Stolen pony comes home
A 10-year-old girl has been reunited with her missing Shetland pony after a week of anguish
A week of uncertainty came to a happy end for 10-year-old Abigail Guest from Wall Heath, West Midlands, when she was reunited with her adorable chestnut and white Shetland pony earlier this month.
Pebbles, a 36ins high seven-year-old skewbald mare who is broken to ride and drive, went missing from her field between 1pm on Sunday 6 October and 11am on Monday 7 October.
“I arrived at the field after dropping Abigail and Jade at school on Monday morning to find the padlock on the gate was damaged,” explains Abigail’s mother, Melanie.
“Icouldn’t see either of the ponies, so I walked down the field to look for them. Jade’s pony was there but there was no sign of Pebbles. I walked around all the fences to make sure she hadn’t strayed, but in my heart I knew someone had taken her.”
A distraught Melanie called the police before setting out to search the local area.
“The girls were broken-hearted. They wouldn’t eat and were crying themselves to sleep at night. I didn’t think we would ever see Pebbles again.”
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Melanie contacted the RSPCA and Horsewatch, which advised her to keep looking for Pebbles and helped circulate the pony’s appearance to sales throughout the country.
“We were driving to my sister’s house for a christening the following Sunday when we saw some ponies tethered on wasteland. We stopped to have a look and to our amazement there was Pebbles.
“All her mane had been cut off, she only had a stumpy little forelock left and her tail had been hacked off just below the dock, but it was definitely her.”
Melanie organised for Pebbles to be picked up immediately and be taken to a friend’s yard, where Jade’s pony had been staying since the theft.
“It’s so good to have her back, but I’m really worried about putting the ponies back out in their own field,” says Melanie. “They have taken her once and I certainly don’t want to go through that again.”
PC Clive Blakemore of the Staffordshire Horsewatch was delighted to hear Pebbles had been found and said: “Finding this pony is a real boost for everyone involved with Horsewatch. It will encourage people to keep up the good work they are doing looking for stolen horses and should give owners of missing animals hope.”
To find out more about Horsewatch visit: www.ukhorsewatch.org.uk
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Carol is an experienced journalist and editor, who is also a passionate amateur rider and dedicated horse owner, having ridden since childhood. She has a particular interest in the emotional well-being and ethical training of horses, alongside veterinary matters, having garnered extensive first-hand experience of numerous equine health conditions through more than 30 years of horse ownership.