Ban for teenager who left mare’s ulcerated eye untreated
An Guildford teenager has been banned from keeping horses for two years for allowing his horse to suffer for weeks with a serious eye injury.
Eighteen-year-old John Jones from The Hatchingdon in Worplesdon, appeared before Guildford Magistrates Court on Thursday 25 June.
He pleaded guilty to failing to provide veterinary treatment for a 12.2hh six-year-old tri-coloured mare, who had a severely ulcerated eye.
As well as his ban from own horses, he also ordered to pay £2,500 costs and carry out 100 hours of community service.
World Horse Welfare field officer Ted Barnes attended the pony on 25 February after a call to the charity from a member of the public.
He found the mare tethered on Rickford Common in Burdenshott Road, Guildford.
The pony’s right eye was badly injured and oozing green pus and a veterinary examination showed her eyelid was completely missing.
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The mare was immediately taken away for treatment where vet John Baart found her eye was badly ulcerated possibly as a result of a penetrative injury.
He estimated that the pony had been allowed to suffer for at least 21 days and recommended that her right eye be completely removed.
The operation, which cost £2,300 was funded by the RSPCA and after a period of recovery she was taken to World Horse Welfare Glenda Spooner Farm in Somerset where staff named her ‘Panda’.
Mr Barnes said: “This was one of the most serious physical injuries I have ever seen on a horse and I hope I never see suffering like this again.
“Panda’s future is secure as she was signed over to us prior to the case going to court and she is now starting to respond to the care provided by World Horse Welfare staff. Hopefully it won’t be long before we can find her a caring new home.”
For more information about World Horse Welfare, go to www.worldhorsewelfare.org
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A self-confessed newshound, farmer’s daughter and journalist of many years' experience, Charlotte worked on regional papers before joining H&H in 2007. A regular rider, she visited Ireland in 2010 to investigate the fate of Irish horses through the recession, to much acclaim, and reported from the FEI General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro in 2011. She left Horse & Hound in March 2013.