cash. In his opinion that's valued at 310. That way he feels his older brother has the equal quantity as him. He thinks the youngest brother's cow is handiest valued at a hundred and sixty cash. So he thinks the importance of the youngest brother's proportion is three hundred. He believes he obtained a greater deal than the more youthful brother. The youngest brother has a cow and one hundred forty gold cash. In his opinion that's valued at 310. That way he feels the oldest brother has the equal quantity as him. He thinks the center brother's horse is handiest valued at 240 cash. So he thinks the importance of the center brother's proportion is 290. He believes he obtained a greater deal than the center brother. And they are all glad!

Answer 8

You use a backhoe to dig a HUGE hole, usually on the property where the horse lived. The backhoe then picks up the horse and puts it on a truck or in a bulldozer bucket to bring it to the hole. They try to GENTLY lower it into the grave and then they bury it.

Answer 9

Round here, we are miles from anywhere so the local custom is to drag dead cows out into the bush, and let the Coyotes clear it up, then they repay by catching prairie dogs in the summer.
When we lived in England we used to call the hunt kennels or a licensed abattoir to come and take the carcass away. Now we bury ours under muck heaps and let them compost down.

Answer 10

Not a dumb question at all. They may be able to call the same people that clean up road kill. Is that an animal sanitation organization of some sort? I know that they exist but not sure of the exact name.