Horses in back gardens! Whats going on?

potsofmoney_(I_wish)

I spoke with my childminder today, apparantly he has been going around looking for empty houses (the house next door to my c/m is for sale and empty), and then gaining access and putting the horse on the lawn. The police were called and unbelievably he is still able to keep the horse.:eek: He says that he has no choice as he has no money for hay.

Surely this horse is suffering neglect and the police should have passed it on to horse rescue?

Sammyantha

potsofmoney_(I_wish) wrote: »

Surely this horse is suffering neglect and the police should have passed it on to horse rescue?

Police are useless with neglect/ cruelty cases. Most of the rescues have their hands tied, as unless the owner is willing to sign over ownership, or the horse is at death's door, there is nothing they are able to do.

Horse/ pony owners do not keep their animals like this, it is *not* normal practice. If they cannot afford to keep an animal, they should not have it. Much of the time, these people rely on the general public to take pity and feed the horse hay and water it. Unfortunately though, well-meaning as they are, members of the public unfamiliar with horses can often give them cut grass, bread, and other foods which can be toxic and cause colic. Either that, or the animal comes to rely on them, and the owner happily goes on with the situation knowing he doesn't have to pay for a thing. I really don't know what to suggest OP, as the first port of call would be your local horse rescues and sanctuaries - start with Redwings, the ILPH and the Blue Cross.

I once had three elderly mares dumped in my horse's field and left to rot. Had my mother and i not paid out of our own pockets and tried to care for them (2 were unhandleable) every day, they would have died before any of the rescues would consider taking them. In the end we were lucky enough to persuade the owner to sign thm over to us, and we in turn signed them over to the ILPH who rehomed them at one of their sanctuaries. It took more than 3 years for those poor animals to be rescued!

I am also from the West Mids (Birmingham), and this is not normal practice here either. If you have seen it, don't think it's normal, or "right". A horse needs an acre of land to itself for optimum comfort. That land should be free from toxic plants such as ragwort (the yellow plants you will see in most of these rough fields/ verges) which can kill horses by causing chronic poisoning, free from dangerous objects (barbed wire/ broken or loose fencing/ broken glass/ plastic etc), and away from busy roads or dangerous areas.

suki1964

hethmar wrote: »

Poor ponies, not much of a life on a council estate I should think In Ireland they are everywhere, even kept in blocks of flats. Its madness.

See another one remembers that particular scene from the film
The commitments

Can't see I've seen any on the stairwells near me.
Mind him next door has two horse and a pony in his front garden along with stables and muck heap

The only horse I see being fed on the verges is up the next village. It's walked out every evening for a good feed. Does a public service as the council don't maintain verges here

IHD

To hear this is just crazy . Horses tethered are usually gypsy horses but to keep a horse in a very restricted area is just madness. Ok so they have shelter/food but they are herd animals . They are also animals that like to gallop and kick their heels from time to time , not to mention get down and have a good roll. If you see a horse being kept like this (in a built up area) call the ILPH please. You will find their website on the net with contact numbers to ring. The chances are if horses are being kept in flats or buildings other than purpose built stables (with land or a turnout paddock) then other welfare issues are being overlooked. Horses can develop all sorts of bad habits from being confined , box walking , weaving, crib biting, all of which are detrimental to a horses well being. The chances are the diet is not correct , they are not being wormed and will not be seen by a blacksmith (or vet). Unless you have a large stable and approx one acre of land, then you dont have enough room for a horse, even then it will need feeding throughout the winter.

charlie792

Driving into cardiff one day there was a horse left on a busy roundabout (one of those grass roundabouts) but still - I wouldn't of thought that was at all safe, could have so easily walked off and got hit by a car....poor thing...

Blobby8_2

charlie792 wrote: »

Driving into cardiff one day there was a horse left on a busy roundabout (one of those grass roundabouts) but still - I wouldn't of thought that was at all safe, could have so easily walked off and got hit by a car....poor thing...

And imagine claiming off a horses insurance for your loss.

DansMum_2

IHD wrote: »

To hear this is just crazy . Horses tethered are usually gypsy horses but to keep a horse in a very restricted area is just madness. Ok so they have shelter/food but they are herd animals . They are also animals that like to gallop and kick their heels from time to time , not to mention get down and have a good roll. If you see a horse being kept like this (in a built up area) call the ILPH please. You will find their website on the net with contact numbers to ring. The chances are if horses are being kept in flats or buildings other than purpose built stables (with land or a turnout paddock) then other welfare issues are being overlooked. Horses can develop all sorts of bad habits from being confined , box walking , weaving, crib biting, all of which are detrimental to a horses well being. The chances are the diet is not correct , they are not being wormed and will not be seen by a blacksmith (or vet). Unless you have a large stable and approx one acre of land, then you dont have enough room for a horse, even then it will need feeding throughout the winter.

Rescue charities are not interested.... I had a thread here in the summer about ponies being kept on contaminated land (lime,ammonia, asbestos) no shelter. They said as long as they have water they wont do anything.

These poor things being kept in tiny back gardens. The worm burden will be huge, mud fever, dangers from inadequate fencing, shelter? If this chap cannot afford hay (£35 for a 400kg bale hardly bank breaking imho) then he should find a home for his horses who can. Ithought BHS recommendations was 1 acre per horse?

IHD

Dansmum ..didnt i put approx one acre per horse ? !!!

IHD

Blobby8 wrote: »

And imagine claiming off a horses insurance for your loss.

Actually horses DO have insurance for incidents just like traffic accidents amongst other things. Or should i say responsible owners take out 'horse' insurance !

lostinrates

DansMum wrote: »

. Ithought BHS recommendations was 1 acre per horse?

There are some BHS riding schools/establishments wher horses get no turn out for much of the year.

The recommendations used to be 2 acres for the first horse and 1 for each subsequent horse ...but that's based on nutrition(and potential for haymaking) etc as much as running about.