‘It’s soul-destroying’ horses beaten, tied in barbed wire and left to die in ditch in unimaginable act of evil
The owner of three horses who were led in barbed-wire headcollars, viciously beaten and left in a flooded ditch to die said she cannot begin to comprehend the evil of those responsible.
Julie Jackson’s mare Skye, whom she had owned for 30 years, did not survive the unimaginable cruelty of the act. Her two colts Red and Oak will recover physically but have been traumatised by the sickening violence.
Julie went to her field, in Gwent, Wales, as normal on the morning of 19 November, but the horses did not come when called. Eventually she found Skye and Oak in a ditch fields away, legs tied with barbed wire, and Red nearby. Oak was saved but it was too late for Skye.
“It’s been hell,” Julie told H&H.
Julie said she thought something was amiss as soon as she got to the field.
“I went down and could see they weren’t there,” she said. “Every day for 30 years I’ve called and she’s come; my heart sank. I found the wire had been cut and the gate forced open; I thought they’d been stolen, at first.”
Julie rang the farmer who owned the fields next to hers to ask if his fences and gates were intact.
“He said he’d just been feeding the cattle and found three ponies; one passed away, one stressed out and trussed up in barbed wire,” she said. “The wire was twisted so tight round his leg, they couldn’t get it off.”
The farmer, Julie and a passer-by went back to the ditch, as did the fire brigade, who reported the incident to the police.
“They said it was a crime scene; we could see the makeshift headcollars made from barbed wire,” Julie said. “Little Oak was in the water with his legs tied together in barbed wire so he couldn’t get out. They’d walked them across about 40 acres to get to somewhere secluded, they’d beaten them; you can see the marks.
“Skye was an easy target because of her age, and she was the sweetest animal you’d ever meet. She was a little old lady but still with plenty of life left, but she wouldn’t have put up a fight, she’d have just stood on the edge of the ditch while they pushed her in.”
Julie said she has not been able to look at the pictures of Skye, but that her legs were also twisted in barbed wire as they left her to die in the water-filled ditch.
“It was the coldest night of the year; snowing, and at her age, she just couldn’t have put up a fight,” she said. “She’d never known any abuse in all her life so I can only hope she went quickly because of the shock.
“It’s the most disgusting, horrific, vile thing; it’s incomprehensible – and they call themselves human beings.”
Oak, a yearling colt, had enough fight to survive until his rescuers arrived, but he was struggling, Julie said.
“The person who was with me sat with Oak while I was trying to keep Red quiet,” she added. “I’ve never seen an animal so distressed and the grunts he was making; I’ve never heard a horse make those sounds before. The chap with me, Andy, managed to free one of Oak’s legs and I could just hear him saying ‘It’s ok, mate, we’ll get you some help’.”
Julie thinks Red had suffered the worst beating as he was so traumatised, and she said the marks from the blows are still visible.
“He’s so aggressive now; every time you touch him, his whole body flinches and he tries to attack you,” she said. “I think he put up a fight as he wasn’t in the ditch, and where he was fighting and pulling away, all round his muzzle are cuts from the barbed wire.
“Physically, they’re ok but mentally – it’ll be months, if not years, and all we can do is be kind.”
Julie said Skye, her partner of three decades, had been enjoying her retirement.
“She was just chilling, loving life,” she said. “She always came as soon as I called her, she was a lovely, beautiful soul who was happy living her best life.
“My children grew up with her; I could put my two-year-old grandchild on her. I always knew how sweet she was but even more so now when I look back. It’s soul-destroying and it’s all that goes round my head – why?”
Police are investigating and Julie hopes someone might have evidence that will help catch those responsible.
“There’s a main intercity rail line by the fields they would have walked them across,” she said. “I think there must have been someone who saw it and thought it was strange; I hope someone might read this and think they saw something, and get in touch.”
A spokesperson for Gwent Police said: “We received a report on Tuesday, 19 November that a horse had been killed and two others injured in a field near Wentlooge. Enquiries are ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact us, via 101 or online, quoting log reference 2400385175.”
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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.