Woman banned for life after starving Shetlands found

A woman has been banned from keeping horses for life after three of her Shetland ponies were found emaciated.

The ponies, who were in a field in Burnham, Bucks, were in such a state that they struggled to stand.

Lynette Chamberlain, 63, of Calbroke Road, Britwell, Slough was also fined £2,000 and given a conditional discharge for two years at Slough Magistrates Court last week (Monday, 19 August).

She had pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering.

The ponies were found in February when members of the public called the RSCPA. Three of them were taken into the RSPCA’s care.

One chestnut, called Elsie, was so weak she was unable to stand on her own and had been held up by a passer-by until help arrived.

The RPSCA said that a skewbald mare called Tilly and a black Shetland mare called Daisy were “very lethargic and emaciated”. All three had to be carried to the van to be taken away.

“These poor ponies were so thin that as soon as you touched them you could feel every bone,” said RSPCA inspector Tina Ward.

“When I stroked Elsie my hand just fell into a gap between her spine and her pelvis. Her body was wet with mud and faeces and she was very unsteady on her feet — so lethargic that she seemed completely uninterested in anything around her.”

All three ponies have now been rehomed, and following the sentence a further eight ponies belonging to Chamberlain have been signed over to the charity’s care.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now