The Final Ride

Shortly after Christmas, unfortunately, one of my dear equine friends shuffled off this mortal coil sometime during the night. This was the first time one of my horses had died without a veterinarian present because the horse went so suddenly and without warning or any signs of illness.

Previously, the veterinarian always dealt with the remains or knew someone they called in, so I didn't have any idea who to call. I'm mostly writing this report so that other horse owners can more easily find a resource for this type of service than no one ever wants to have to use. I didn't know this at the time, but apparently it is VERY important to deal with the horse's remains quickly (within 24 hours) or things apparently get more complicated for the removal because of state regulations in Texas. So don't delay in calling someone if your horse or other livestock dies.

Anyway, I found their website, and really wasn't in a position or mood to really be that choosy, but I got really lucky in finding this company, The Final Ride. They were extremely responsive, punctual, professional, and had great "bedside manner" given the depressing nature of their services. They did arrive a little later than they said they would (~30 minutes), but I'm not going to ding them for that because for some stupid reason our city decided to give two streets in our town the exact same name and their GPS took them to the wrong one. Also, they drove in from a couple of towns over (at no extra charge) and weren't as familiar with the area to to know this. Given how quickly they showed up (despite the minor detour), they must have jumped in the truck immediately after I called.

Apparently it is a family business as a woman arrived with a boy in his late teens, which I think was her son. but could have been her grandson. At first I was thinking, "how are these two gonna haul off that heavy horse?", but they had it down to a science and used a winch to load the horse into their trailer in short order. It was clear they were old pros at it.

I was a bit worried also because the horse was way back in a pasture that was really flooded and muddy. There was even a small ditch full of water blocking the path to the horse. I was nervous that whoever showed up was not going to want to drive back there for fear of getting stuck in the mud. Not a problem at all, she cautiously maneuvered her 4x4 truck & trailer over the mud and through the water to the horse. There were a few tense moments where both of us worried she might not make it out. I really appreciated her willingness to go the extra mile and take some risks (frankly) to get the job done.

She was very personable, professional and empathetic to the situation and took a lot of time to explain exactly to me what would happen with the remains and put me at ease that my beloved pet wasn't just going to be dropped at the county dump. She chatted at length about her own horses and the question I'm sure she gets asked on every job about how she can stand to do what she does given that she is clearly a person who loves horses herself. She claimed that she liked her job because she could see that horses were treated respectfully and ethically. Overall the experience was way better than I expected it would be given the circumstances.

To top it off, the services were extremely affordable considering she probably spent $40 in gas alone making the round trip out to my property.

I'd highly recommend this family owned business if you are ever in the unfortunate need of their services.