Starved “schoolmaster” in free ads

A severely emaciated gelding advertised for sale in a local paper has been rescued by the ILPH thanks to the efforts of a concerned horse lover.

Twenty-year-old, Danny Boy a 15.2hh dark brown gelding was advertised as a “light hack” for £695 in the free classified section.

Danny Boy was first seen at a livery yard in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, last August when an ILPH field officer and the RSPCA warned his young owner to take better care of him.

Shortly afterwards, the gelding was moved to another yard where he was subsequently advertised for sale. A prospective buyer who responded to the ad, was so horrified by his condition that she immediately contacted the ILPH.

Jacko Jackson, ILPH field officer said: “Danny Boy’s owner moved him after we had seen himlast year so we lost track of him, but thanks to the person who responded to the ad and contacted us, we were able to visit once again.”

The woman who responded to the advert did not want to be identified, but told Horse & Hound Online that when she arrived at the yard his owner seemed reluctant to remove his rug and insisted on keeping it on when she rode him.

“Danny was absolutely filthy and the owner told me she hadn’t groomed him for six months as she thought he would ‘benefit from the natural oils being left in his coat’.

“When I enquired about riding him, she said all her tack had been stolen, but she would hop on and ride him in his headcollar.

“When I finally asked to see him without his rug, she told methat he had lost quite a lot of weight over the winter and that she was trying to build him back up. She pulled the rug back leaving his quarters covered – I was so shocked by what I saw that I didn’t know what to say.

“I said I would think about buying him and let her know. I felt so sorry for Danny. I did consider buying him but after talking to some friends I realised I didn’t have the specialist knowledge to care for him.

“Instead I decided to ring the ILPH. They were fantastic – two hours after I first contacted them, they told me they had sent someone to visit him. A week later they told me he had been signed over to them.”

Danny Boy is now being cared for at Hall Farm, Snetterton.

Jacko Jackson says: “To say Danny is thin is an understatement – I really thought our vet would advise us to put him down, but he believes he has a good chance.”

For more information on the ILPH visit: www.ilph.org

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