More dead foals found dumped in Wales
A Welsh trading standards department is putting local people on alert after 10 more dead foals were dumped in the area.
Last month H&H reported at least 14 dead foals had been dumped in the Vale of Glamorgan and Bridgend since mid-April.
Since then a further 10 dead foals have been found in the Cowbridge area, in three separate incidents. The cause of death is not clear.
The Vale of Glamorgan Council has sent out letters to horse breeders in the area, reminding them that fallen stock must be disposed of through approved premises, and threatening fines of up to £5,000.
Principal trading standards officer Christina Roberts-Kinsey said: “The illegal dumping of carcasses will not be tolerated.
“The discovery of these carcasses is highly upsetting.”
Local group VANAH (Voices Against Neglect and Abuse of Horses) was set up to draw attention to the poor condition and number of ponies fly grazing in Bridgend.
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Jo Davies of the group said: “These 10 foals in the past two weeks are just those we know about – there is a terrible problem across Bridgend and the Vale of Glamorgan.”
The group wants the Welsh government and Defra to put pressure on local authorities to ensure passport and microchipping legislation and welfare laws are policed.
They have asked members of the public to write to their MPs and assembly members highlighting the issue.
In a separate incident more than 100 horses have been released onto land at Caerbryn, Ammanford in South Wales.
Local horse lovers have said many look poor and at least one has died.
This news story was first published in the current issue of H&H (12 July 2012)
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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.