A foal that was left for dead after being savaged by a Staffordshire bull terrier has won a prize in a national riding contest following a miraculous recovery.
Vet working to save young horse
The young horse sustained serious wounds and developed blood poisoning after being mauled by the vicious dog, but his callous owner simply left the chestnut warmblood cross to suffer rather than calling a vet.
The young horse sustained serious wounds and developed blood poisoning after being mauled by the vicious dog, but his callous owner simply left the chestnut warmblood cross to suffer rather than calling a vet.
Fortunately concerned members of the public saw the plight of the horses and called the authorities.
Bertie was just eight months old and was still suckling from his dangerously underweight mother when he was attacked by his owner's dog in the field he lived on with his mother, Kiwi. By the time Bertie was rescued by animal welfare investigators his injuries were so severe that he was unable to stand, had several wounds, a low body temperature and a rapid heart rate, and the vet was on the brink of putting him down - but changed his mind at the last minute to avoid upsetting a child that was on the site.
Instead Bertie and his mother Kiwi - who was by then so thin her ribs were protruding dangerously - were taken to Shores Hey Farm rescue centre in Briercliffe, Lancashire, where they began a remarkable four-year journey back to health.
Now plucky Bertie has rewarded his new masters by winning a rosette at Equifest - a national competition for rescue horses.
Later, the farmer, Simon Fielding, who owned the two horses and the dog was banned from keeping horses and ponies for ten years and ordered to pay £9,000 in legal costs after a landmark prosecution by equine charity the Horse and Pony Protection Association.