Poor neglected horses :(

noblesteed

noblesteed

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In the field beside my place of work there live 3 horses. 1 is a chunky cob type, one tb and one grey appaloosa x. They have no shelter, are never ridden and have no hay. None are rugged. Their field is grazed to nothing now, so they eat the hedges. I have never seen anyone tend to them let alone ride them. They have a damaged wire fence and a pond to drink out of.
They have been there at least 2 1/2 years since I have worked there.
I am very concerned about one horse in particular as she is so very thin, and she just stands beside the hedge with her head to the ground. It's been snowing for goodness sake!
I am not sure whether I should report them, and who I report them to. Apparently they belong to a man who lives in the next village, who is a bit 'strange'.
I just don't want to cause any trouble as it is a very 'local' village!
 
Poor buggers - someone needs to be a voice for them as they cannot tell anyone they need help - please do something for them.
Why not approach the man and see if he needs help with them that way you cant be told off for sticking a bit of water/hay/ a rug on them. I will happily donate some rugs and some money for hay if you manage it.
 
If you're worried about their welfare, I'd report them but not say who you are? Or maybe talk to a couple of friends in the village and see what they think? Then you don't feel as if it's just you! Good luck
smile.gif
 
If you decide to report.... the person involved would not know it was you as whichever welfare charity you informed would keep your identity confidential...
You have to be careful though, they may get fed morning and evening when you are not at work.....
however, you would see evidence of hay i guess.... and stagnant pond water - urgghh... not a good idea....
 
hi this needs dealing with asap , there is a new law now that allows the rspca to act without the horse becoming emaciated whereas before their hands were tied, personal message me the address of the field and road and as much details as poss and i can do it for you if you like , no one has the right to do this and i wouldnt stand by and see it happen .
 
[ QUOTE ]
hi this needs dealing with asap , there is a new law now that allows the rspca to act without the horse becoming emaciated whereas before their hands were tied, personal message me the address of the field and road and as much details as poss and i can do it for you if you like , no one has the right to do this and i
wouldnt stand by and see it happen .

[/ QUOTE ] Good post.
 
Don't ring RSPCA. They are about as much use as a chocolate teapot in the middle of the arizona desert during a heatwave when it comes to horses.
Ring either WHW or Redwings. And, given the current weather conditions I would do it sooner rather than later. They both have 24 hour hotlines I believe, so you could even ring tonight.
 
If you contact WHW they certainly won't tell the owner who has reported it. They will send an inspector out to look at them. And take action quickly.
 
Don't waste your time phoning the RSPCA, I rang them regarding a horse once and they never bothered to turn up, so I rang WHW (ILPH) and they came out the same day and took the horse away. They by law do NOT give out your name to anyone, you don't even have to give it to them over the phone if you don't wish to. Please call them ASAP, it's going to get colder over the next few days, and those poor horses need seeing to and fast xx
 
I must just point out that NOT being ridden is not actually a welfare issue
wink.gif

...but will say that if you are sure noone is tending to these animals and they really don't have fresh water and one is in a bad way then yes, please contact the WHW asap.
 
Goodness, I would drive down tonight and chuck them a few sections of hay if I were close enough - it's a foul night.

I second the WHW or Redwings or any charity but the RSPCA - they didn't come out when i reported someone and gave all the details.

Can you say whereabouts you are, roughly? Maybe just the county? There are some very good local charities that might help too.
 
RSPCA didnt do anything about some ponies that were not being fed, a few winters ago and didnt have any shelter,all they did was tell the owner to feed them and put a shelter up.. I would call one of the charities too.ASAP.Let us know what happens.
 
I had a similar concern with an old horse who although attended to just looked too thin and is on an overgrazed paddock and had no rug on despite the really wet weather at the time. I called ILPH or WHW I think they are now. I was worried as I didn't know if it was a welfare case of just an old horse with issues that were being dealt with and didn't want to waste their time but they were really nice and said they get loads of calls like that and it won't do any harm just to go out and check and put everyones mind at rest. They went out that week, the horse is still there but rugged now and her field is being rested and looks like she gets more hay.

So I'd say give them a call and just explain your concerns, better to put your mind at rest, you'd feel dreadful if it got worse and you'd done nothing
 
You must report asap! If it was me in your shoes I would not hesitate or be asking questions about doing so, I would just get on the phone to WHW and report my concerns about state of field, water supply, no signs of extra forage being given, no shelter, no rugs and the state of one of the horses who looks very subdued.
I must add though that as others have said not being ridden is not a welfare issue and neither is not being rugged. Lack of access to clean, safe drinking water, no shelter ( except hedges) and the none provision of additional forage since the horses are trying to manage on whatever smidge of grass is still available ( which at today's low temperatures would not be of much benefit to them nutritionally anyway) is though.
Ring WHW they will send an inspector out to check them. They will find and contact the owners or people responsible for their care and will act accordingly in the animals best interests.
FWIW I have had contact with them a couple of times and each time their quick response to horses in need has been amazing and the animals have got the attention they were very much in need of.
Not meaning to sound rude or harsh but the owner will have no idea who has reported him/her.
At the end of the day it is in the interest of the horse's themselves that this matter needs addressing.
Please let us know how you get on if you are able to, PM if you prefer so not public on here.
Good luck
smile.gif
 
Well the fact that they are not ridden is not really a concern, nor necessarily the fact that they are unrugged if they are not clipped, but if one of them is really thin (I'm presuming you can see ribs) and there appears to be no source of food then you should report them.
 
Hi, thanks for your help.
I went in today ready to report them to whw, as it was snowing, and then to my surprise the owner has been down and put a rug on the grey. No hay put out though. DO I still report him? I don't even know his name or where he lives!
 
If you ring World Horse Welfare Helpline they will send one of their welfare officers out to check the horses and if they find anything amiss will advise the owner how to improve their care. They will not reveal who you are. Most their welfare officers are ex-mounted police officers and they are the best charity for reporting equine welfare issues to.

Welfare Line for free on 08000 480180. We encourage people to call rather than email in order to gain as much information as possible.

The Welfare Line is open from 8am - 6.30pm, Monday - Friday, with a voicemail system to take calls outside of these hours.

We endeavour to answer as many calls as possible but, unfortunately, some will go through to voicemail. We aim to return all welfare calls within the same working day so please do leave a message, clearly stating a daytime contact number, and we will return the call as soon as possible.

All calls to this number are strictly confidential and are dealt with by trained members of staff who have a knowledge of horses as well as an understanding of the relevant legislation.

When you call to report a concern, we will ask you some questions about the situation so that we can establish whether we need to pass the details to a field officer for investigation.

Once the field officer has been out to look at the horses and taken any action necessary, we always try to report back to the caller so they know we have attended and what we have been able to do.
Welfare Line for free on 08000 480180. We encourage people to call rather than email in order to gain as much information as possible.

The Welfare Line is open from 8am - 6.30pm, Monday - Friday, with a voicemail system to take calls outside of these hours.

We endeavour to answer as many calls as possible but, unfortunately, some will go through to voicemail. We aim to return all welfare calls within the same working day so please do leave a message, clearly stating a daytime contact number, and we will return the call as soon as possible.

All calls to this number are strictly confidential and are dealt with by trained members of staff who have a knowledge of horses as well as an understanding of the relevant legislation.

When you call to report a concern, we will ask you some questions about the situation so that we can establish whether we need to pass the details to a field officer for investigation.

Once the field officer has been out to look at the horses and taken any action necessary, we always try to report back to the caller so they know we have attended and what we have been able to do.
 
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