Newborn foal dumped dead on roadside
A newborn foal has been dumped dead on the roadside in The Fens with its umbilical cord still attached.
The chestnut foal, who was less than a day old, was found on Fendyke Road, Emneth, Norfolk last month (28 April) by two local riders.
It is believed the foal was dumped sometime between 9.30 and 10.30am.
Members of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Council made arrangements for the foal’s body to be collected.
It is not known who owned the foal or where it came from.
“When the council’s streetscenes operations manager arrived, two ladies from the local stables were present,” Sharon Clifton of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Council told H&H.
“One was holding the foal’s head and was very upset. Neither of the ladies knew where the foal had come from but they said it was a newborn, less than a day old, as it still had some of the umbilical cord attached.
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“As it wasn’t on private property, we made arrangements for a pet cremation service to collect it.”
The RSPCA also received a report of the dumped foal, but referred the caller to the council.
“We did receive a report, but as there appeared to be no suspicious circumstances our control centre referred the caller to the local authority,” said an RSPCA spokesman.
“Because we have limited resources we have to prioritise those animals that are suffering and are in need of our help.
“Sadly, these sort of incidents are common and reflect the problems local authorities, charities and other organisations have to deal with when irresponsible owners don’t meet their horses’ needs.”
Ms Clifton echoed the RSPCA comments.
“The irresponsible behaviour of others often means it is left to charities and local authorities to do the right thing and to pick up the bill,” she added.
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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.