Neglected foal 'showing recovery'

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A two-month-old foal saved from a site where 32 horses were found dead amongst dozens of neglected ponies and donkeys is recovering, rescuers have said.

The foal, named Esther, was taken to Norfolk-based Redwings Animal Sanctuary for urgent care after it was found at a farm in Amersham, Bucks, by the RSPCA.

About 80 animals were found living in a squalid state alongside the dead horses last week, the charity said.

Despite a poor start in life Esther has done well, a Redwings spokeswoman said.

"She is playful today and that is a really good sign.

"We think she must be the youngest one they found," the spokeswoman at Redwings dedicated horse-hospital in Hapton said.

Mistreatment on this scale is unprecedented in Britain Lee Hackett, British Horse Society

Esther and her mother were taken to the centre, along with 21 horses, ponies and donkeys rescued from the Amersham farm.

RSPCA officers described how dozens of dead horses had been piled up against fences at the farm, with workers describing the scene as the worst they had encountered.

Three horses were put down at the farm, and the emaciated animals which were rescued were taken to sanctuaries across the country.

"Some of them just won't let anyone near them at all," the Redwings spokeswoman said.

"We have to put those through a gradual handling programme and let them recover before we eventually release them into a herd.

"Redwings Horse Sanctuary had travelled to rescues on many occasions but rarely sees cruelty so far advanced that equines are seemingly forgotten and literally left to die."

Man charged

Lee Hackett, the British Horse Society's welfare senior executive, said: "Mistreatment on this scale is unprecedented in Britain - the true horror of the situation is only now becoming clear."

James Gray, 44, of Amersham, was arrested after the animals were found at the farm.

He has been charged with criminal damage and assaulting a police officer and is due before Aylesbury Magistrates court on Monday.

Police would not confirm how he was connected to the operation.