Thor.. the emaciated horse from Bissel wood ride

I followed this at the time and the lady on FB who had something to do with the saving of him and getting him right again posts updates now and then. She said at the time that she couldn't go into any details of who rescued and paid (I *suspected* it was his former trainer perhaps but that was my guess) because it would be detrimental to the trial. Wonder if whoever has done it can now receive the credit they deserve.
 
Any fun ride I attended used to have a vet in attendance and you had to run horse up etc first. If vet was in attendance they also need prosecuting for allowing her to ride.
 
Gosh were they pleasure rides run by egb? Never had that on any fun ride I've been on, or a tack check as suggested earlier just pay, collect number off you go
 
I see this & think it's incredible what some horses put up with......

Let's hope the poor boy has a much healthier, happier future ahead of him
 
Snuffles said:
Any fun ride I attended used to have a vet in attendance and you had to run horse up etc first. If vet was in attendance they also need prosecuting for allowing her to ride.
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I have only seen that a at rides run by the endurance group.
Round here there's no vet you just turn up pay and go.
 
Un effing believable.

Sadly, I do think a huge amount of ex racers end up in dire straights as they are cheap. Good on the ex trainer for stepping in.

I remember one who ran in the National, I think with a woman jockey, being rescued starving from a rubbish dump some 15 years ago.

My ex had a 12th share in a hurdler. When she broke down, one of the syndicate, keen to give her a good future, suggested she be gifted to the RDA!!! She is, I'm happy to say, wandering round a field rugged, wormed and fed at the age of 24 with my sister's similarly aged old advanced dressage horse.

This makes my blood boil. How could anybody think sticking a saddle on was OK.
 
So often I see photos of horses which are alleged to be in poor condition and in fact just a bit unkempt. These photos are truly shocking. It's horrifying that anyone could think it was OK to work a horse in that condition, not because their livelihood depends on it (as so often in the 3rd world) but for pleasure, and in the UK, where even a blind owner could see that their horse does not meet the 'usual' picture of a healthy animal.
 
Made me cry too! At least there's a picture showing his improve state, which is lovely to see, even though there's still a long way to go.

A good horse with a heart of gold will keep trying to do what's asked of him until he collapsed down at the knees from exhaustion. I hope someone else will give this boy a lovely home, and I bet he'll be a lovely horse.

As for the girl, I agree with everyone else - MAJOR neglect, NO excuse - at least her actions are now known and made public.
 
What a star that horse is to behave when in that condition. Being clipped must have hurt, how did they not realise something was wrong when they clipped it! Did they fall for the all tb's are thin?! The horse does not look quite as bad tacked up and covered by a sheet, but it says a lot for society that no one said anything sooner.
 
Possibly the worst thing about this is that feeding a horse is not expensive

A budget bag of chaff and a bag of nuts are £5 a piece which is exactly what they were 25 years ago when I started out, small bales of hay again are exactly the same price they were
 
I was at the fun ride on that day, but didnt actually see the poor horse myself, I did however see the immediate backlash on facebook and am glad to hear Thor is now doing so well.
There was no vet in attendance at the fun ride and you just paid and rode. I do believe the venue have started having vets there after this incident though but I havent been to one there since so not 100% sure on that.
 
I think that is one of the worst pictures I have ever seen. And the stupid owner was still riding it! Glad to know he has a happy home now.
 
npage123 said:
Made me cry too! At least there's a picture showing his improve state, which is lovely to see, even though there's still a long way to go.

.
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In what way do you still think there's still a long way to go ?
If you thinking about weight it's a good job you can't see my hunters you would not be happy .my aim is get them carrying as little fat as that .
 
Can't speak for npage but there were some other more recent photos of him on FB recently, where he looked like a horse that was just not in work, had little topline etc. GS I'm guessing yours are on the light side as fit but muscled. But considering the starting point of this horse, clearly a huge improvement :)
 
Every time I look at the "before" photo, I think who on earth would think that it is OK to put a saddle on, never mind ride. I'm completely surprised he didn't collapse at Bissel.
 
I can't believe anyone, novice owner or not could think that a horse in that sort of condition was OK, could the owner not even use her eyes and look at other horses and wonder why is mine looking like a hat rack and not like the others?

Sometimes the punishments really don't fit the crime - personally I think that she should have some 'prolonged underfeeding' she might start to understand what she did then and the pain that poor Thor must have been feeling. I think a ban for life would have been more appropriate too.

He's such a star to put up with treatment like that. So glad he's in better shape now and I only hope that he doesn't suffer too much in the future after all he's been through.
 
Goldenstar said:
In what way do you still think there's still a long way to go ?
If you thinking about weight it's a good job you can't see my hunters you would not be happy .my aim is get them carrying as little fat as that .
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Having seen a recent pic of him, I would agree that there's still a long way to go, he's much better but needs more weight on ( and I hate a fat horse)
 
I can only assume that the owner of Thor is not completely all there to allow a horse to get in that state.
What I would like to know is which yard he was kept on and why the yard owner did not intervene?
 
Frumpoon said:
Possibly the worst thing about this is that feeding a horse is not expensive

A budget bag of chaff and a bag of nuts are £5 a piece which is exactly what they were 25 years ago when I started out, small bales of hay again are exactly the same price they were
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The horse had a massive worm burden, no doubt the girl was shoving cheap food down him too.
 
OWLIE185 said:
I can only assume that the owner of Thor is not completely all there to allow a horse to get in that state.
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This is my thought too, especially having seen the selfie of her grinning away at the camera, whilst you could clearly see how emaciated the horse was in the background.
 
It's a very strange case of starvation. Normally people would deny owning a horse that looked like that. They certainly wouldn't bring it out in public. Is it possible she somehow didn't see how bad his condition was (not that I'm excusing her)

Perhaps she kept it in a rented field rather than a yard. That would explain why people didn't report it sooner.
I sometimes think it would be better if horses weren't so forgiving of us. Mabey people would have to treat them better.
 
Poor horse :(
The fact she put an exercise sheet on him so people couldn't see him makes me think she was fully aware of his condition. Unbelievable situation really.
 
I can't believe how this ever happened and why anyone who knew this girl and Thor let it happen. Those saddle sores are dreadful. Why did she spend money on a fly veil and not food.All the best to him and those who rescued him.
Even my non horsey husband read this in one of the daily newspapers on the internet and told me about it so it has made the national press and lets hop that if another horse is in this situation it will encourage people to intervene.
It makes me cry to think how much he was suffering and yet he carried her on that ride that day.
 
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