Winter can be tough on the body as well as our stable bills but what about its' impact on our soul?
I've always loved winter - the earthy smells, nature's changing colour-scheme and heart warming soups and roasts. I love long woolly cardigans and gloves that stop me biting my nails!
Winter signals a time of 'slowing down' from my usually restless spirit until January 1st arrives, when the dawn of a new year allows me to awaken like a puppy, full of the joys of possibility.
Just as within a John Wyndham novel that awakening has consequences positive or otherwise, but definitely unexpected!
This winter introduced a new challenge which has made me wonder how I haven't faced it in the past? It seems that if you don't open your eyes and look around you - you won't see beyond the end of your nose! What you see isn't always attractive, but we must get better at looking!
It was mid December last year when during a regular Sunday walk to buy the papers, I caught a glimpse of a small herd of black ponies in a field that I'd never noticed there before. I peered through the hedgerow but they were too far away for me to see clearly.
Over the next few days, I slowed down each time I drove past the field trying to get a better view.
As Christmas approached I kept wondering whose they were and who was looking after them? During another Sunday morning walk, I noticed they were close to the fence bordering a car park of the local pub. I walked over to take a closer look.
They were a small herd of four ponies, including a foal. They wore head collars and one of them wore a rug. They didn't seem to be abandoned, yet where was the owner?
The more I looked around the more I realised they had no water, and no actual grazing. The field was not fit for animals to be on, the terrain was horrendous - with massive ruts not a part of it was flat. Worse, they were walking and climbing amongst pub debris - pint glasses, glass bottles, cans, wine bottles the like of which I've never seen!
The litter was horrific! These barefoot horses were walking amongst a death trap! They were covered in gorse bushes, burrs, wild Hawthorne branches hanging from their tails. It was a sad and sorry sight.
They were not feral, and eagerly met me at the fence line - when I say fence it was rusty strands of barbed wire, posts with nails sticking out into (field side). Another mountain of disasters waiting to happen.
I could see one of the ponies - in fact a young stallion about 3 in age, had horrendously neglected feet. The more I looked the more I disliked what I saw. To be honest, I can see why people walk away - better to not know and pretend it's not happening! I know, I felt the same way; helpless and ashamed of my fellow humans.
More and more the ponies spent time by the pub car park. One morning as I went to talk to them, a woman appeared from inside the pub and asked me if they were mine?
I felt outraged that anyone would think I would keep my horses in such a place and state! She was not horsey, but very emotional and upset about the ponies, she had a heart the size of Texas and wanted to know what she could do to help them.
Everything changed in that conversation.
She had been phoning the RSPCA daily to report these sad and hungry looking ponies. She was not a horsey person, yet she was willing to take action and do something! It was clear to me that I was a horsey person, so I could do a lot more and it was now time to do so.
I bought a massive red tub truck and three 25 litre water carriers. I went back to the field the same day and dragged 70 litres of water into the field for them to drink. They drank and drank and drank.
So my new weekly routine began.... it started with just trips with water, but then I began to buy hay. They were so appreciative, and so hungry.
January saw temperatures plummet into the minuses and no way I could keep driving by pretending it wasn't my problem, or my responsibility. Bottom line, while I had means to deliver and funds to buy food and water, why wouldn't I help them?
If not me then who?
If not now, then when?
I spent another Sunday clearing out the bottles and glasses from the field, and took it all to the tip. Each weekend I had to re do the exercise but the pub kindly let me tip my stuffed full bin liners of glass into their big dump bins which was a big help.
The lady from the pub and I became friends. We divided duties; I was on food and water duties, she was on RSPCA hounding duties. Eventually, the RSPCA did arrive, said they could do nothing and left!
On a more positive note the World Horse Welfare then arrived and left their business card. Long story short, over the next 3 weeks, the World Horse Welfare did come back and check on the ponies, of course their advise was to stop feeding and watering the horses but that's like telling someone to walk past a neighbour in need - no way JOSE - my friend and I were united in keeping doing what we were doing.
Just as I was getting into a regular pattern of building my new routine into an already busy day, 4 more ponies arrived in the same field! Horsey people had warned me this would happen, but it was still a shock when it did!
Yikes, now there were 8 hungry mouths to feed!
Sadly, only a couple of days later and the Horse Welfare guy had a conversation with a 'man' in the car park, who said 3 of the original 4 were his. He said he would be taking those 3 away, and within a couple of days they were gone. I happened to be driving by as the 3 were shoved into a two horse trailer and seeing the face of the foal staring out before the ramp went up was a heart wrenching image. I hated feeling unable to help or do anything.
This left the little stallion and the 4 new lighter coloured ponies.
The little stallion seemed to miss his initial field mates and called out for a couple of days. Then he seemed to accept his lot, although he didn't mingle as well with his new friends.
The new herd were very frightened of humans, but its amazing how skilled you can become at cutting out brambles in tails from a distance, to ensure I kept out of the kick zone!
Eventually a sign went up at various points in the car park and fence line ordering the horses to be removed within 14 days or they would be removed.
On day 12 they all disappeared!
My friend from the pub and I were gutted. Worried. Sad, and we both miss those little guys still now, after 4 weeks without them.
There is some good news. The 3 from the original 4 - well I've found them! Quite by chance, I was driving to Winchester and out of the corner of my eye went past a field and noticed three ponies. My instinct told me it was them. I stopped, turned round and drove back.
It was them! They were all cleaned up. They were on a flat field, with grass! They even had a pile of hay! The relief was huge and my heart sung as they came over to the fence line to say hi!
I drive around looking out for the 5 coloured and the little stallion who would melt the toughest of hearts. I hope to find them all again one day in better surroundings and well fed.
With all the comings and goings of horses, I had many occasion to wonder why? Why were horses being neglected and left without water and adequate food? What has happened to human compassion and responsibility? What have horses done to deserve such disrespect and hardship?
The problem appeared to be that the more I mused on these impossible questions, the more hopeless the situation seemed, as any Equine related charity will tell you.
What ive learnt is that the Charities are overwhelmed with reports of such incidents. They don't have adequate land or re-homing facilities. Their default solution is to take horses only when on deaths door and destroy them. Not what you and I are lead to believe when we watch TV adverts begging for our donations.
It remains for me to share what happens next in both my experience with these horses and with human beings - will good outweigh bad? Will right action correct wrong?
Find out more in my next post...
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