WIBU to ring the RSPCA? Would they even care? Horse related.

[ChuckleFucks]

Opposite our house is a field belonging to a large nearby farm. The farmer's son keeps horses there, really beautiful ex racehorses mostly. My 17yr old DD was mad about horses when she was younger and used to go riding, she's less obsessed now but still knows quite a lot about them and generally cares a lot for all animals. The gate to the field is opposite our house, the water trough is there too and it's in a bit of a dip so it gets very very muddy, as in a foot or so of sticky mud.

My DD saw one of the horses struggling in the mud last year out of her window and went round to the farmhouse to tell them, the owner was quite sniffy/patronising with her and DD was rather upset when she got back as she'd basically been told to mind her own business. After that the owner did put some wood chip down over the mud but it didn't help for more than a few days.

Yesterday morning DS (20, just back from uni for Christmas) was up early-ish to walk the dog and found one of the horses lying down thrashing around in the deep mud with a leg stuck in the fence. It had slipped in the mud and couldn't free itself, must have been there hours as it was sunk deep into the mud . DS sat with it trying to calm it down while I got the owner on the phone. It had to be put down there in the gate way 😭 both DS and DD were close to tears over it.

I assumed this would mean they actually sorted the mud out but this afternoon the remaining horses are still there in it! And I'm not talking a little bit of mud, it is really deep. DD and DS want to ring the RSPCA and report them as they are horrified, DD especially as she has literally said more than once that a horse could easily be hurt in mud like that and she tried to talk to the owner about it last year! But the owners are local landowners and very arsey, they have form for being really unpleasant to people locally who have crossed them and if we did report, they'd be sure to guess it was us. Would the RSPCA even care, as the horses are well fed and cared for otherwise? I don't ever want that to happen to another animal though. Just seeing it was really distressing and the thought of how the poor horse must have felt

The field is on a steep slope down to the gate, there is a big flat area further up but the water is down by the gate (unsure why tbh as the pipe comes down from the top of the field) and the owners feed them by the gate. The trough contsantly overflows which makes it even worse.

The mud is really deep. Welly-losing kind of deep. When the horse was on the ground, one of its legs was completely buried in mud. It really isn't just a little bit muddy, I'm a mud loving countryside dweller but this is extreme.

@KittenCatcher

The horses shouldn't be out in thick wet mud, there is nothing for them to eat its cold and they should be in stables.

How do you think horses manage in the wild?

OP, I'm sorry you and your children had to witness that but unfortunately mud is a perennial winter issue. Unless the owner can relocate the water supply to a higher area then I'm not sure what else they can do - although any fencing that a horse can get a hoof caught in should be removed.

I didnt say that, but whats the point in keeping a horse out in a cold wet field full of mud where its so bad one slips and has to be euthanized especially in the bad weather we have at the moment. .

Sarahlou63….they’re not wild horses….so that’s irrelevant

How awful for you all. Yes, I would absolutely call the RSPCA, as well as any more local animal welfare charities you can think of as well as local vet and British Horse Society.

Basically anyone until something is done to help those poor horses

I don't think RSPCA will help.
Is it worth speaking to the vet and asking them to speak to the owner?

I've done that with a neglected Cow once. If they know an animal is suffering they have a duty of care too, but to be honest I would ask the people directly why they haven't moved the horses/ water trough. Especially if they have lots of money or other land.

I highly doubt the RSPCA will do anything.

Personally, I think it is crueller to keep horses in stables 24 hours a day to avoid mud. It's not easy to eradicate mud this time of year. It's also difficult to judge this situation without seeing it. I presume it was stock fencing, but even with the best post and rail fencing accidents still happen sometimes unfortunately.

With all due respect, I doubt your daughter is that knowledgeable at 17 if she has never owned horses or managed their care.

Standing knee deep in mud 24/7, or out in a decent field during the day, then they start hanging round the muddy gate in the afternoon waiting to come back into their stables? Because the second scenario is perfectly normal, and in fact much healthier than the hundreds of horses who live in a 12'x12' box for several months a year.

Either way, honestly, I wouldn't bother reporting it. It's unlikely to have a significantly beneficial impact on the horses, and it's very likely to have an extremely negative impact on your own life (we also live under the shadow of the powerful local landowner)

Contact the Charity called World Horse Welfare, they're more likely to get involved than the RSPCA.

Horses + grass + wet = mud. Wherever they are fed, congregate to rest and/or to be brought in there will be mud in winter. We have 2 gates, one with hardstanding - we fence it off in winter as it becomes an ice skating rink as soon as the frosts start. We have 2 water troughs and move them when the area becomes deep around them, but there's only so many places they can go, and each place gets bogged up within a few days when it's wet.
As others have said it's hard to know without seeing the mud if it's unacceptable or not, my concern is more about the type of fence and the fact the horse managed to get a leg stuck to the point it was injured enough to not be able to get out or up, and needed to be PTS - if the fencing isn't suitable then this may well have happened anyway, without the mud, in an area where they all collect, bicker and wait their turn for a drink.

What is the rest of the field like? Is there grass for them to eat, less muddy areas? Do they get extra food or wear rugs?

My horse lives out with another older horse, all year round, they have hedges and a field shelter and although the bottom gets muddy as the field is on a slope, they aren't even really bothering to come for the hay we put out because they have plenty of grass. They wear rugs and are checked/fed daily. My horse has arthritis, he seizes up in a stable and becomes miserable when he stays in - horses need turn out and herd behaviour for them to be happy and healthy, they're not designed to be couped up 24/7 and unfortunately in winter that means mud. It sounds like these owners could do better with fencing and moving of the water trough regularly, but horses can and do hurt themselves regularly, even with the most careful management looking at you maverhorse! locking them away in a stable 24/7 to avoid mud isn't the answer.

Unusual for racehorse breeds to be turned out for significant periods during the winter, they aren't hardy breeds that cope well in cold and harsh conditions and are more prone to foot problems from soft and wet ground, also if that's the extent of their exercise they won't be in great condition. I'd report them but also look for advice from a more horse focused organisation such as Redwings.

If you ring, with hold your number....they will hound you for months for a donation....they rarely interested in animals...only want cash cash cash for the big mercs their directors drive about in !!

Definitely report. Dreadful people. ILPH may be another to contact. Horse rescue centres will probably do more than the RSPCA. If the horses are in danger, the police may have a word. Good Luck. Some people should never had animals.

On the other side of it, my horses always created huge muddy trenches in their fave spots or around troughs etc. We constantly filled them in but the gateways and troughs were a nightmare and churned up in days.
They had acres of land to roam on and chose to stand up up to their knees in it

It may be that no matter where the water source is this will happen because horses are very damaging to land especially with the wet weather we have had recently.

I personally don’t believe they are better off stabled. Better the freedom to stretch their legs, socialise, regulate their own temperature by moving and graze as they should. Stabling can often be worse for them.

From past experience I would be very surprised if they would do anything. They were not remotely concerned about thin horses in a field covered in 1ft of snow (so no access at all to grass) with no hay or water so I cannot imagine they would come out for mud

I have rang rspca about horses many times in my life. Always seen very speedy positive outcomes..
I do agree they can be crap about other animal issues..
Ring them op..

I’ve been reported to the RSPCA about my horses before, I had a very elderly mare that to be fair did look like a hat rack coming out of winter, but I was happy to explain that she was in her 30s and under veterinary management for her weight. I can’t see that anyone who has nothing to hide would object to a visit. Not all RSPCA inspectors will have detailed knowledge of large animals though, so might be worth contacting World Horse Welfare instead. Horse should have safe access to clean water at all times, and if they have plenty of land a visit might be the catalyst needed to move them to higher, drier ground.

This sort of thing wouldn't produce the headlines that the rspca need to investigate

The rsoca did bugger all when I reported a horse who had got its head stuck through a beoken window.

I’d call. Even if rspca do nothing then at least you’ve tried. They might not know it’s you - could be vet. Even if they did confront you say it was really upsetting to see horse die like that. If they are correct keeping animals in mud like that like that then rspca won’t take action.

Try World Horse Welfare. Much more proactive than RSPCA.

How terrible. Why was the horse killed, had it broken a leg ?
Worth contacting all welfare people suggested OP, as clearly it isn’t safe for the horses.

If the RSPCA think they might secure a prosecution then they might be interested. Otherwise unlikely.

The horses shouldn't be out in thick wet mud, there is nothing for them to eat its cold and they should be in stables.

I appreciate you mean well but horses in fields in winter means mud, almost inevitably. I’ve had horses at yards where the mud was so deep in places you’d struggle not to lose a boot in it but honestly, just because humans would like to be in snug warm houses does not mean that horses feel the same. They are designed, physically and mentally, to be outside and moving around. It is perfectly possible for horses to be living out, even when it’s muddy, as long as they are warm, fed and watered. As a PP says, how do you think wild horses cope?

My horse doesn’t cope well with being in too much, she gets stressed and her legs puff up (due to the lack of relative movement). So no, she shouldn’t be “in a stable” any more than is necessary.

It’s very sad about the horse that had to be put down but I’ve seen and dealt with similar accidents, even in dry and mud free fields. It happens, because the alternative is wrapping them up in cotton wool which isn’t fair on them.

Anthropomorphism doesn’t help anything. Nor does assuming owners don’t care because they’re “landed gentry types”.

Guidelines say they must have a dry area to stand and lie on.