A cob found in knee-deep in mud with an infected abscess on his face has been rescued by the Blue Cross.
The emaciated three-year-old, who has been named Denny, was found abandoned in a “notorious fly-grazing area” in the southwest of England last month.
Police were able to seize Denny using the Control of Horses Act and he was inspected by a Blue Cross vet.
“He was distressingly thin, covered with sores on his legs, riddled with worms and had badly neglected hooves,” said a Blue Cross spokesman.
“But the worst was the suppurating abscess on his face: a rotten tooth had led to an infection to his sinuses and the formation of an abscess on his face that had subsequently burst.”
He was prescribed antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medication before having surgery to remove the offending tooth.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
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Denny has since been wormed, his feet have been trimmed and the sores on his legs treated.
A special diet has also been formulated to provide him with balanced nutrition to help him to gain weight safely.
“Poor Denny will have been in considerable pain from the abscess and rotten tooth and would have struggled to eat, had there been anything on offer in his field of mud,” added Vicki Alford, horse manager at Blue Cross Burford.
“Thankfully the police found him in the nick of time and now he is safe with us.
“When he gains strength he will be gelded and turned out with a herd of geldings and he can put his early life of horrific neglect behind him.”
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Rachael joined Horse & Hound in 2014, initially as a digital sub editor then became part of the news team as a writer in 2015. The philosophy graduate studied journalism at the Press Association before working as a local reporter at the Brentwood Gazette. Rachael is now a mum of two and still loves all things equestrian, including hacking, dressage and jumping with her cob Bert. Rachael left the H&H staff to go freelance in June 2019, but still contributes to our magazine and website, as well as our sister magazine Country Life, among others.
