A horse raced to the point of death in Ireland was discarded in the street by its laughing tormentors, according to witnesses.
The Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA) is investigating after the horse was driven in a sulky through the streets of Cork, Republic of Ireland.
It collapsed in a residential street in the Hawthorn Mews Estate, Dublin Hill, where it was unharnessed and left to die.
ISPCA senior inspector Lisa O’Donovan said the charity is trying to trace the horse’s owner, which is proving difficult in the absence of a microchip.
“Eyewitnesses confirmed the horse was pulling a sulky cart before collapsing from exhaustion; that the horse was then detached from the cart and left to die on the street,” she added.
“It is not acceptable that an animal is pushed to the point of collapsing and then simply abandoned.”
Ms O’Donovan said this was not an isolated incident and that the charity is campaigning for sulky racing on public roads to be banned.
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“‘It is not acceptable that you have young kids going out there driving a horse into the ground and then just walking away,” she added.
“A few people said to me that they were laughing as they went which I think is even more horrifying. There is no remorse, no guilt.
The pony may have been involved in a harness race when it collapsed and died on a public road
“The horse is of no more value to them than anything else.
“While we cannot undo the tragic outcome for this animal, we are calling for a ban on sulky racing on public roads to prevent further instances of suffering to another animal.”
The ISPCA has appealed for anyone with information on the incident, or the horse’s owner, to get in touch.
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Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.
